Extreme Truth with Dr. Richard Knodel

One of the pains of getting older comes in attempting to accept changes, even embrace changes, rather than staying stuck in old ways and acting precisely like the old people at whom you used to roll your eyes. By allowing myself to be stereotyped as an old curmudgeon in the introduction to this show, I guess I've admitted that I don't intend to bend over backward to embrace the latest trendsetting fashions. Perhaps the most difficult of all changes for me are those that come into the world of ideas and language. I knew I was in trouble last November when the Oxford University Dictionary changed the definition of "woman." Really? 

How am I to talk if you change the meaning of words on me? If this is starting to sound too obtuse, take the time to watch the 2019 movie entitled "The Professor and the Madman" with Mel Gibson and Sean Penn. The meaning of words does matter and helps us as we try to understand and navigate the world around us, not to mention relationships within that world. 

Now I can admit to being a bit pedantic about some things, and I know for a fact that our special guest today can be, but at some point, I have to put my foot down and scream, "This Matters." It isn't just words. It is words.

Have I lost you yet? Let me give you one example, one word, and then see where it takes us. Ready? TRUTH. What does the word "truth" mean? 

Growing up, I learned that everyone could have opinions, some more right than others, and the essence of good conversation was exchanging ideas to learn and be influenced by others. All decent people were seeking the truth, so such discussions were outstanding. But something happened. Somebody switched the definition of "truth" with opinion. Instead of "the truth," people were talking about "my truth."

If I try to explain my confusion any further, I'll confuse myself, so today we have as a guest the author of LIFESTYLE: A Biblical/Philosophical Study of Christianity & the Culture it Produces. Maybe he can help.

From Western Ohio, welcome Dr. Richard Knodel to Church Hurts And.

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