Learning To Bring All Things Into One Whole

Non-Fiction:

noun

- Prose writing that is based on facts, real events, and real people, such as biography or history.

Notice the subjects in these images from a library's 'non-fiction' section.

I'll briefly mention and elaborate on a few.

The subjects are: UFO's, Computers, Encyclopedias, Psychology, Self-Help, Book Trade, Astrology, Witchcraft, Bibles, Sexual Ethics and Modern Philosophy.

Look through the various definitions of the word 'fact' and how the word 'fact' can be expressed.

Some of the non-fiction items are believed-to-be phony, false or not true in popular culture.

Are they?

For example, lots of people deny the Bible being true...and say it is merely fictional literature containing undependable histories and myths intermingled with imaginary characters (a typical polemic).

Is this so?

Take a look at the ongoing debate regarding the Bible's historicity.

As the past is made clearer with every subsequent year of study, research and understanding, what was once considered 'myth' (fiction) by naysayers is becoming more reality and fact; a work of non-fiction.

The the same has been realized regarding what was previously believed-to-be 'truths', but have been instead clearly recognized as mythology.

One such subject that has been accused to be a myth and also a fact of truth are the biblical and historical claims regarding Yeshua / Jesus Christ.

The secular historical research has confirmed Christ's life and death; there was in fact such a person.

The resurrection, being historical anomaly, is also testified to have been a factual event despite disbelief.

Mankind has developed a variety of systems, cultures, religions and methods of thought.

The 'Modern Philosophy' and 'Psychology' subjects summarize past methods of thought defining our human experience against a backdrop of historical facts and the study of such ideas.

From a backdrop that people can in fact be selfish, loving, gracious, honorable, wicked, etc., several philosophies and religions have arisen.

Some philosophies and religions are arguably based on fictional characters (like Greek mythology, for example), yet the 'story' told within those mythologies and religions speak to thoughts and experiences people have in every day life.

The 'stories' speak to facts of life, but in a fictional manner.

Although the characters are not 'real', the stories are very real when we look at ourselves, others and mankind as a whole.

Notice the Book Trade of fictional writers... and what makes up the vast majority of movies (entertainment) that also speak to our life experiences.

Despite the characters and details of a movie's or book's story being mostly, if not all, fictional (made up), the observer / reader can sometimes relate with the fictional characters portrayed in the art form.

Someone who has ever struggled with alcoholism and thoughts of self-importance can reflect upon the mythical figures of Dionysus and Narcissus.

At those articles you can read about how ideas about these two characters varied over time, with some themes consistent, some themes elaborated and changing altogether.

These fictions speak to the facts of the human experience.

They serve a purpose in explaining human nature, a person's character (and struggles), and also speak to understanding.

Whether these two particular characters ever factually existed as humans and their examples were elaborated into mythology, can arguably be secondary to the ideas their characters have served modern philosophy, psychology and mankind's understanding of himself.

Some eastern religions have similar characters (gods) like those developed in Greek mythology, whose details vary depending on the region those ideas have reached and whose details have taken on a life of their own (progressive mythology).

A fictional character invented for a specific purpose is the tooth fairy.

The tooth fairy is a mythical character to assist a child with the fear and anxiety of losing a tooth, giving them something to look forward to; a gift.

It is a fact that people have heard about a tooth fairy, but it is not a fact that such a fairy exists.

Besides the argument whether such fictions should be told to children, the reality that such ideas are invented to placate life's pains could explain the mythologies and religions of the past.

It should be noted that I don't call an individual's relationship with God a 'religion' although people do perceive and manipulate such an experience as a religion (set of do's and do not's and so forth).

A man's relationship with his wife is not a religion.

Although many Self-Help books have been written to assist marriages, following relationship prescriptions written by others can become a religious affair not assisting the relationship.

An example of a fact being made into a mythology is the 4th century Saint Nicholas.

This man surely existed and left quite a lasting impact.

Over time, this man's honorable character was eventually turned into a mythological theme (Santa Claus)...seen today as another childhood assistant of sorts.

Every culture and society has its peculiarities and growing pains from a darker past, or times of trouble where pain was realized for either the subjects or the managers of a culture and society.

Similar to our individual experience and our limited horizon, cultures and peoples have difficulty seeing past their collective limited horizons.

Seeing past the limited horizons are the fictional characters developed the world over through philosophy, religion and so on.

The internet allows mankind consistent learning opportunities to differentiate the light from the darkness, the semblance of non-fiction from a fiction describing a fact.

What is light and what is dark can differ widely from one culture to another, while there can be some similarities.

Telling the light from the darkness is not always centrically (from one's own cultural center) clear, but sometimes only identifiable from the outside.

The world's libraries are at our finger tips, with mostly free access to non-fictional content.

Non-fiction works are typically evaluated for factual content, proper citations supporting claims and honesty prior to publication.

Online self-publishing is a different story, mostly revealing opinion intermingled with propaganda with touches of facts throughout.

The internet itself can be called a library of sorts, but the checks and balances of what qualifies as non-fiction isn't always easy to tell from the fictions.

Why is this?

The internet resembles more a bazaar filled with the bizarre.

Something odd, strange or bizarre doesn't necessarily mean it is untrue...but simply widely unknown and challenging to accept, comprehend or understand.

Looking at the list of what is called 'non-fiction' could be disconcerting to some people.

Not everything that is for sale is valuable just as not everything that is for free is worthless.

Because something factually exists doesn't mean it should be explored or pursued.

I don't usually suggest sticking one's head in the sand, but some subjects are not worth focusing on.

This is what some people choose to do regarding Christ and what is defined as light, righteousness and love.

So it is no surprise people choose to pursue the subject of witchcraft, for example, when others would know better than to be intrigued by such a subject.

In one distant corner of the internet you'll find published and peer-reviewed non-fiction.

In another corner you'll find fringe facts with hypothesized conclusions bridging facts and theories (the UFO subject).

The other two corners of the internet and the vast space between all corners is made up largely of opinion, ignorance and entertainment with a rare and occasional jewel of honesty amongst the confusing rabble (a non-fiction book misplaced in the wrong section).