Welcome to "Tuesday Morning," always a breath of fresh air for Christians from almost everywhere.

 

The late Edward R. Murrow is widely considered to be one of broadcast journalism's earliest pioneers. Born to Quaker parents in 1908 and raised in rural settings in North Carolina and later in Blanchard, Washington, Murrow is remembered for his candid approach to national and international news, and for his absolute honesty in reporting it. After college, he moved to New York, where he worked briefly for the Institute of International Education. In 1935 he joined CBS (before it had a news staff) and remained with the network for his entire career. He was a major figure in television news broadcasting, eventually producing a series of investigative news reports that helped lead to the censure of Senator Joseph McCarthy and the end of the legendary McCarthy Hearings. Among his many memorable quotes is this one:

 

"Most truths are so naked that people feel sorry for them and cover them up—at least a little bit."

 

Though tinged with a bit of sarcasm, Murrow was on target. People told half-truths a century ago, and people tell half-truths today. It is a cultural reality. Generally, half-truths are intended to deceive or evade blame. In his 1990 work The Magic Lantern: The Revolution of 1989 Witnessed in Warsaw, Budapest, Berlin, and Prague, author Timothy Ash responded to a call for "living in truth" by saying:

 

"Now we expect many things of politicians in a well-functioning parliamentary democracy. But 'living in truth' is not one of them. In fact the essence of democratic politics might rather be described as 'working in half-truth'. Parliamentary democracy is, at its heart, a system of limited adversarial mendacity, in which each party attempts to present part of the truth as if it were the whole."

 

This is an election year in the USA. State caucuses are underway. Primary voting is around the corner. Super Tuesday is coming. November is not that far off. Candidates will make promises that they may not be able to keep, if elected. Half-truths will be paraded as complete truths by politicians, their spokespersons, and candidate supporters. As voters, there is much at stake. Our votes count. Let us not surrender moral victory to those who tell half-truths. Let's demand integrity from the people we elect.

 

This week's epistle is entitled, "The Harder Right." Continue reading below whenever you are ready. If you are moved by it, consider doing something—like, forwarding it to a friend. Or to the editor of your local newspaper. Or to your congressional representatives. Let your voice be heard. Let the naked truth be known.  Everywhere.

 

Tom Barnard

A Patriot, First and Last

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The Harder Right

Tom Barnard

 

olonel Clayton E. Wheat was head Chaplain at the United States Military Academy between 1918 and 1926. One of the things for which he is remembered was his writing of the West Point Cadet’s Prayer. It is a classic piece of literature. I am particularly impressed with these words from the heart of the prayer:

“Encourage us in our endeavor to live above the common level of life.

Make us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong,

and never to be content with a half truth when the whole can be won.”

 

Society has grown content to accept half truths as whole truths. We see this everywhere—advertising, testimonies given under oath, marriage vows, and promises made. When faced with choices, expediency often wins out over integrity. Our powers of rationalization allow us to make choices based on their being practical rather than reasonable. When we do this, we choose the easier wrong over the harder right.  

 

This week our nation celebrates the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. Among his many sayings is this one:

 

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality.

That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant."

 

Underscore that phrase, “unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality.” In conversations with his disciples Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31, 32). There is something empowering about truth. Truth says “No!” to the temptation to marginalize reality. Truth says “Yes!” to openness and honesty. 

 

Omar Nelson Bradley served in the United States Army between 1915 and 1953. He achieved the rank of General of the Army and served as both the Army Chief of Staff and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He served in three major wars—World War I, World War II, and the Korean War. Entering the United States Military Academy in 1911, he was a cadet there prior to the writing of the Cadet’s Prayer. But he embodied it during his outstanding career. Known as “The G. I.’s General,” he was beloved by those who served with him and for him. In an essay he wrote during his years as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, entitled “On Wishful Thinking,” Bradley wrote:

 

“We must accept reality and react promptly to all the facts—not only to those we want to hear. And we must fight constantly for the whole truth. For peace can come only from truth, knowledge and honest understanding. Half the truth will produce only half a peace—and half a peace is no longer enough.”

 

If America is to remain the most powerful nation in the free world, we must embrace again the truths that made our nation free. We must demand that our elected leaders—local, state, and national—speak the “unarmed truth.” We must resist those that would reduce our commitment to our spiritual heritage. This will require more than maintaining the words, “In God We Trust,” on our coinage.

 

We face the reality that some of our Constitutional Rights may be “temporarily defeated.” Evil may appear to be triumphant. But victory is not completely out of sight. It may be distant, but it is still there. How can we be victorious? It begins with our commitment “to live above the common level of life.” It will continue as we “choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong.” And victory will be ours as long as we are never “content with a half truth when the whole can be won.” And that’s the truth!

 

(“On Wishful Thinking” is from Words to Live By, edited by William I. Nichols, Simon and Schuster, New York, 1949).