Read on Twitter
The thing that concerns me most about this moment in American history is how clearly our individual notions of truth are shaped by our desires. Belief cannot help but be shaped by desire, but what does it reveal about our desires? That is the real issue. 1/13
Polling numbers have suggested for some time that the way people view Donald Trump, his words, and actions is highly dependent on their party affiliation - more so than one might expect. The amount of news organizations that are heavily biased isn't helping at all. 2/13
People are asking why so many believe the US presidential election was stolen when even Republican judges found no evidence of that. Because they want to. Why do many believe there is a group of Satan worshipping pedophiles in the Democratic Party? Because they want to. 3/13
Why yesterday did all the House Democrats see Trump as guilty and nearly all the House Republicans saw him as innocent? Could it be because they wanted to? Why do some believe CNN or Fox News and others do not? Perhaps because they want to. 4/13
This creates a really dangerous situation in which people continually gravitate toward sources of information that confirm their worldview and reject those that do not. We see this on a macro level in the political sphere but on a micro level everywhere else. 5/13
Consider the societal response to accusations of sexual abuse. Who we believe is determined by pre-existing notions and desires. Why do many believe vaccines cause autism? Because it is easier than accepting that autism can happen to anyone and we don't fully understand it. 6/13
As a Christian, I serve a God who is truth. Therefore, my greatest desire must be for the absolute truth. I must not accept easy answers that simply confirm what I want to hear. I must dig deeper into the evidence before forming beliefs and not live in an echo chamber. 7/13
There are liberal echo chambers and conservative ones. There are echo chambers for different religious groups, business organizations, and personal cliques. We must examine our own motivations and place them through God's refining fire. 8/13
On March 5, 1770, a group of British soldiers in Boston were surrounded by a mob. The British military was highly unpopular in the city, and tensions flared. The soldiers were abused verbally and physically. Eventually, one soldier fired. 9/13
This then led other soldiers to fire and five people in the crowd were killed. The incident was labeled "The Boston Massacre." It was featured in pamphlets attacking the British. It became a major feature of anti-British propaganda. 10/13
Of course, the British government was not blameless in the colonies, but most tales of the event painted it to make the soldiers look as bad as possible. It infuriated those who already had reason to hate the British. John Adams was assigned to defend the soldiers in court. 11/13
Adams argued, "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence: nor is the law less stable than the fact." 6 soldiers were acquitted, 2 convicted of manslaughter. 12/13
I suggest that Americans must now return to the stubborn facts. We must not allow our wishes, inclinations, and passions to lead us to distorted versions of truth. Fake news is a problem and always has been, but it is not limited to one side or one group. 13/13
