We're reading Plato's Republic in my Western Political Thought class...it's meaty...but it's gotten me thinking. Like everyone else, I view the world through my life's experiences, for me the defining one being meeting Jesus Christ. So, reading the allegory of the Cave, I resonate with coming out of the cave, not to enlightened thinking, but to God. In a nutshell, the men are bound in the cave and see only shadows of the real world. One is set free and finally sees the world as it is, the sun that gives all things life, and then goes back to get the other men out. For most of my life, I knew about Jesus, and knew him in a way...but when I let him set me free from my selfish nature and bring me into his loving arms, I began to see the world differently. I could see purpose because I knew its creator. I could see beauty because I had met the source of beauty. I could experience joy because I knew the giver of joy. I could love because I knew true love. The material world began to fade. I could wake up knowing why I did.
Back to Plato; I did seek truth in reason for a long time. There is truth in reason. But reason alone does not give the world meaning, and it does not encompass truth. Often it brings more confusion and cynicism. Nonetheless, I find it interesting that this desire for reality, for something beyond us, exists universally. Everyone is trying to get out of the cave somehow. Whether it be intellectually, materially, relationally...we're all searching. I don't claim to have all the answers, but I can say that I am experiencing ultimate truth in Jesus and it is something glorious.
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