It’s just a game, or so I’ve been told. You say something and other players ask questions, then determine if your claim is true or false.
No problem, if it really is “just a game” but something’s afoot in our culture, making it challenging to determine what is truth or a lie. We’re left wondering if we can trust photos and direct quotes, frequently reinterpreted as “unsubstantiated” or “fake.” Sometimes I wonder if our flippant use of whatever encourages a culture of deceit.
In a strange twist, when I wrote whatever, two of Anne Lamott’s prayers came to mind. A simple morning prayer:”Whatever” and for evening,”Oh, well.” Doesn’t sound very spiritual but both, for me, ooze trust. Not a fatalistic whatever, like who cares if words spoken or written are true or false or if God pays attention to our prayers. Instead, consider “whatever” as an offering of trust in God’s goodness and the day’s possibilities.
As for, “Oh,well.”
Not a bad idea to sigh a prayer of relief at day’s end, resting in God’s trustworthiness, not our accomplishments. Well-ness.
In 1373 Julian of Norwich received a vision and these words from God,
“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
Lies, normalized or ignored, spread dis-ease, un-well-ness.
Truth may get buried or bought off for a while, but eventually Truth comes out.
Take heart.
A leader’s accountable to ” tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God.” Leaders, like the rest of us, need God’s help to be honest and to create a culture of trust.
When leaders serve with humility and integrity “All manner of things shall be well.”
And we can hopefully pray, “Whatever, God.”
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