Shining Stars or Dim Bulbs?

“You are a light. You are the light. Never let anyone — any person or any force — dampen, dim or diminish your light … Release the need to hate, to harbor division, and the enticement of revenge. Release all bitterness. Hold only love, only peace in your heart, knowing that the battle of good to overcome evil is already won.”
Rep. John Lewis

Grace to you and peace.

Does the truth matter?

That’s not a hypothetical question.  I really want to know, because it doesn’t seem to matter to many of my fellow citizens.

I haven’t written in this blog for several weeks because…I didn’t want to.  The last thing I wanted was to become part of the ugly dialog that’s been raging all around us.  But, at some point, you have to stand up for the truth.  To not do so, to remain silent, has repercussions.

Take the Myth of the Lost Cause, for instance.  That’s the lie that the Civil War was fought over state’s rights, not over slavery.  All you have to do is read what Southern politicians and newspapers were writing at the time to discover the truth.  The evidence is really overwhelming.  The lie began in the decades immediately following the war as former Confederates were allowed to rewrite history.  For example, it’s really interesting to read what Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy, said during the war and then compare it with his later statements.  He did a complete 180.  He blatantly lied and he was not alone.

Why does this matter now?  Because the Myth of the Lost Cause idealized the pre-war South and led to repression of voting rights, lynchings, the KKK and segregation.  Moving forward, we now have people using the Myth to disguise their bigotry with states’ rights rhetoric, while they push for voter suppression.  And they even have the nerve to display the Confederate battle flag next to the U.S. flag.

Or, let’s talk about the January 6 attack on the Capitol and its aftermath.  You remember the scene, right?  Congressman and women barricaded behind locked doors, in fear of their lives.  Insurrectionists battling with police, smashing windows, defecating in the halls of the building, looting and stealing.  Do you remember that there were deaths?

You’d never know that now, if you only listened to the Republican leadership in Congress.  Kevin McCarthy, the House Minority Leader, originally said this about the attack:

“The president bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters. He should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding.”

Now he says something quite different and opposes a bi-partisan commission to investigate.

The most egregious attempt at white-washing comes from Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia.  You may remember seeing him on January 6 barricaded behind his office door.  Now, he says:

“There was no insurrection and to call it an insurrection, in my opinion, is a boldfaced lie.  Watching the TV footage of those who entered the Capitol and walked through Statuary Hall showed people in an orderly fashion staying between the stanchions and ropes, taking videos and pictures. You know, if you didn’t know the TV footage was a video from January the 6th, you would actually think it was a normal tourist visit.”

And Rep. Paul Gosar defends the insurrectionists by describing them as “peaceful patriots” who are being “harassed” by the government.  Again, as with the Myth of the Lost Cause, there is overwhelming evidence to disprove these lies.

So, what’s driving this?  And what drove the insurrection on January 6?

A lie.  The Lie of the Stolen Election.  I predict that in years to come historians, sociologists, political scientists and psychologists will write millions of words trying to explain this mass delusion, a delusion that’s fueling the division and violence in this country.  In spite of all the recounts that have taken place, in spite of the lawsuits and the millions and millions of dollars that have been wasted trying to prove voter fraud, not a shred of evidence has been found.  That’s because the whole issue is based on a lie floated by the former president.

Does the truth matter?  You tell me.

But what, you may be asking yourself, does any of this have to do with Christian spirituality?

It matters because as Christians we follow the truth.  Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth and the life.”

When he was on trial for his life, Jesus said to Pontius Pilate, “The reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth.  Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”  John 18

Pilate’s flippant reply may be the most chilling question ever asked: “What is truth?”

And then even though Pilate found no basis for the charges against him, charges based on lies, he had Jesus put to death.

Lies matter.  If we say we follow Jesus, then we must speak the truth.  If we say we follow Jesus, then we must be honest, especially with ourselves. 

If you think I am attacking the Republican party or even the former president, I’m not.  I am attacking a lie, a lie that has already had deadly consequences.  My faith compels me to do so.  My faith also compels me to admit my own sin.  I’m far from perfect.  I’m far from being the disciple of Christ that I long to be.

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1 John 1:8

That’s where spirituality and truth meet.  We must take an honest look at ourselves and ask God to help us grow.  Grow past lies and division; grow past selfishness and dishonesty.  It is a lifelong process.

Do all things without murmuring and arguing, so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world.
Philippians 2:14-15

We are called to be different from the culture in which we live.  We are not called to lie and argue.  We are called to shine like stars so that others may see the light of Christ reflected in us.  If we disagree, let us do so as brothers and sisters in Christ.  Above all, let us tell the truth.  Here endeth the sermon.