Should Christians focus on love or truth?

One of the key themes in Kierkegaard, and really in the whole of a survey of Christianity is to note the tension between faith and works. It has struck me that every generation tends to put one over and above the other, and each generation seems to be rebelling against the previous by selecting the opposite emphasis.

From what I’ve gleaned in literature, a century ago truth was more important than love. Having a proper faith, correct creeds, constant reflection on Christ, was Christianity. No longer, especially with the rise of the post-modernism and the emergent Church. Now it’s more important to practice faith, not hold faith, it’s important to live hoping in God, rather than assert our hope in God, faith is now a verb, not a thing. I believe Kierkegaard is responsible for this shift.

There has been, in the literature, a dialectical tension between truth and love. Truth, properly called orthodoxy is contrasted with love, properly called praxis, or practice. Some time ago it was common for Christians to repudiate going to the movie theater. Perhaps it’s true that the theater is a waste of time for Christians, but is something lost in the relationship when we rebuke a brother or sister on such a superfluous principle; or show the culture that our stand is on a non-essential issue?

The superficial issue our current culture seems to be obsessed with is homosexuality; the orthodox seem obsessed with calling homosexuality a sin, while the praxis seem obsessed with showing love to the homosexual community and their advocates without even labeling it a sin as the Apostle did.

This tension is at the heart of the Christian dialectic. It is the same tension one finds in the history of philosophy, going back to Socrates and Plato who sided with reason over passion, during a conflict of the two.

The knee-jerk reaction for us as Christians is to synthesize. Christianity is not simply a message, nor is it simply a way of life, but it is a way of life founded on a message. In Hegel’s terms we find a thesis (orthodoxy/truth), an antithesis (praxis/love), and a synthesis. We form a triad of Christian philosophies; the thesis, the antithesis, and the synthesis.

Hegel tempts me to label them the Father (truth), the Son (love), and the Holy Spirit (synthesis). Freud would have us say the superego (Truth), the id (Love), and the ego (synthesis). Nietzsche would say the Apollonian (truth), the Dionysian (love), and the marriage of the two (synthesis). Or the most deeply philosophical outlook, Spock (truth), Dr. McCoy (love), and Captain Kirk (synthesis).

The investigation of this tension finds the orthodox siding with Socrates and Plato - who place reason above passion. The orthodox put truth over love, and claim love, or good works, is a component of our faith in God, or rather love is a consequence of our possession of truth - not merely our seeing the truth, or our professing the truth, but our actual possession of the truth. Good works are merely the result of our faith in God, they are the playing out of faith, but faith and proper belief is absolutely prior for a Christian.

The praxis view is that which places living the Christian faith as the most fundamental thing we can do as Christians. We do not want to be like the Pharisees, who place words above love. Everything Job’s friends said can be found elsewhere is scripture, they espoused proper doctrine, but failed to espouse proper love. Job’s friends spoke of God, but Job had the relationship with God and talked to God rather than about God. Even though Job had rotten words to say to God, and terrible propositions, God valued the relationship more than true propositions about Him.

The synthetic view that places truth on par with love and view, and (if I may steal a line from C.S. Lewis) the synthetic sees the debate between the two as similar to the debate between which blade on a pair of scissors is most important. Both neglecting our studies or neglecting our relationships are splendid examples of unchristian behavior.

The orthodox can ask of the praxis, is it true that we ought to be in a relationship with God? If so, then truth is prior to love; and truth is more fundamental than love. The praxis can ask of the orthodox, why do you care so much about truth? Our love of truth is due to our relationship to the Truth - our love of truth advances the notion that love is prior to truth; love is more fundamental than truth.

All three of these are absolutely at odds with one another. I see the question as central because we have to be good stewards of our time; do we focus more heavily on study or loving others? Either truth is more important than love, less important than love, or equal with love. I hope I have been absolutely fair to each view, and made each sound persuasive. All three are completely irreconcilable, all three are completely scriptural.