Truth In 1984

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Although Christ has already defined truth, the world busies itself with searching for its definition of truth and mindlessly naively lies as truth. In the Bible, truth is in Christ; in society today, truth is whatever feels right; in 1984, Big Brother governs truth. In John 18, Jesus tells Pilate he is the truth; however, Pilate is unsatisfied with the answer, much like our society today. In response to dissatisfaction with the truth, they bend lies into truth. Jesus also asks Pilate if he based his idea of truth on what other people say. This question applies to the citizens of Oceania because rather than searching for truth on their own, they mindlessly accept the truth presented to them by Big Brother. Although Jesus and Facts establish …show more content…

In John 18:36, Jesus tells Pilate that "...for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice"(John 18:36 English Standard Version). In this quote, Jesus says that his purpose on earth was to proclaim the truth, and those who know the truth will also know Him. Everything that came out of Christ's mouth was the truth, so if Pilate wanted to know the truth, He should listen to His teachings. Jesus also explains that those who seek truth will find it through a relationship with him. For example, in John 14:6-7, Christ proclaims, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also"(John 14:6-7 English Standard Version). If you seek to know Him, you will find unwavering truth. The Bible also declares the reward for seeking the truth in Daniel 9:13, which says, "…yet we have not entreated the favor of the Lord our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth"(John 14:6-7 English Standard Version). By rejecting sin and searching for truth people can find favor in God. Although the Bible declares that truth comes from Jesus, our society rejects the …show more content…

Jesus says, "Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?"(John 18:34 English Standard Version) In this verse, Jesus points out that some people, like the citizens in 1984, define truth as whatever other people say. The people in 1984 stopped seeking truth and blindly accepted what others said was true without questioning it. One of the examples of the lies that people blindly received as valid in 1984 was the Ministry of Truth. Wilson explains that in the Ministry of Truth, Wilson explains, "The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became the truth"(Orwell 57). The purpose of this Ministry was to change historical documents to make lies into facts and foundations by changing historical documents and regulating media, and people accepted it without question. George Orwell expands on this idea by saying, "And if all others accepted the lie...then the lie passed into history and became truth" (Orwell 110). It is not enough for one person to accept the lie; instead, they have to work to get the entire population to believe it for it to become true. After being forced, through fear, to believe certain things, the people began to accept the lies of Big Brother and love him on their own accord. Oceania founded itself on lies that were universally excepted and were too afraid to question the possibility of the truth