PLGRM

One of the “joys” of being a parent is arbitrating disputes between children. We have four kids, so the number of disputes I’ve had to arbitrate over the years is, well… it’s a lot.

An early and easy tactic kids try to use in these debates is “Well, what about…?” A kid feels the water is getting hotter, so they try and shift the blame to the other. Let’s see if Dad will consider their offense as greater than mine.

Poor kids. It never works. At least, not on me.

There seems to be a generation of kids who did have success with this tactic, however, because we are now witnessing a whole host of adults trying to play the same game.

Tell me if you’ve heard this one: “Well, both sides lie.”

Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? A quick look shows us that, yes, all people lie. But how do we square it when one side routinely and perniciously lies more than the other? How do we account for the fact that one is a white lie meant to be kind and the other is a lie meant to harm?

That’s a meaningful difference, and I think the difference is meaningful.

It seems like there’s a lot of this going around, and it’s just one example of the way human being try to equate things that should not be equated. I don’t think we should let this kind of thing slide.

One of the truths that my version of Christians hold up as a high standard is this:

That truth is in order to goodness; and the great touchstone of truth, its tendency to promote holiness, according to our Savior’s rule, “By their fruits ye shall know them.” And that no opinion can either be more pernicious or more absurd than that which brings truth and falsehood upon a level, and represents it as of no consequence what a man’s opinions are. On the contrary, we are persuaded that there is an inseparable connection between faith and practice, truth and duty. Otherwise it would be of no consequence either to discover truth or to embrace it.

Book of Order, Presbyterian Church (USA) , F-3.0104, “Truth and Goodness” Emphasis mine

It absolutely matters what we believe the truth to be. It absolutely matters what our opinions are.

So here’s what I believe: If what we say and do does not reflect the Grace, Peace, Love, and Justice of Christ, then we’d better get our heads on straight.