True Witness. True Wisdom

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

Exodus 20:16

Every child learns at an early age that lying is wrong.

Most children learn afterwards that “white lies” are not quite as bad as regular lies.

At some point many of us learn to rationalize that a lie is not a bad thing unless it hurts someone. Then we rationalize telling “little” lies to people presumably to spare their feelings or avoid causing any distress.

Yet these are still lies.

Then there are those times when people exaggerate, when they magnify their exploits and accomplishments as being greater than they really are. We have all heard “fish” stories, where a man claims to have caught something of remarkable size, when in reality he caught something barely larger than the bait on his hook. We have heard the stories where most of the details are true, but there are a few intentional “inaccuracies”, each designed to make the accomplishment seem greater than it really is.

Are these also lies?

Yes, they are. If we are saying anything which is not true, we are lying. If we are saying anything which is not true, we are not bearing true witness. If we are saying anything that is not true, we are bearing false witness.

If we present an image of ourselves to others that is not as we really are, if we present an image of ourselves that is false, are we not deceiving others? Are we not in some fashion deceiving ourselves?

Of course we are—and we are bearing false witness when we do, both to others and to ourselves.

Why should this matter? What harm does it do anyone if we puff ourselves up here or there? Even if we are bearing false witness, where is anybody hurt by our “puffery”?

If we persuade people to rely upon us in ways that we are not able to fulfill, there is no question that we are harming them. Their reliance in such moments leads directly to distress, and thus to harm. Thus our “puffery” can be directly harmful to others.

If we persuade people of things that are palpably at odds with reality, there is no question that we are harming them. This is especially true if we encourage them to take actions which might not work out to their betterment. Our “puffery” in such cases might get someone seriously hurt.

If we claim credentials and experiences for ourselves during a job interview, and if we then get the job, we are taking that which arguably should have gone to another. That is the very definition of harm, and a very plausible result of our “puffery”.

In every such instance, there is a false statement. In every such instance, there is someone bearing false witness.

If we pursue narratives that are not supported by actual facts, we may do very grave harm to people. The world saw this play out in abundance during the furor and panic surrounding COVID. Businesses were destroyed. Jobs were lost. Lives were upended.

When the media presents narratives that are not supported by actual facts, they can goad governments into wars, and they have done so.

When the media presents narratives that are not supported by actual facts, they can defame private citizens, and they have done so.

When the media presents narratives that are not supported by actual facts, they can trigger or escalate riots, and they have done so.

In every such instance, there is a false statement. In every such instance, there is someone bearing false witness.

In every aspect of our daily lives, we are called to bear witness to the realities that swirl around us. Whether we are at work, or among friends, or discussing this or that topic online, there is very little that we can ever say about anything that is not in some regard a bearing of witness.

Indeed, we are called daily to bear witness to all that is true.

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus called His followers to be “the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). He called His followers to “let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works” (Matthew 5:16).

We cannot be such a light if we bear false witness to any man about any thing. We can only be such a light if we bear true witness to every man about every thing.

We see daily in the news media this and that political figure making claims about his past, or his policies, or those of his opponents. We hear politician after politician making grandiose claims and promises—and we frequently dismiss everything they say, knowing full well politicians are rarely honest. We know all too well that politicians almost never bear true witness.

Such is the damage wrought by a politicians’s bearing false witness. Such is the damage wrought by anyone bearing false witness.

When we bear false witness to others, we add to the world’s cynicism, and take away from the world’s optimism. When we bear false witness to others, we diminish the world.

When Jesus prayed in the Garden at Gesthemane, He asked God to fill His disciples with the truth of His ministry (John 17:17), to thus sanctify them, set them apart, and make them holy.

We cannot be so sanctified if we bear false witness about anything, but especially about Jesus’ ministry. We can only be sanctified if we bear true witness about everything, especially Jesus’ ministry.

When we bear false witness to others, we profane the world just as surely as the money changers profaned the Temple.

Similarly, we must not deceive ourselves or others into thinking that because one call himself “Christian” or proclaims a particular belief that our witness is inherently true. One of the greatest demonstrations of faith Jesus encountered was not from any Jew or even among His followers, but in a Roman centurion, who accepted Jesus healing power and authority without question (Matthew 8:5-13). Similarly, John the Baptist rebuked the Pharisees and Sadducees who came to hear him preach for thinking they were special because they were descended from Abraham (Matthew 3:7-9).

Humility is inherently a hallmark of true witness. Hubris is inherently a hallmark of false witness.

We must remember this because, as the Apostle Paul wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians, the truth of a teaching was not based on the teacher, but on the teaching (1 Corinthians 15:11). Anyone can bear true witness, just as anyone can bear false witness.

Only true teachings can be God’s light to the world. Only true witness can be the lamp shining that light. False witness is always the bushel which obscures that light.

We are called to be a light to the world. Inevitably, how we bear witness to others is how we answer—or fail to answer—that call.

My prayer for myself is that I will always find it within myself to answer that call, and be that light to the world—that my witness will always be true and never false.

My prayer for you is likewise that you will be a light to the world—that your witness will always be true and never false.

That is the wisdom I see by which we can all light the whole world.