The meaning of truth

I have been thinking a lot about the concept of truth lately. I am a strong believer in the value of literature and art because it teaches us about culture and human nature. In many ways, art is as true, or more true, than science. Science will tell you that a person has five fingers on each hand, a heart with atria and ventricles, and cranial nerves with synapses and axon terminals. Art will tell you what those hands can do, what that heart can feel, and what that brain can understand. Art creates a more complete picture of a human being.

But art is more subjective that historical and scientific fact, right? Maybe, but historical and scientific fact aren't always as reliable as we might think. After all, virtually everything we know about history is second hand from a biased perspective. Much of scientific information is theoretical or inferred. We trust historical information when there are enough witnesses to back it up, and we accept science as fact when it has been proven enough times, but perspectives in these areas are still constantly changing.

So, is there such a thing as absolute truth?

Absolutely.

Moroni 10: 5 states, "and by the power of the Holy Ghost, ye may know the truth of all things."

Since I have been at BYU, I have come to associate this scripture with religious and secular classes alike. The spirit testifies of all truth. Absolute truth exists, and through the Holy Ghost, we are able to recognize it.