Is that a fact?

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 5, Issue 18, 29 September 1987, Page 12

Is that a fact?

AIl lies are sinful, but some are more damaging than others. It is much more harmful to say something untrue about a person than to claim that a fish you caught was huge when it was no more than 8 inches long. Possibly the worst kind of lie is the one that is intended to destroy the character of another. It can even take the form of 'telling the truth', but doing so in such a way that suggests something quite false. I read about two men who worked on a large oceangoing vessel. One day the mate, who normally did not drink, became intoxicated. The captain, who hated him, entered in the

daily log: 'Mate drunk today.' He knew this was his first offence, but he wanted to get him fired. The mate was aware of his evil intent and begged him to change the record. The captain, however, replied, 'It's a fact, and into the log it goes!' A few days later the mate was keeping the log, and concluded it with: 'Captain sober today.' Realising the implications of this statement, the captain asked that it be removed. In reply the mate said, 'It's a fact, and in the log it stays!' If you really want to hurt somebody, you can repeat something he said and distort the meaning. You can in fact be entirely accurate, but imply a falsehood. God judges us by our motives.