“Truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come...

“The Spirit of truth is of God.” [1]

“The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.”[2]

By these verses we learn that truth is knowledge of things as they are, as they were, and as they are to come.

God is the possessor of all truth! Indeed, the glory of God is His intelligence, that He has all light and truth.

I wish that I could just leave it at that and move on; but western culture requires a more detailed explanation of what truth is, or more specifically, what it is not. Our perception of truth is complex; after all, there is nothing so complex as perception. 

To be blunt, most of what we call truth isn’t truth at all! We may call it truth, but what we are doing is hijacking a very simple, yet powerful word to mean something else entirely different from its core meaning. To illustrate this, I have coined several new terms as derivatives of truth in order to demonstrate how truth is derived, viewed, manifest, and manipulated in so many different ways.

Cognitive Truth is our perception of truth based on our individual experiences and processes of thinking and reasoning. But it is vital to understand that often our perception of truth is not truth—it is only perception.

Cognitive Reality is our perception of reality based on our individual experiences and processes of thinking and reasoning. But again, it is vital to understand that our perception of reality is often not reality—it is only perception.

Likewise, Possessive Truth is the product of one’s Cognitive Truth and Cognitive Reality. Expressions like “your truth,” “my truth,” “our truth,” and “their truth” refer to mere perceptions of truth and reality. But at the end of the day, these are ludicrous catch phrases aimed at giving efficacy and validity to differing, subjective points of view and (more often than not) alternative moralities and values. And quite frankly, expressions of Possessive Truth are typically nothing more than audacious expressions of false virtue.  

Diluted Truth is a mixture of truth with error. It is recognized that most of what we call truth is actually Diluted Truth. As humans, we are famous for being duped by expressions and perceptions of Diluted Truth most of the time.

Normative Truth is what a group, community, culture, or society generally agrees to be true. The problem is that real truth is not democratic. We do not get to vote and collectively decide what is true. Cultural, political, religious, and institutional expressions of Normative Truth are always agenda driven. The problem is that truth determined by an agenda or wishful thinking cannot be honest. Truth is truth; it does not matter what you really want the truth to be. But this does not stop anybody from pretending that the truth must conform with what they want it to be.

We find that most cultural beliefs, cultural traditions, holiday traditions, popular political doctrines, and church doctrines are examples of Normative Truth. The tendency most people have to embrace Normative Truth in rejection of Punitive Truth is one of the most self-limiting and destructive things we do.

One form of Normative Truth is something philosophers refer to as Complex Truth, which asserts the validity of multiple perspectives as nuanced expressions of a collective cognitive reality. This is a tool used by working groups to find common ground, understand differences of opinion, and arrive at solutions that are universally beneficial, or beneficial in achieving targeted objectives. Complex truth is normative truth established by a committee. Religious creeds, written constitutions, party platforms, company values, ideas about political correctness, and groupthink ideas are all products of Complex Truth.

Truth is not subjective; but many people promote a type of Subjective Truth asserting a reality as defined by alternate perspectives, emotionally influenced deductions, shifting values, situational ethics, and agenda-driven objectives. Most expressions of “truth” as expressed by humans are subjective.

On the other hand, genuine Objective Truth asserts a reality as defined by consistent values, eternal principles, dispassionate non-agenda driven assessment, and empirical data. Truly scientific deductions which are honest, dispassionate, nonbiased, non-agenda-driven, and which stand the test of time are examples of Objective Truth.

Genuine truth is empirical. Empirical Truth asserts a reality based on what is experienced, seen, and tested, rather than on theory or conjecture. It asserts a reality based on thoroughly cross-examined evidence, scientific deduction, and objective analysis.

Genuine truth is pragmatic. Pragmatic Truth asserts a reality based on real-life, functional, consistent, predictable principles and outcomes. Pragmatic Truth asserts principles, laws, doctrines, and formulas calculated to reliably predict results.

Genuine truth is absolute. Absolute Truth presents a reality independent and transcendent from the limitations of human perception. Absolute truth is the total, complete, comprehensive, undiluted, un-skewed, undistorted, infinite view of real reality, past, present, and future; and it accounts for what would otherwise happen within in all alternate timelines and scenarios. Absolute truth reflects things as they really are. It’s that simple. Absolute truth is God’s truth.

Genuine truth is also punitive. It tends to punish you when you are wrong or in the wrong. Punitive Truth is the absolute truth that does not care about your feelings and has no hesitancy in condemning any flaw or half-truth. Remove all the sugar-coating, sophistry, ulterior motives, deception, defensiveness, arrogance, self-aggrandizing, human error, ignorance, and subjectivity, and you are left with what I call Punitive Truth.

Then we have Definitive Truth, which is truth as it can be defined or described verbally or in print. Predictably enough, definitive truth is often restricted, warped, twisted, and altered by the failings of languages, word choices, connotations, differing perceptions, individual assumptions, biases, and cognitive abilities of those involved in the exchange. Hence, we find that verbal statements of definitive truth are never complete; there is always more that could or should be said to clarify things. This being the case, we often need to be more understanding and forgiving in our attempted communications where definite truth is all we have to work with.

Genuine truth is always cohesive. Hence, Cohesive Truth is characterized by all the facts, principles, laws, arguments, and details fitting together in an unbroken chain of logic and intelligent explanation. By contrast, the imperfect and flawed expressions our possessive truth all have broken links in their logic and explanations. Cohesive truth does not.

To sum things up, Absolute Truth is God’s truth. God’s truth is cohesive. It is genuine. Everything else is merely perspective and narrative.

Expressions of Limited Truth	Expressions of Genuine Truth
Cognitive Truth Possessive Truth Diluted Truth Normative Truth Complex Truth Subjective Truth Definitive Truth	Objective Truth Empirical Truth Pragmatic Truth Absolute Truth Punitive Truth Cohesive Truth God’s Definitive Truth

It might be easy to mistake the models of truth I am suggesting as binary. To suggest truth as binary would be naïve and ridiculously simplistic. Truth is qualitative. Within a single expression of cognitive truth, there generally exist elements or echoes of absolute truth blended with error. We progress by recognizing and targeting the error and replacing it with genuine truth.

God’s possessive truth is the ultimate standard for absolute truth, which is why being imbued with the Holy Spirit of God, which transmits the mind and power of God, is of such inestimable value.

Our task as mortals is to embrace the highest quality of truth possible.

Those who are faithful to the genuine truth they have are able to progress and ascend. Those who fail to be faithful to the genuine truth they have are limited in their progression and restricted to lesser forms and kingdoms of creation.

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[1] Doctrine and Covenants 93:24, 26

[2] Doctrine and Covenants 93:36

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