“So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not…
Truth Decay: How truthfulness is related to humility
“Each and every sin in its own unique way is a denial of what is real.” — Fr. Terrance Klein In my last post, I began to explore the ethics of truth as one finds this theme in the New Testament….
Truth Decay: Walking in the truth
“I have no greater joy than this, to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” — 3 John 4 With this post, we make our first turn to truth as a moral issue. We will not begin with…
Truth Decay: The New Testament on truth
“And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true, and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true…
Truth Decay: The Old Testament on truth
“All the paths of the Lord are faithfulness and truth to those who comply with his covenant and his testimonies.” – Psalm 25:10 (NASB) In my last post, I reviewed philosophical theories of truth. I concluded that for most everyday purposes the correspondence…
Truth Decay: What is truth?
“What is truth?” — Pontius Pilate (John 18:38) Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in a famous essay called “What Is Meant by ‘Telling the Truth’” claimed that truth telling is “expressing reality in words.” Bonhoeffer’s shorthand definition reflects the commonsense, most familiar understanding…
Truth Decay: Truth as an issue in Christian ethics
“Let your yes be yes and your no be no. Anything more than comes from the evil one.” — Matthew 5:37 Six years ago, I took to the pages of Associated Baptist Press (now Baptist News Global), to puzzle over…
The election’s good news and bad news, with a side of hope
First the good news: The fact that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris prevailed over Donald Trump and Mike Pence is obviously the most important thing that happened on Nov. 3. The removal of Donald Trump from the office that he…
Thoughts on Halloween, saints and souls
In my quiet suburban cul-de-sac in Atlanta, our neighbors are competing with one another to mark Halloween in the oddly incoherent American way that has become our “normal.” We have our Harvest Festival types — friendly looking scarecrows, straw hats,…
An October prayer
Note: This is not a simulation. This is exactly the state of my prayer life right now. “It feels like a bill has come due and God is collecting.” —White House source to Joe Scarborough, Twitter, 8:38 a.m. October 7,…
Who is Jesus Christ for us today?
Deep and terrible divisions wrack American society. Sober observers are concerned that the sporadic protests and counterprotests, the riots and gun-toting militias we have spotted this summer could give way to intensified nationwide civil strife this late fall if the…
Reflecting on the effects of 9/11 and the disarray of America foreign policy
Nineteen years ago tomorrow, terrorists directed by Osama bin Laden successfully orchestrated an unforgettable attack that defined the next decade of American life. Hijacking four commercial jets, terrorists flew two into the World Trade Center towers and one into the…