Rudyard Kipling wrote these lines about truth:

“Once upon a time, the ancient legends tell,

Truth, rising from the bottom of her well,

Looked on the world, but hearing how she lied,

Returned to her seclusion horrified…”

This paints a rather dismal picture of truth’s chances for overcoming a world of lies and “alternative facts.” Considering events of recent past, one might be hard-pressed to be optimistic.

Things were not so different in times past. Jesus constantly battled lies and hypocrisy. Still, he told his followers, “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32.

His promise suggests that Truth is not a subjective belief defined by one’s individual experience. It is an absolute, knowable, experiential fact. And what is more, it resides in the heart of every human being, whether acknowledged or not. The question for each of us is, how do we filter out what is merely opinion and recognize the truth in any situation? How do we live it? Each of us faces this challenge every day.

Truth is often a hard thing to face. It can be inconvenient, it might cut against our self-interest, and, oft-times, it puts us at odds with our friends, family and tribe. 

Acknowledging this challenge, Jesus warned his followers, “Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves...” He wasn’t suggesting that they were being led to the slaughter. Rather, armed with the truth, they needn’t fear, although the way is hard. Very hard. He told them that they would be met with hatred and persecution. And they were.

In concluding his teaching, he said, “I came not to send peace, but a sword.” Matthew 10:34. The sword is a metaphor for an instrument that cuts through falsehood. We cannot make peace with a lie for a lie never changes. It is always a lie. It must be laid bare and seen as powerless, no matter how much noise it makes.

During Jesus’ most difficult struggle, he told Pilate that he came into this world to “bear witness unto the truth.” John 18:37

So what is truth and how do we live it? We have the life of Jesus as a living example for our time and for all time to answer that question.

— Reflections appears regularly on the religion page. The column features a variety of local writers, coordinated through the Monroe Area Clergy Group. Charles Wellington is a member of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston, Massachusetts, and regularly meditates with the Great Plains Zen Center in Monroe.