Truth can be a tyrant.One of the criticisms levelled at the Catholic Church is that it is a form of tyranny, where the autonomy of individuals is crushed by the weight of fear and guilt.
But the Church isn't the cause of this human suffering. In actual fact, the real culprits are truth and the pursuit of truth.
By it's very nature truth is an awesome burden, and the pusuit of truth can create anxiety, guilt and turmoil.
An example of the anxiety caused by the pursuit of truth is scepticism. Anyone who has gone through a period of scepticism knows how much of a trial it is.
Sleepless nights, fear, torment and even despair are all part and parcel of sceptical thoughts.
Scepticism can last only for a moment or it can endure for years. It can affect a person's entire belief system or just a small part of that system but in every case it can be something terrible.
Hume and Descartes provide us with vivid descriptions of the suffering of the sceptic.
Both men went through extended periods of doubt about the power of their own reasoning, and their own lack of a secure grasp of truth.
The fact that others were confident in their grasp of truth wasn't enough by itself to remove their own anxieties.
A second example of the tyranny of truth is fear of error. This fear is created by our love of truth, as well as the relation that exists between our beliefs and actions. It is one of the features of belief that the things we judge to be true will inform our actions.
A change in our beliefs can lead us to judge our former actions differently, this can lead to remorse and guilt for actions we once believed in.
History provides us with many examples of this, but two spring immediately to mind, they are St Paul and St Augustine.
Upon their conversion both men deeply regretted their former behaviour and were very critical of their former selves.
The level of penance that they felt was required to make up for their former lives was extraordinary.
It is little wonder that people not only seek truth but also seek certainty, so that they don't end up in a life of regret. But this fear of error can be equally paralysing, ruining lives by creating indecision.
People also seek certainty to keep scepticism at bay. We often unnecessarily continue to seek sound reasons for our beliefs beyond what the demands of rationality strictly imply. We do this out of a fear that another bout of scepticism will be inflicted upon us.
This can create undue anxiety in the unfortunate person.
Finally the love of truth itself can create turmoil. People neglect those they love, some even neglect themselves in pursuit of truth. Fights can start and hearts can be broken all because of the pursuit of the often elusive goal of truth.
The Church lives in the belief that she can release the tortured soul from these paralysing fears.
This is achieved, not by turning away from truth but by embracing it in its fullness. The Church believes the phrase 'the truth will set you free' can be a beacon of hope to all truth seekers.
Often when people attack the Church for being tyrannical they have misunderstood her motives.
The Church understands and shares our situation but believes she can help us overcome our fears and guilt.
Whether she is right or not, it is certainly uncharitable to fault her motives.
When the Church is outspoken in opposition to things like abortion and gay marriage; when she is at her most authoritarian, even then she is motivated by compassion.
Indeed perhaps it is mostly at these times that she speaks with great love to the individual person, as she shares with each of us the onerous task of working out our own salvation 'in fear and trembling.'
SIC: CathBlog