A LIE KEEPS GROWING AND GROWING UNTIL IT IS CLEAR AS THE NOSE ON YOUR FACE
THE BLUE FAIRY, PINOCCHIO (1940)
Can our leaders be trusted?
In one sense this isn't a new question. There's plenty of examples in the Bible of people doubting the trustworthiness of their leaders and countless other examples throughout history. Recently, however, we have seen the growth of what seems to be a new phenomenon where leaders of the highest level make statements which are blatantly untrue (i.e. they are not supported by the facts), appear to be untrue (i.e. they just seem unbelievable) or are quickly proved to be untrue (i.e. evidence is produce to refute them).
The term ‘fake news’ has been around for many years, but it has become particularly synonymous with US President Donald Trump when he was in office. The controversial president has coined the phrase and deflected it back on the creditable news agencies that have voiced their opposition to him. A survey carried out by CNN stated that Trump made 6420 false claims during his first 649 days in office. According to some commentators Prescient Trump was averaging 30 misleading statements a day and on October 22nd 2018 is said to have broken his own record with 83 untruths in a single day.
British PM Boris Johnson is currently embroiled in a crisis triggered by the question as to whether or not he and his own staff who were abiding to the rules that they were setting during the Covide-19 lockdowns. His statements in response to this have been widely regarded as stretching credibility and by some as downright lies. Truthfulness, or lack of it, has been something that has dogged his political career but hasn't prevented him holding high office.
In 2018 Russian President Putin denied any involvement in the attempted murder of a former Russian spy and his daughter, Yulia. Sergei Skripal was poisoned with a Russian nerve agent in March of that year. After an intense investigation, two members of the Russian intelligence service were named as suspects. The evidence against them was damning, but Putin flatly denied any involvement in this act of state-ordered terrorism on foreign soil.
Also in that year, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, denied being part of the brutal murder of Washington Post journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. The journalists death shocked the world and uncovered a darker side to the prince and his kingdom where the message appears to be ‘indulge in the fun, just don’t challenge the leadership.’
When people are deliberately misled, it will always lead to problems. The confused nature of news in the digital generation, with tens of thousands of platforms jostling for coverage, has made it impossible to filter out objective and honest journalism. It is little surprise that we often jump to the wrong conclusions. But fake news is now such a part of our media that a very large proportion of people are aware they are being lied to – they are just unable to discern the truth.
As a head of state, there is an inclination to situate oneself above the law. In a democracy, there should be barriers in place to prevent this from happening. In the USA, these have so far failed, and in Russia, Putin has created a system where he has absolute power with no accountability. This impunity moves the question that a leader may ask themselves from ‘Am I acting unlawfully?’ to ‘How much can I get away with?’.
There is an argument that power can ‘rewire the brain’. This stops powerful people from being able to empathise with others. This results in ‘executive’ hubris whereby those in power can’t understand why others find their behaviour deplorable. This has been cited as a reason behind Trump’s flawed presidency, but also some church leadership structures have suffered from this.
Fake news influenced the electorate in both the Brexit vote and the U.S. election. The spread of lies and untruths concealed truth from the voters, making it difficult for them to be fully aware of the facts. Once a ruling party is in office, the lies and untruths have continued in countries like USA and Russia. Democracy in the western world has never been more threatened – people still get the choice to vote, but their vote is often based on lies. The voter then feels powerless to challenge those in power.
In a democracy, a relationship of trust should exist between those in power and the people they represent. Those in the media also depend on open and transparent relationships with politicians in order to report the truth objectively and hold those in power to account. This idea of a ‘free press’ is a central pillar of democracy. When those in power limit access to journalists or censor stories, as has happened in the USA, Russia and Saudi Arabia, there is no longer any trust in the democratic process. Impartial, unbiased journalism is a struggle under such conditions.
In many countries, a culture of fear exists between the people and those in power. Speaking out against their rulers can result in grave consequences.
When living in fear, the best strategy is to keep quiet and do what’s expected. This means that those in power can get away with whatever they choose without worrying too much about being challenged.
The Bible cannot be clearer in its pursuit of truth and condemnation of lies. Those in positions of teaching or leadership have greater accountability for this according to Proverbs 17:7 and James 3:1.
These verses are just some that could be used to look at this issue.
All the following verses are taken from the Contemporary English Version.
Exodus 20:16
Do not tell lies about others.
