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Lying "There are six things the Lord hates -- no, seven things he detests: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil, feet that race to wrong, a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord among brothers (Proverbs 6: 16-19)." Time magazine labeled the summer of 2002 the "Summer of Mistrust" and reported that, "Most Americans-72% in the Time/CNN poll-fear that they are not a few isolated cases but a pattern of deception by a large number of companies." (Nancy Gibbs, "Summer of Mistrust", Time, 22 July 2002, p.20). The fall of Enron would cost investors over 60 billions dollars, wiped out millions of American's retirement, and sparked the beginning of many more tragic stories of bankruptcy such as Adelphia, WorldCom, and so on. Pollster, George Barna, asked Americans if they had complete confidence that leaders in various professions would consistently make morally appropriate decisions in their workplace. ("Americans Speak: Enron, WorldCom and Others Are Results of Inadequate Moral Training by Families," 22 July 2002, Barna Research Online) The answer was very sad. The research inquired about leaders: executives of large corporations, elected government officials, film producers, directors and writers, small business owners, ministers and teachers. Of the above, teachers received by far the highest vote of confidence and 14 percent of all teachers hold the public's complete confidence. Yet, it is sad that even though teachers are held as our 'most trusted' leaders, 6 out 7 Americans are 'not willing to trust' them. Where does this mistrust begin? From the above research we deduce that lying is not secluded to 'almighty' corporate America. It is something that permeates every level of our society from small business owners, to ministers, to politicians, to teachers. I suggest that our moral decay has been a process fueled by postmodern thought. It began when we allowed our culture to suggest that there was no absolute truth; all truths are valid, and there was no final authority to define right and wrong; right and wrong is secluded to what a particular culture decides is right and wrong. The absence of absolute truth creates a vacuum where to find definitive answers. If we look at the above Scriptures, we find that God detest a lie. When our society feared God, a handshake was sufficient for people to reach agreement. We placed great trust in God fearing leaders who would create the nation we proudly call America. We did not separate our faith from the workplace, and in essence our success was attributed to our faith. If God's Word is not authoritative then in reality 'everything goes'. No longer can we do business on a handshake. We need one contract to finalize a transaction and another to protect the original contract. Lord help me to fear God and hear His admonitions. Meditation: Is our motivation to tell the truth based on the fact that God has defined a lie as a detestable practice?
Jorge L. Valdes, Ph.D.
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