In which room of your house do you do the most philosophizing? Where do reality and abstraction connect; where do mind and heart unite? For me, the answer has been pretty simple for a long time: The Bathroom!
So I was in the shower this afternoon when a long and winding rabbit trail hopped into my thoughts. Oh, it is still hopping -- as in, this post will help me begin the chase, but I think the answers are far beyond my ability.
So in my best imitation of the late Fred Rogers, from Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood: Want to come along?
Knowledge.
Merriam-Webster's first three definitions of "knowledge" -- "the fact or condition of knowing something with familiarity gained through experience or association"; "the fact or condition of being aware of something"; "the circumstance or condition of apprehending truth or fact through reasoning."
If we have knowledge about something, we communicate about it with some level of authority, or some level of credentials. If a star baseball pitcher tells you about curve balls, you accept his comments intuitively, since he probably knows what he is talking about. If he tells you about the "Mona Lisa," you may want to ask him how he learned about art. Maybe he has a degree in Renaissance painting -- then your respect and attention persist. Perhaps he thinks Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece is a mountain in Qatar -- then your feet take you away quickly and quietly!
This goes for knowing someone, too. If I tell you something about my precious two-year-old son, you might politely listen and believe what I am saying. If you did not, I might reasonably take offense. But if you, dear reader, and I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting, and if I am in no official or casual position to have any information about your family, and yet I try to inform you about them, I might offend you. I essentially would be babbling and it would not be worth your time to listen.
Humans are terribly good at gossip and / or discussing useless details. But when a communicator -- whether through verbal, written, or artistic means -- broadens the knowledge of at least one member of his audience, then that member can gain some real understanding of both me and my subject matter. Conversely, whoever or whatever I am discussing intelligently is something I know, or about which I have knowledge.
Street-level English usage weakens the power of the concept of knowledge or knowing. "Do you know so-and-so?" "Yes. I met him once a few years ago." The correct answer should be, "No. But I met him once a few years ago." The difference is subtle, but significant. You know the people and things you try to know. You do not know the people or things you do not try to know.
Recall the definitions above: knowledge comes "through experience or association" and by "apprehending truth or fact through reasoning." In each case, mental and / or physical effort is required on the part of the person who is seeking knowledge. Of course, the person or thing to be known has to be at least partially accessible, too.
Fine. How about the "knowledge of God"? God, even in a non-Christian sense, is a higher power, correct? Thus to know Him must take some effort on our part, along with some kind of permission and / or enabling on His part. Romans 5 calls it "access." The New King James Version of the Bible notes the "knowledge of God" three times in the Old Testament and five in the New Testament. Also, the phrase "know God" occurs twice in the O.T. and five times in the N.T. Each time, knowing God is portrayed as good, not knowing Him is shown as bad.
So how can we know God? Beyond the foundation of faithful prayer and Bible study, many passages and other writings address this topic. My main focus is on a different question: how much can we know God? This was where my mind got rolling in the shower this morning. This is where the word games really begin. This may be where an extra glimpse of God's majesty can be pondered. This is where I will resume next time, hopefully when it is not 2 a.m.!
Street-level English usage weakens the power of the concept of knowledge or knowing. "Do you know so-and-so?" "Yes. I met him once a few years ago." The correct answer should be, "No. But I met him once a few years ago." The difference is subtle, but significant. You know the people and things you try to know. You do not know the people or things you do not try to know.
Recall the definitions above: knowledge comes "through experience or association" and by "apprehending truth or fact through reasoning." In each case, mental and / or physical effort is required on the part of the person who is seeking knowledge. Of course, the person or thing to be known has to be at least partially accessible, too.
Fine. How about the "knowledge of God"? God, even in a non-Christian sense, is a higher power, correct? Thus to know Him must take some effort on our part, along with some kind of permission and / or enabling on His part. Romans 5 calls it "access." The New King James Version of the Bible notes the "knowledge of God" three times in the Old Testament and five in the New Testament. Also, the phrase "know God" occurs twice in the O.T. and five times in the N.T. Each time, knowing God is portrayed as good, not knowing Him is shown as bad.
So how can we know God? Beyond the foundation of faithful prayer and Bible study, many passages and other writings address this topic. My main focus is on a different question: how much can we know God? This was where my mind got rolling in the shower this morning. This is where the word games really begin. This may be where an extra glimpse of God's majesty can be pondered. This is where I will resume next time, hopefully when it is not 2 a.m.!
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