Jan
19
If you’ve been around my website very often, or you have any knowledge of me and my personality at all, you know that I am passionate about a few different things; and one of those is communicating with people. As a result, I am writing a three part blog series about communication, and different aspects that I have considered relating to communication.
Photo: Boondock Saints Veritas Tattoo - Vertias: Latin for "truth"
Truth
The definition of Truth that I have always let hold the most importance to me is the following;
“
conformity with fact or reality;
verity: the truth of a statement.“
The thing about truth is that as much as it is disputed, argued over, etc, it does not change. For those who are Christians, there is a Truth that is an all encompassing Truth that extends beyond the human interactions and interpretations of truth. If truth is subject, as so many people seem to think and act like they believe it is, then it does not exist. The concrete unchanging truth, again, is that which conforms to reality. Calling the sky green or the sun dark is no more truth than one’s wanting it to be so. Statements do not give truth the nature very nature of itself. It’s conformity to reality gives truth it’s…truth.
Integrity in Communication
Have you ever been in a relationship where there was no honesty? One can usually tell from the very beginning whether a relationship will be honest. That is not to say that over time, people might make mistakes, and information between one another might be withheld or falsified at some point. We all make mistakes. When one is in a relationship that is dishonest, it is fairly clear from the beginning. There is a pain in communication that is not based in honesty and openness. I am of the mindset that one should be honest at all costs, and let the “chips fall where they may” as the saying goes. My foundational belief system that I adhere to tells me the following:
“and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:32
Truth in Society
The ironic thing is that people cannot escape the truth. In a society where a plethora of moral viewpoints spot our intellectual fields on a daily basis, this one thing remains constant. People have opinions, politically or philosophically speaking, but everyone at some point admits the truth. There is always that moment where the “rubber meets the road” and people only seek the truth. When celebrities cheat on their spouses or businessmen make crooked decisions, the inevitable event that almost always occurs is an apology. That moment when a teary-eyed sports superstar or indicted business high roller stumbles through a speech admitting that he or she was wrong, and owns up to the facts. Hurt though the parties involved might be, they all seek that moment, when someone is faced with the truth of situation, and is confronted by their lack of integrity.
Without honesty and integrity in communication, everything else is lost. The most brilliant liars are still just that; liars. Speaking creatively and beautifully loses all it’s show when there is not integrity.
