Things Are Not As They Are Told

Some people see a black and white hand,
questioning why one hand is behind the other.
It is possible to see two individual hands working together,
the progression from one to another in peace... becoming one.

This isn't an article justifying prejudices, but rather exposing them.

This isn't an article ignoring prejudices, but rather identifying them.

This isn't an article arguing about known historical facts, but about how opinions or blatant lies are accepted as truth and can cause harm and confusion in many people.

Things are not always as they seem... and the mind is quick to reach a conclusion based in limited information.

In a lawsuit the first to speak seems right, 

until someone comes forward and cross-examines. 

- Proverbs 18: 17

This proverb applies to many things in life, not only lawsuits.

To name one, it applies to the testimony or storytelling of someone.

The first 'telling' of a story is presented as 'the truth', but only with further investigations can a clearer rendition of truth be realized.

The dispelling of prejudices, bias, and the unknown factors are often not included in the first telling.

To name another application: video / audio recordings that capture the tail-end of an incident, but not what happened beforehand, can be misleading.

Depending on who is asked, what came before any video / audio recordings is unknown or varies according to one's point of view, their position not always clear, or overtly clear and justified.

Justifications are not remedies to find truth, but simply arguments from one position.

Justifications usually take sides of opinions, but rarely takes the side of truth.

There is one side, then another, possibly a third and several others... and then there is the truth.

Truth is largely relative, while the unadulterated truth is sometimes difficult to accept.

Consider this when listening to media reports, or what sounds like a true story but is more akin to gossip or the vilifying of someone or some thing.

The media can often be quite noisy when repeating a single narrative, or one side of the story.

The media news should be a place of facts without any editorializing or sensation.

However, there is a motivation to be first to the publishing finish line that desires to capture attention, rather than presenting events according to all facts filtered of falsehoods.

There was a case a few years ago in the U.S. where a young man lied about an incident that captivated the nation.

The lie was not revealed to be a lie until after much damage had already been done.

Because of the lie that portrayed a sad incident as racially motivated, or outright murder by someone responsible for upholding and enforcing the law, long-standing prejudices were reinforced.

The lie was believed as truth, and that young man's testimony set the tone for the incident; a narrow narrative not clearly representing the facts.

Later, when facts were presented, the lie continued to live on somehow.

Why?

Because it was easy.

The lie was easier to accept because it fed a prejudice already existing in people and repeated in the news.

The lie was too similar to other factual events from past and current times, but in this particular case the lie perpetuated a prejudice and fed people's already seared perceptions... causing more division among ethnic groups.

After an exhaustive investigation, more lies were uncovered from so-called witnesses, but were later withdrawn by these witnesses who had actually not witnessed the incident, but simply tied their ships to the first lie.

The lie that was previously believed as 'truth' became a life of its own ... while facts were difficult to determine and largely ignored as they came to light.

I wonder how many people have considered the tough details that have clearly dispelled the lie.

I wonder if that lie was justified in favor of a popular narrative... or continues to be justified.

Read about that lie, and the facts, here... and consider how the first telling of any story may not be completely true, but needing more clarity.

This applies, as does that proverb, to almost any other matter in life: arguments of religion, politics, and all other human issues and relations.

Be considerate and allow yourself to 'see' things from other points of view... and then consider the truth taught to your heart in Scripture.

Otherwise, you may find yourself beguiled into believing one-sided arguments playing on your already instigated emotions.

You may find yourself being led to justify lawlessness instead of upholding the law.