"Of course reality must be self-consistent: but till (if ever) we can see the consistency it is better to hold two inconsistent views than to ignore one side of the evidence."
Does this principle, applied across a wide spectrum of issues and highly-contested debates, hold true? Is this the inevitable conclusion we must sometimes face when at a loss for understanding (as in a scientific example Lewis cites earlier in this piece to bolster his argument) or do inconsistencies simply imply there is more work to be done toward reaching understanding? At what point is it (if it is ever) wise, prudent, and noble to acknowledge that no more can be done and the best explanation is that we simply can't know the present answer; to assume that all the presupposed assumptions that have led us to a crossroads are true, regardless of seeming contradictions?
I have a need to make sense of and find the logic in order to accept something as truth. I assume that contradiction and inconsistency indicate a flaw among whatever has been presupposed. Which is why at first glance I shrank back at Lewis' words, scratched my head and thought I must be reading him wrong.
To be fair, Lewis isn't saying there is no absolute truth. He's just acknowledging our human incapacity to always see it clearly, and sometimes the best thing to do is lay down your shovel and stop digging. And I'm sure Lewis would be the first to say this principle should be applied sparingly on a case-by-case basis, as a last resort, once all other forceivable explanations and options have been exhausted. Still, it feels like intellectual laziness, doesn't it? And if there are absolute truths, they will eventually come to light, won't they?
I'm beginning to see where my continual 'digging' doesn't always even produce the real results I'm looking for. Sometimes it just means I'm attempting to force an issue so I can feel more comfortable with it. So I can feel I have a neat little answer, the right answer, the superior logic. And sometimes that's more damaging and futile than if I had just left it alone.
The funny thing is, after pondering this all night, I saw a tweet this morning with another quote, also attributed to Lewis: "It's not the things that I don't understand that convict me, it's the things that I do understand."
I don't know if he actually said this because I can't seem to find the quote, but it struck me as something of a rebuke for my earlier tirade and I find it ironic that both are at least attributed to Lewis. As if God was saying,
"You just worry about doing the things you know you ought to be doing and stop worrying about figuring it all out." Just goes to show, it's forever a balancing act...
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