‘What is truth?’ asked Pilate at the trial of Jesus. The witnesses had carefully arranged their stories and twisted the facts in order to condemn Jesus to death as a criminal. How are we to discern the truth of a statement when we rely on the frailty and prejudices of our human nature? In the passage from Matthew that we read today Jesus points to the ultimate bearer of truth, himself.

The context is originally the small community gathered around Jesus, the disciples had just had a big row about who was the greatest! We can see, however, that the early Church must have turned to this passage as they attempted to work out their differences.

The Kingdom of Heaven: It is important to read these passages with the ‘Big picture’ in mind. Jesus is not just giving us good advice, he is setting out a vision of what the Church should be – a community of fallible and frail people, learning to build each other up as they seek out truth. Frail and fallible as we are, he entrusts us with the task of discerning the truth.

Psalm 85 Vs 10-13 links truth with mercy righteousness and peace:

‘Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other’

But truth telling comes only when they come together with what is right and good and leads to peace. What we seek for lies beyond us and must be discerned in the light of the bigger picture.

This process of discernment mirrors the way in which we come to appreciate beauty in art. How is it that we come to value some art as great and truthful and other art as imitative and clichéd?

‘Ceci n’est pas une pipe’ René Magritte 1929

René Magritte teases us with an image of a pipe with the words:

‘Ceci n’est pas une pipe’. He is correct, of course, this is not a pipe, it is a painting of a pipe, but we want to say, but it is a pipe. We struggle to arrive at the truth because all art is an illusion, but it is an illusion seeking to tell the truth!

Pablo Picasso put it nicely:

“We know that art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realise truth at least the truth that is given us to understand.”

There is, then, a bigger picture by which the truthfulness of a work of art is to be judged just as there is a bigger picture by which we recognise all truthfulness. The artist seeks to examine his/her own thoughts, feelings and sensations in order to express the genuine and authentic art that moves others. The creation of great art requires the bold exploration of Truth and the bravery to present it to a potentially hostile world that will ultimately make a judgement on its worth. Each step is like a ‘Leap of faith’ or a ‘baptism of fire’ but the successful artist is courageous in giving us works of art that are authentic.

Truth: Jesus describes the same process of ‘soul searching’ and discernment as we seek for truth. There must be an opening up of ourselves in order to know where the truth lies. Here we need to admit that the wrongs committed are not always on the other’s side! This is not a charter for the critical but a chance for the light of truth to shine on us. Where there is no recognition of failure, or no attempt to know oneself we cannot arrive at truth.

The process of ‘Truth seeking’ is practical, firstly to attempt to deal with issues that arise face to face. Such openness is only possible when each party comes to the table willing to see the other person’s point of view. Where this is not possible then others should be brought into the process so that the ‘truth’ can be discerned. Truth is the object, not judgement! Helping each other to see the truth is part of the reconciliation and healing of relationships not about condemnation. Ultimately if no agreement can be reached then the matter is to be brought to the whole Church. Again we find that the purpose of such a meeting is to discern the ‘Truth’. The words of Jesus here about ‘Binding’ and ‘Loosing’ puts our decisions in the light of eternity, for what we discern as truth has ultimate authority. Just as a work of art stands or falls in the light of human judgement so, amazingly, Jesus places in our hands the power to decide where truth is to be found.

The Presence of Jesus: The authority of such decisions rests not on the people who make up the Church, for we are all fallible, but the promise that: “Where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them” Matt. 18:20.

Jesus promises to be present when we bring these decisions to him in prayer.

The Kingdom of Heaven: Where Jesus is present, there is the Kingdom! Jesus brings us back to the ‘Big picture’. Here we see that this is not just about sorting out the wrongs in the past but building for the future on the foundations of truth, goodness, and peace, just as in art we seek truth, beauty and goodness. Building a Kingdom in which we live in the presence of the one who said “I am the way, the truth and the life”.

Prayer for Ukraine

God of peace and justice we pray

for the people of Ukraine today,

and the laying down of weapons.

we pray for all those who fear for tomorrow,

that your spirit of comfort would draw near to them.

We pray for those with power over war and peace,

for wisdom, discernment, and compassion to guide their decisions

Above all, we pray for all your precious children at risk and in fear,

That you would hold and protect them.

I am contactable from Thursday to Sunday.