Plato’s Allegory of the Cave has been coming to mind lately. Most people think of it in terms of education, with knowledge being what enlightens people so that they understand that what we see isn’t the true nature of things. I believe the allegory can be interpreted with regard to faith as well. Knowledge and faith are closely intertwined. If one wishes to see things as they truly are he or she must believe in something greater than what we can experience in our present circumstances.
The people chained in the cave have never been outside, which means they have never seen the truth with their own eyes. In order for them to know what is outside the cave they would have to believe that a vast world full of light, color, and intrinsic truth exists. This would require a blind leap of faith on their part.
Lately I’ve been feeling like the world in which I’ve been living is somewhat artificial. It’s almost as if wherever I go my physical surroundings are like the set of a movie or television show. The people around me are real but the physicality of the world is contrived. I believe this is happening because the next world exists, and the place the elect will go, the New Heaven and New Earth, has been created and is being manifested. I’m not saying I belong there or deserve to go, only that it exists and is far truer than the world in which I live.
One cannot read the Allegory of the Cave without asking what would happen if the people in the cave were unchained and led out into the light. Everything would suddenly come alive for them and they would be in a paradise of vibrant life and color. Seeing a real live animal for the first time, the sun, the moon, and people, would be so overwhelmingly wonderful for them. We are all like them, we have all been chained in the cave our entire lives, watching shadows on the wall, wondering what they truly are, what lies beyond our darkened dwelling. We are all on the verge of the most magnificent revelation. Soon the difference between what is alive and what is Life itself shall be revealed. When I was a child heaven followed me wherever I went. Everywhere I’d go I could enter the kingdom. A couch would become a fortified complex of cushions and blankets, a living room the home base for a game of hide and seek, a waiting room the perfect environment for a game of tag, a basement the sewer where the ninja turtles eat pizza. At a moment’s notice wherever I was could be transformed into a land of imagination. I only needed the slightest suggestion from a friend and away we’d go. Neighborhood capture the flag, ninja flips on the trampoline, video games, movie nights, everything was a party when I was young. Even sitting in a classroom was a fun experience.
The moment we’ve all been waiting for is the moment when we will walk out of the cave and into a living world full of the love that’s been shining from our hearts ever since we were born. We have not seen the true light yet, we’ve only heard vague rumors. We have not participated in life yet, only watched from the sidelines. The powers of heaven are beginning to shake this three dimensional world to the core. Believe in the truth that surpasses understanding, for within it is where the cave is located. Outside the most extraordinary possibilities await us.
Human beings were made to fly free like children with limitless power. Our hearts and minds were meant to feel and comprehend the impossible and unimaginable. We aren’t only meant to see the light, we are meant to become light. The next world, like God Himself, is both near to us and far away. We are supposed to seek and find hints of the kingdom while patiently waiting and preparing for the day that will change everything forever.
All this talk of heaven makes me want to fly again, but I should not. I grounded myself for a reason. To be low and humble is my only path forward to the horizon and beyond, and yes, I am aware of the contradiction. To fly free is everyone’s destiny, borne aloft on wings of love and soaring through clouds of supreme glory. How I wish we could depart now. Let it be sooner rather than later. No, I still need time to repent, to acknowledge the error of my ways, and make supplication through prayer and good deeds. We cannot take off yet but the countdown to launch has begun. I must take care to stay well on the right side of the line between right and wrong.
The Allegory of the Cave may only be where everyone began their lives, the starting point from which we learned to dream. The time spent in the world has brought us closer and closer to the magnificent unveiling of everyone’s truth and destiny. Eternal love fulfilled and shining throughout all existence as an everlasting day, the greatest day forever and ever. The day our hearts take flight will be the day we find our true home.
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