Exodus 23:1
Don’t spread harmful rumours or help a criminal by giving false evidence.
Leviticus 19:11
Do not steal. Do not lie. Do not deceive one another.
Psalm 34:13
Then don’t say cruel things
and don’t tell lies.
Psalm 101:7
No one who cheats or lies
will have a position
in my royal court.
Proverbs 12:22
The Lord hates every liar,
but he is the friend of all
who can be trusted.
Proverbs 17:7
It sounds strange for a fool
to talk sensibly
but it’s even worse
for a ruler to tell lies.
James 3:1
Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.
Acts 5:3
Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land?”
Before the session, each leader should think of several facts and phoney facts about themselves. All the leaders stand at the front. Each leader should tell a fact about themselves – but one of them should be lying. (Leaders need to coordinate beforehand to make sure that they know who is going to be lying in which round!) The children need to decide who is not telling the truth. If your group is small, they could run to the different leaders; if you have a larger group it might be easier for them to raise their hands to indicate who they think is lying.
Have 6 or 7 rounds and then see if anyone guessed correctly each time. Ask how we can tell if someone is lying. Is it always easy? Is it a problem when we don’t know when people are telling the truth? Why can it be difficult?
The Point: To think about how we recognise whether people are telling the truth.
Ask the group where we find truth. Talk about newspapers and explain how these often are biased towards one political party or another. Talk about sources of news and information on the internet, and the difficulties of finding truth in this. Explain the issues regarding Pinocchio Politics, and what the group know about Boris Johnson, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Point to the Bible as the ultimate source of truth for Christians.
(Your group may also enjoy taking part in this quiz from the Washington Post, to see if they can separate Donald Trump facts from fiction.)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/07/22/quiz-did-donald-trump-say-this-outrageous-quote-or-no/?utm_term=.67838f2ed06e
Play a quick game of Consequences to introduce this Bible study. Give everyone a piece of paper and a pen. At the top of the sheet, get everyone to write the name of a male - it could be someone in the group, or someone famous. Then get everyone to fold their paper over and pass it to the person on their right. That person adds the name of a female - on the paper, not on the fold - folds it over and passes it to the person on the right.
Continue adding where they met, what he said to her, what she said to him and the consequence of their meeting. When everyone has written their consequence, get them to fold it over once more and pass it to the right. Then everyone can unfold their ‘stories' and read them out. Some will be funny, some will no doubt be crude, and some will make no sense at all!
Tell the group that you want them to think about the consequences of lying. Read together Acts 5:1-11. Discuss with the group:
Did Ananias and Sapphira tell a lie in this story? (It seems not but their action was deceitful which counts as a lie.)
What was the consequence of their deceit? Why do you think it was that dramatic?
People rarely die from telling lies, but what can be the consequences of lying, especially if you are found out? Encourage the group to think about how they feel when they know someone has lied to them - whether it's a friend or someone in the public. Expect to hear things like lack of trust; breakdown in relationships; having to tell more lies to cover up the one you started with; lack of self-respect. Point out that lying does have consequences even if you get away with it.
Do you think fewer people would lie if lying had as serious consequences today as it did for Ananias and Sapphira? How would that affect daily life?!
The Point: To look at the story of Ananias and Sapphira and the consequences for them of the lies they told.
Read Ephesians 4:14-25 together. Discuss with the group:
The Hebrew midwives - Exodus 1:15-22
Rahab - Joshua 2:1-7, 6:24-25
Elisha - 2 Kings 6:8-23
Fasting in secret - Matthew 6:16-18
Get them to report back on their stories, explaining to the others what has happened and giving their answers to the questions.
“If appropriate, tell the group that there are different opinions among Christian theologians about whether it is ever OK to lie or not. Some people say that lying is always wrong; others that it is sometimes acceptable, that the need for justice, or compassion, should over-ride the need for truth.
From these passages, what might be considered a justifiable reason to lie or deceive someone?”
The Point: To use Bible accounts to raise some more of the issues surrounding telling lies specifically whether it is ever right to tell a lie.
The Lords detests lying lips, but He delights in people who are truthful.
Ask the group to copy out this verse on a piece of card, and take it home as a reminder to always seek the truth.
The Point: To encourage your young people to learn from the Bible, and not the world leaders around them. Also, this exercise will remind them to not always believe what they hear.