The Air is Thinner On the High Road
Today, I want to talk about honesty. Specifically, its hazards. We all know that sometimes honesty hurts those on the receiving end. That is simply a danger and those with consciences spend at least a little time trying to balance the need to be truthful with the need for compassion. But there are a couple other problems that arise when one chooses to 'walk the high road', and they are what I feel compelled to blather on about today.
[Note : It should be clear already that this is going to be a bit dry. Sorry, it's where my head is today. You may just want to skip ahead to the trivia at the end]
I'll begin with a story of honesty that is perhaps only thematically related.
When did the first lie in The Bible get told ? If we have a background in which Old Testement writings were taught, that lie most likely is the product of the Serpent, in response to Eve and the Fruit :
You will not die ! Because God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you'll be like God- knowing good and bad.
However, this was not a lie. Manipulative perhaps, but not dishonest. It also does not make God a liar, either. The difference here is 'knowledge'. As an All-Knowing being, YHWH knew that if the first couple ate from the Tree they would die. Not as a natural result of eating the Fruit, but because He would make it so. The Fruit was not deadly. For the Serpent, who was not Omniscient, it was a truth that eating the Fruit would not kill Adam and Eve. (Please, note that I am talking about the 'words' in Genesis and what THEY reveal, not the spiritual basis or thru-line of those words.) In fact, there is a moment in Gen. 3 :22 in which God has to make the choice on whether He will follow thru with what He proclaimed :
Here, the human has become like us, to know good and bad. And now, in case he'll put out his hand and take from the tree of life as well, and eat and live forever : (24) And He expelled the human"
So, here we have four beings, all with different levels of perception and knowledge (Adam and Eve do not even seem to be aware of the extent of God's knowledge, as they thought they could hide their nakedness from Him). Their interactions were mired in confusion, although none were actually lying (in my opinion, of course). Why?
Trust. Or, rather, a lack of it.
Neither the first couple nor the Serpent trusted that YHWH would fulfill what He said He'd do, and Eve trusted the words of the Serpent and Adam trusted the words of Eve.
Trust.
And, now a left turn: Why do lies work?
My answer, for the purposes of this post, is that lies work because they sound the same as truths. However , the converse is this: Honesty also sounds like a lie. And THAT is what is hurting my heart today.
We all live within the confines of a contradiction: "Be honest. The world is full of liars."
An honest person in a dishonest world faces the struggle of being viewed as a liar. Again, because truth and lies contain the same words. The only difference between the two is 'motivation'.
Trust me, we say. Trust me, although dishonesty is the rule in this world. Trust me, although my truth speaks the same words that a lie does.
St. Rosencranz said: "But words are all we have." (Or was it St. Guildenstern?)
But they cannot be. We must have Trust.
On 'The High Road', there is no place to run when you are caught in a truth. A liar can always say (and in fact, this is the hope, is it not?), 'I was wrong. I lied. It was bad. I'm sorry.'
An honest person cannot easily say the reverse: "I was right. I told the truth. I'm sorry." Well, it can, but strangely, it is the liar who can fix the damage of their lie. You cannot undo the truth and still have it be a Truth.
Cynical? Maybe. But the point is not cynicism. My motivation for writing this today is to say:
It may hurt sometimes. Perhaps a lot. But do what is right, because it is right.
-with love,
The Rev. Dok. Saline Drip, IV (aka L'Idiot, Parrot, Flake, et. al.)...............
Today's Obscure '80's Total Geek Movie Quote Triva Question:
(two drunk guys at a bar)
Guy #1: "I'm a good-lookin' guy. You're a good-lookin' guy."
Guy #2: "I am."
Guy #1: "You are. We are both good-lookin' guys."
Guy #2: "We are."
Again, message me, although that apparently won't stop SOME PEOPLE from peeking anyway...
The prize today is eternal salvation... or damnation... or purgator...i...zation(?). Ladies choice!
You are all Beautiful!
