Serving Truth Right
Would you like to live all your life without light, surrounded only by darkness and traps that you stubble into one by one, because you cannot see the right and safe path? This is what awaits anyone who lives his life without the truth, in captivity of lies. For others this fruitless life can be pushed upon them, when those surrounding them tell them the truth, but in a deleterious way- this will drive the listeners to insanity. So the following question arises: how should we share the truth with our loved ones, in order to help them live a life full of light and love? By looking at the symbols of the two different synagogues and their lighting, in chapters 7 and 18 of The Chosen, we can answer this question, and see that the way truth is taught and the environment in which the truth is taught, greatly affect an individual, as well as his life now and in the future; this is important because the knowledge of this issue is crucial, in order for us to live a thrilling life and see our loved ones blessed with joy.
The eagerness with which one strives to know the truth and his ability to accept it, greatly depends on the way the truth is served to the individual, whether one will enjoy it or hate it. A quote from chapter can serve as a great metaphor, “the naked light bulbs seemed ugly”(280). Once you think about it deeper you realize the depth of this statement. First you must imagine that you have been living with electricity your whole life, but if it goes out during the night you are pinned to one spot not daring to move. Once the light goes on you are filled with relief and a sense of peace. From this example we can conclude that light and any lamp that shades it, is a wonderful thing that brings comfort in darkness. So what does it take for a light bulb to start looking ugly? The fact that the light bulb is naked plays the main role. The presentation of truth as a light bulb is profound and substantial, because it clearly illustrates that if truth is exposed to someone nakedly, with no love, compassion or sympathy, it is agonizing for them, just like a light bulb with no lamp shade will burn the eyes of anyone who looks up at it. This proves that the way truth is unmasked before someone is what will either reconcile or destroy a person’s life, and maybe not the truth itself.
The environment in which we receive the truth can affect our welcome for it, much more than the truth we receive itself. In The Chosen two types of the synagogues are described. The first type is “…badly lighted, musty rooms, with benches or chairs crowded together and with windows that seemed always to be closed…”(112), and the second type, the one Reuven goes to, is described as follows: “… a large grocery store…, the sun shown in through the uncurtained portion of the glass, and I loved to sit there on a Shabbat morning, with the gold of the sun on the leaves of my prayer book, and pray”(112). Each of these two synagogues represents an environment in which truth can be taught to an individual. In the symbol of first synagogue and the light in it we can see that even though truth is taught, there isn’t enough light, which in this passage, is a symbol for love, present in order for the truth to have a positive effect in a person’s life. We can also see that the synagogue does not provide enough space, which can be seen as a metaphor for spiritual space, for an individual to assimilate truth and incorporate it into their lives. In comparison with the first synagogue, Reuven’s synagogue is a large, spacious room, which has plenty of light. Sitting and praying in this synagogue brings joy and satisfaction to Reuven. This is not only because of the physical characteristic described above, but because there is enough love demonstrated in the environment, as well as emotional and spiritual space to meet the needs of Reuven, to give him freedom to accept the tough and troublesome truth of the world that surrounds him. In all of this we can clearly see, that the setting in which the truth is presented to us, might have a greater impact than the truth in its essence.
The understanding of the concept that the way truth is laid out and the environment in which this is done, might have more lasting effects, for the person, than the truth, which is revealed. This concept is pivotal in how we share the truth with those around us, and will define whether or not we bring healing to those we love and care about. The concept is essential for us if we want to be witnesses of Christ’s love and compassion, not the society’s mockery and indifference. All of us have to make the decision to apply this to our lives and afterward live joyously, as well as bring joy and comfort to others. The sooner we make this decision, the brighter we can shine and more significantly impact those who desperately need our help. What is more important is that this concept, if we choose to live it out, will make us more like Christ. That is what our goal as Christians is, therefore, this concept, if acted upon, will help us succeed in the purpose God gave us.
Prologue
Prologue
The goal of this
essay, Serving Truth Right, was to present to the readers the following thesis:
Truth by itself cannot bring healing and is of no comfort to an individual, but
rather it is the way you present the truth and the environment one person is
when receiving and processing it, that makes the truth a tool of destruction or
on the other hand a way to invigorate a person. After this my goal was to I back
it up with proof from real experiences, but also from The Chosen and make the readers think and consider the possibilities
and changes this thesis may bring into their lives.
I used strong,
dark, hopeless words (“captivity, fruitless, deleterious, insanity)” to paint a
clearer picture of the horrors that await those who reject the truth and to
better portray the state a person like this most likely will be. Words that
create a feeling of disgust for evil and cruel truth (“ugly and naked”) are
also part of the post. They are included because they make the person realize
how repulsed they are by truth which has no love in it. I used figurative
language to appeal to the reader’s personal experience, so that he would be
able to connect with the material in the essay on a more personal and much
closer level. Not many get an image in their head when you say “truth”, but by
using a personification (“truth is unmasked”) I give a person an image to hold
on to, while reading my essay. Also, most people have seen or even worn masks,
whether literal or figurative, so this personification connects their
experience with the main thought in the essay. Another way I connected the
readers experiences with the thesis of the essay is by using imagery in an
example of a life without light, as well as the imagery of a light bulb (“First
you must imagine that you have been living with electricity your whole life,
but if it goes out during the night you are pinned to one spot not daring to
move. Once the light goes on you are filled with relief and a sense of peace.”
“…a light bulb with no lamp shade will burn the eyes of anyone…”). These words
create an image in the reader’s mind, therefore providing a way to understand
and even experience the thought of the paper, even if only in his head. I also
used a lot of interrogative sentences in this paper, to make the reader think
for himself and consider the things he has not thought of before, before giving
him the answers I have found (“Would you like to live all your life without
light, surrounded only by darkness and traps that you stubble into one by one,
because you cannot see the right and safe path?” “So what does it take for a
light bulb to start looking ugly?”). This syntax draws the reader in and makes
the reader interact with the essay on a more personal and exclusive level. My
tone in this essay is casual, yet authoritative and instructive. The casual
part can be seen in the powerful, yet understandable diction (light, darkness,
traps, stubble, and path). It is also casual because the syntax makes it
evident and obvious to the reader that their opinion and perspective is
welcome, rather than the reader being forced and compelled to believe the thesis
I, as the author, present. This can be seen in the following sentences: “So
what does it take for a light bulb to start looking ugly?” “So the following
question arises: how should we share the truth with our loved ones, in order to
help them live a life full of light and love?”. The authority and instruction can
be seen in such phrases as, “you must imagine”, “this concept is pivotal”, “the
concept is essential for us” and “all of us have to make the decision to apply
this to our lives”.
Therefore by
using diction, detail, figurative language, imagery, syntax and tone I achieved
the goal of presenting my thesis, backing it up and making the essay, Serving
Truth Right, appealing and intriguing.
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