Truth

When someone sincerely agrees with an assertion, they are claiming that it is the truth. Epistemology, the study of knowledge, seeks solutions for the many philosophical problems associated with truth.

Other uses of "Truth"

In addition to its use in reference to propositions, there are other uses of "truth" and "true" in the English language:

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• most often applied to people, and is used as a commendation, synonymous with "loyal", as in she is true to her friends. This sense of truth should be contrasted with being fake, insincere, misleading and so on.
• True can mean "in accordance with a standard or archetype," which is how it is used in "He is a true Englishman."
• True in engineering and construction can be used as meaning "straight", not warped but in the same flat plane - as the spokes of a wheel.

Double truth

In thirteenth century Europe, the Roman Catholic Church denounced what it described as theories of "double truth," i.e. theories to the effect that although a truth may be established by reason, its contrary ought to be believed as true as a matter of faith.

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The condemnation was aimed specifically at a "Latin Averroist," (see Averroës), Siger of Brabant, but it was more broadly an attempt to halt the spread of Aristotle's ideas, which the reconquest of Spain and, accordingly, access to the libraries of the Moors had re-introduced into the Latin literate world. At the time, much of the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church was based upon neoplatonic ideas, and Aristoteleanism struck many as heresy. Siger and others seem to have conceded this, and to have used the sharp reason/faith distinction that came to be known as "double truth as a way of legitimizing discussion of Aristotle despite that concession.

Related Topics:
Averroës - Siger of Brabant - Aristotle - Roman Catholic - Neoplatonic - Heresy

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True testimony

Witnesses who swear under oath to testify truthfully in courts of law, are not expected to make infallibly true statements, but to make a good faith attempt to recount an observed event from their memory or provide expert testimony. That what one witness says may differ from true accounts of other witnesses is a commonplace occurrence in the practice of law. Triers-of-fact are then charged with the responsibility to determine the credibility or veracity of a witness's testimony.

Related Topics:
Witness - Swear - Oath - Testify - Court - Law - Good faith - Event - Memory - Expert testimony

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