Today, I want to talk about honesty. Specifically, its hazards. We all know that sometimes honesty hurts those on the receiving end. That is simply a danger and those with consciences spend at least a little time trying to balance the need to be truthful with the need for compassion. But there are a couple other problems that arise when one chooses to 'walk the high road', and they are what I feel compelled to blather on about today.
[Note : It should be clear already that this is going to be a bit dry. Sorry, it's where my head is today. You may just want to skip ahead to the trivia at the end]
I'll begin with a story of honesty that is perhaps only thematically related.
When did the first lie in The Bible get told ? If we have a background in which Old Testement writings were taught, that lie most likely is the product of the Serpent, in response to Eve and the Fruit :
You will not die ! Because God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you'll be like God- knowing good and bad.
However, this was not a lie. Manipulative perhaps, but not dishonest. It also does not make God a liar, either. The difference here is 'knowledge'. As an All-Knowing being, YHWH knew that if the first couple ate from the Tree they would die. Not as a natural result of eating the Fruit, but because He would make it so. The Fruit was not deadly. For the Serpent, who was not Omniscient, it was a truth that eating the Fruit would not kill Adam and Eve. (Please, note that I am talking about the 'words' in Genesis and what THEY reveal, not the spiritual basis or thru-line of those words.) In fact, there is a moment in Gen. 3 :22 in which God has to make the choice on whether He will follow thru with what He proclaimed :
Here, the human has become like us, to know good and bad. And now, in case he'll put out his hand and take from the tree of life as well, and eat and live forever : (24) And He expelled the human"
So, here we have four beings, all with different levels of perception and knowledge (Adam and Eve do not even seem to be aware of the extent of God's knowledge, as they thought they could hide their nakedness from Him). Their interactions were mired in confusion, although none were actually lying (in my opinion, of course). Why?
Trust. Or, rather, a lack of it.
Neither the first couple nor the Serpent trusted that YHWH would fulfill what He said He'd do, and Eve trusted the words of the Serpent and Adam trusted the words of Eve.
Trust.
And, now a left turn: Why do lies work?
My answer, for the purposes of this post, is that lies work because they sound the same as truths. However , the converse is this: Honesty also sounds like a lie. And THAT is what is hurting my heart today.
We all live within the confines of a contradiction: "Be honest. The world is full of liars."
An honest person in a dishonest world faces the struggle of being viewed as a liar. Again, because truth and lies contain the same words. The only difference between the two is 'motivation'.
Trust me, we say. Trust me, although dishonesty is the rule in this world. Trust me, although my truth speaks the same words that a lie does.
St. Rosencranz said: "But words are all we have." (Or was it St. Guildenstern?)
But they cannot be. We must have Trust.
On 'The High Road', there is no place to run when you are caught in a truth. A liar can always say (and in fact, this is the hope, is it not?), 'I was wrong. I lied. It was bad. I'm sorry.'
An honest person cannot easily say the reverse: "I was right. I told the truth. I'm sorry." Well, it can, but strangely, it is the liar who can fix the damage of their lie. You cannot undo the truth and still have it be a Truth.
Cynical? Maybe. But the point is not cynicism. My motivation for writing this today is to say:
It may hurt sometimes. Perhaps a lot. But do what is right, because it is right.
-with love,
The Rev. Dok. Saline Drip, IV (aka L'Idiot, Parrot, Flake, et. al.)...............
Today's Obscure '80's Total Geek Movie Quote Triva Question:
(two drunk guys at a bar)
Guy #1: "I'm a good-lookin' guy. You're a good-lookin' guy."
Guy #2: "I am."
Guy #1: "You are. We are both good-lookin' guys."
Guy #2: "We are."
Again, message me, although that apparently won't stop SOME PEOPLE from peeking anyway...
The prize today is eternal salvation... or damnation... or purgator...i...zation(?). Ladies choice!
You are all Beautiful!
VIEW 3 of 3 COMMENTS
As for the post.... interesting and thought provoking as usual.
One question...If lies and truths are both just words with different intentions...what are omissions? Are they worse lies or better than lies of words?
Just my little thought for today....
and so i NEVER say... "trust me."