What is Truth?
“The truth is the truth is the truth is the truth throughout the ages – that’s what it means to worship the one true God. And our job is to follow the truth, to fight for it, and to make way for it, wherever it may lead.”[1]
So Matthew R. Petrusek ends Part I of his book Evangelization and Ideology: How to Understand and Respond to the Political Culture. In this book, he seeks to make a case for the merging of evangelization and politics. In the first part of the book, he, “develops a methodology for employing Catholic social thought to debate secular ideologies.”[2] The second part of the book turns to secular ideologies and seeks to consider them through a Catholic lens as a means of evangelizing. He writes,
“In the end, evangelizing always requires going to where the people are, and where many people are today is stuck in a morass of increasingly aggressive political ideologies, each one seducing its adherents down varied paths to the same dead end: moral, spiritual, and yes, political futility. There is a better option.”[3]
Truth is Illusive
It is an interesting argument and yet I find myself stuck on his conclusion to Part I. “The truth is the truth is the truth is the truth throughout the ages.” [4]
Truth. Yes, I believe there is absolute truth. But what is truth? I think I am following truth, but am I? I am an imperfect human; I can guarantee you that something I firmly believe as “truth” is in fact not truth. There are things I believed in my younger years that I now look at and realize how inaccurate I was.
I think Petrusek makes his own case for the illusiveness of truth when he writes, “There is plentiful comedy in our hyper-politicized culture, an environment in which news can be difficult to distinguish from satire. Yet fear and suffering lie just beneath the surface.”[5] I have one friend on Facebook who frequently will post articles from the Babylon Bee or other such satire sites appalled at the story. She does not even recognize that what she is reading is satire. How much false data or fake news have we seen over the years? Truth is not easy to discern. Fake news just gets worse during an election year.
Am I Loving My Neighbor?
Personally, I am not a fan of politics, though I seem to often be drawn into political discussions. I vote because I believe it is my privilege and responsibility. Women over a century ago fought for my right to vote, to ignore this privilege is to spite them. However, I do not enjoy digging through the Voter Information Guide to determine which candidates align best with my beliefs or which propositions make sense. Even still, I sit down with my husband before each election and work through the ballot. We discuss which candidates and which propositions best agree with our ideals and make our decisions. For me, it is tedious but important work.
I admit, when Petrusek argues that we should engage in the political arena, it just makes me feel weary. Then, to add his argument of fighting for the truth, I am not sure how far I agree with him. In his introduction to The Gospel in Black & White: Theological Resources for Radical Reconciliation, a series of essays on reconciliation, Dennis L. Okholm writes, “We cannot make requirements for church membership that God does not make for salvation.”[6] He also writes, “The extension of our love to those who are different, even to enemies, is the test of the genuineness of our love.” [7] Is legislating morality loving our neighbors?
In the context of the Catholic view of marriage (as one man and one woman), Petrusek writes, “There are some questions on which disagreement is not only morally legitimate but also desirable because it leads to better laws and public policies.”[8] I live in a community with a large LGBTQ+ population. How would I be loving my neighbor to support legislation denying them the right to marry? To be honest, I struggle with the question of gender identity. My denomination holds the same view as the Catholic church on the question of marriage, citing verses such as 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. There are other Christians who make arguments that God is not against homosexuality. Who is right and who is wrong? There is a similar schism when it comes to egalitarianism verses complementarianism.
Conclusion
Petrusek concludes his book saying, “Evangelizing the political culture is thus ultimately not about the ideology and even less about politics. It is about opening the widest and straightest path possible for making the pilgrimage to the Lord.” [9]
If Petrusek’s purpose is to draw people to Jesus, I am not sure his method is one that will draw people to Jesus.
[1] Matthew R. Petrusek, Evangelization and Ideology: How to Understand and Respond to the Political Culture. (Park Ridge, IL: Word on Fire Institute, 2023), 136.
[2] Ibid., 14.
[3] Ibid., 18.
[4] Ibid., 136.
[5] Ibid., 2.
[6] Dennis L. Okholm, ed., The Gospel in Black & White: Theological Resources for Racial Reconciliation (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1997), 9.
[7] Ibid., 61.
[8] Petrusek, 17.
[9] Ibid., 463.
About the Author
Becca Hald
Becca is an ordained Foursquare minister, serving as the Online Community Pastor at Shepherd's House Church. She has over twenty-five years of leadership experience both inside and outside the church. Becca has served her community in many capacities ranging from Administrative Assistant and Children’s Ministry Director to Secretary and President of multiple school organizations. She and her husband, Andrew have been married for over 25 years. They have two adult children, Drew and Evelyn. Her great passion is to equip others, to raise awareness about mental health, and to help reduce the negative stigma surrounding mental health issues. In her free time, she loves going to Disneyland, reading, sewing, and making cards.6 responses to “What is Truth?”
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Hi Becca,
I will always have found memories of us sipping tea in Oxford.
You wrote, “I admit, when Petrusek argues that we should engage in the political arena, it just makes me feel weary.” I just did an Immigration Symposium in Dallas a couple of weeks ago.
Such an eye opener. I wanted to provide information at Dallas Baptist University and Christ for the Nation students on the topic of immigration. I had a rep from Congresswoman Maria Salazar (R-Florida), Dr. Marc LiVecche (Providence Magazine) and others speak.
My party was crashed by a Syrian activist. Hmmm…I wanted to focus on Deut 10:18 (Orphans, widows and the foreigner amongst us).
For a period there…we went off track…sigh.
Politics – it does make me weary.
Shalom….
Thank you for your response Russell. I, too, have fond memories of sipping tea in Oxford. What an amazing trip! Politics can be exhausting.
Becca,
The other day I came across a YouTube video of a guy who sang a worship song on America’s Got Talent. I viewed it out of curiosity. But as I was watching it, I thought “Something is not right about this.” His voice was fine, but not a voice that I think would stop celebrity judges with their mouths wide open and an audience completely awestruck. I then realized what was bothering me. The guy in the video was in front of a green screen. The video of a man worshiping the Lord in front of a pagan audience was fake.
What is truth? In a world flooded with fake videos, fake news, and fear-based misinformation, What is truth?
Your post brought more questions than answers. I like that. We’re leaning into the tension and complexity.
The reality
David, wow. I wonder what was going through his mind to create that video. Why did he feel the need to put himself in that setting? It makes me think of how often worship services at conferences or large churches look more like a concert than worship. How does volume, lights, and smoke contribute to entering into the Presence of God? Are we truly entering into His Presence or are we entering into an emotional state of mind enhanced by the atmosphere? Yes, what is truth?
Great post, Becca,
Dealing with a lot of fake things around us, including fake news, can be frustrating. I believe finding ways to love God’s people and love them well without expressing our judgmental bias would make a difference.
Thank you Jean. Yes, dealing with all the fake things surrounding us can be frustrating indeed! I agree with you, when we find ways to love people well, we make a difference. I have seen how much it makes a difference in my own community. May we never forget that Jesus said, “They will know you are my disciples by your love.” (John 13:35)