Countering the Culture of Deceit
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Archbishop Listecki


Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki
Archbishop of Milwaukee
 

 

For those who know me, it’s no surprise that my favorite American President is George Washington. I strongly argue that there would be no American presidency had it not been for the integrity of our first president. The wonderful story of little George Washington cutting down the cherry tree and not telling a lie when confronted by his father is a mark of the man’s truthfulness, which started in the very formative years of his life. Although the story is probably fictional, the sense of the man’s honesty is not. For those who served and worked with President or General George Washington, it was inconceivable that he could or would tell a lie – especially to save his own skin.

Truth-telling has become diminished in the world today. You can hear many saying that telling the truth is for “suckers,” and you should say whatever is necessary to gain an advantage.

Recently, the United States was embarrassed at the Rio Olympic Games, not by a poor showing on the field or in competition, but in the behavior of four Americans who choose to lie about a crime to cover-up their improper behavior. In some sense, I am sure that these men saw their action merely as a convenience to avoid the consequence of their actions. However, Rio already has a bad reputation of corruption and crime. Now, this just added to it.

Have we developed a culture of deceit? Are these men just typical of the examples given by our politicians and civic leaders? We have had a senator claiming that she was Native American to gain advantage, politicians reporting that they were serving in combat to enhance their prestige with the voting public, and an individual citizen who was jailed to protect a false narrative. The American public seems to ignore these false statements and, to some extent, they even forgive them.

Yes, God forgives, but there are consequences to this action. We sometimes forget that lying is a sin. We have to recognize the harm deceit causes and understand that without accepting personal responsibility, we can never expect to change the behavior.

Before we get on our moral high horses, think about the last time you were stopped for a traffic violation. What story was told to the officer? Perhaps being late for work? “The dog ate my homework” excuse doesn’t work anymore. Finding a truthful man or woman may be harder than we initially imagined. How can we expect our children to tell the truth when there are so many bad examples of “successful leaders” who make a living off of lying?

The last time you were in the confessional, was lying part of the examination of conscience? If you haven’t been to confession recently, it’s a good way to make a new start. Let’s counter the culture of deceit through our commitment to the truth, even when it’s at personal cost. Jesus revealed the truth when He gave us a new commandment to LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
 

Note: This blog originally appeared as the August 23, 2016 "Love One Another" email sent to Catholics throughout the Archdiocese of Milwaukee by Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki. If you are interested in signing up for these email messages, please click here.

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