Truth....

This morning I finished Walden. I liked it. It was one of those books that I'm glad I've read, and glad to own, but I'm not sure when, or if, I'd ever read it again. It's not really a book read for entertainment value, or even read for its own sake; it's a book that should be read for the betterment of one's self.

Thoreau, in a way, sometimes struck me as perhaps being the first hippy. But being a man who hunted, and fished, and also worked for some of his sustenance, he transcends that. As he himself stated, he was a man who wished to live simply, thereby living honestly and truthfully, and I think he accomplished that. The ideal we should reach for is not just to live honestly and truthfully, but to do so for the right reasons. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13, "And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing." (1 Cor. 13: 2-3, RSV). A Christian's love for God and his fellow man should be the motive for doing Christian works. And while I can't say that Thoreau was a Christian per se, his love and reverence for Nature was his motive for living simply, honestly, and truthfully.

Next I'm going to give in to popular opinion and try The Da Vinci Code. I ordered it through a book club, and tought I was getting the "illustrated" version as found here, but sadly it only features illustrated end papers. Nevertheless, I'll give it a go. I may end up doing a lot of Googling for artworks referenced in the text.

One thing I'll have to keep in mind: The Da Vinci Code is a novel. While it may have some basis in fact, it is, after all, a work of fiction. Once I'm done I'll have to ponder whether or not it is foolish to take it seriously.