THE REALM OF MAKE BELIEVE

During the trial in the movie “A Few Good Men”, Jack Nicholson, in the role of a Marine Officer, shouted, “You can’t handle the truth!”  Is the truth that difficult to handle?  One of the dictionary’s definitions of truth is “…of being in accordance with the fact and reality…”.  The bible states “…and ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free…” (John 8:32)  Why should we seek the truth if we can’t handle the truth?  Let us examine the lives of a few “truth seekers” and determine how they “handled the truth.”

Socrates was charged with “corrupting the minds of the youth” and executed in 399 BC.  He was sentenced to death at the age of 70 by a jury of 500 male Athenians over the age of 30 chosen by lot.  Under Athenian law execution was carried out by having those found guilty drink a cup of hemlock; a poisonous plant used for executions.  Some say Socrates was the first known martyr for “free speech” and SEEKER OF THE TRUTH.

Giordano Bruno (1548-Feb 17, 1600) was a Dominican Friar, philosopher, mathematician, astrologer and astronomer.  Bruno declared the sun was a star at the center of the solar system and that the sun did not move.  He was charged with heresy and his imprisonment and trial lasted seven years (1593-1600).  Bruno was found guilty and burned at the stake.

The New Testament is based on the life and teachings of Jesus.  In the gospel love and forgiveness is preached and when asked what was the greatest commandment in the law, Jesus said, “Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like unto it; Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.  Matthew 23:36-40

Was Jesus an advocate of non-violence when He said, “Put up again thy sword into his place; for all that take the sword shall perish with the sword…”  Matthew 26:52  Jesus was tortured and crucified, but before he died Jesus said, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  Luke 23:34

Mohandas Gandhi took up the mantle of non-violence and removed the yoke of British colonization.  Gandhi was a “truth seeker” and was murdered, but the principles of non-violence have lived on.

In our time Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister and believer in non-violence, gave a lecture at the Riverside Church in New York titled “Why I oppose the Vietnam War.”  Dr. King, vilified by friend and foe, was murdered exactly one year from the date of that speech.  History is a witness that many “truth seekers” are violently attacked and often killed.

The Realm of Make Believe is a mindset wherein they that reside there accept as truth many beliefs that defy all factual reason such as:

THE UNITED STATES WAS FOUNDED ON CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES.

In reality the nation was founded by war, and was nurtured by indentured servants, slavery, and the genocide of the Native Americans.  The division between the haves and have-nots already in existence was cast by word and deed.  Two hundred years of slavery, forced segregation, and Women’s suffrage, all to be reversed by courageous men, women, and children who were imprisoned, beaten, and often killed as they non-violently marched to render some semblance of truth to the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

There are those who call themselves Christians, yet support both pre-emptive war and the death penalty.  In the Realm of Make Believe this does not appear to be hypocritical.

In the Realm of Make Believe under the guise of protecting the people from terrorism we are suffocated by constraints to our ability to travel and/or speak the truth without fear of punishment or name calling.  To protect America from present and/or future acts of terrorism our government embraces its own form of terrorism by sending drones to kill anyone deemed an enemy, while also killing innocent men, women, and children.

In the Realm of Make Believe our Senators and Representatives, in many cases, devote much of their time raising monies to ensure their ability to remain in office and the remainder of the time serving the needs of their powerful supporters.  The people be damned!

In the Realm of Make Believe under the banner of justice, we have killed and incarcerated more citizens than any other country on the planet.

In the Realm of Make Believe the government has saved the Banking and Investment systems, permitted corporations to transfer our manufacturing industries overseas to increase their profits utilizing cheap labor and substandard working conditions, while the people are evicted from their homes and hurled into bankruptcy and poverty.

In the Realm of Make Believe we spend the National treasure by making and devising new weapons for defense, while many men, women, and children are hungry and homeless and the nation’s infrastructure.

In the Realm of Make Believe we sing God Bless America and extol Democracy and Peace, while our government supports regimes that are evil and corrupt.  We meddle in the affairs of other nations — often with evil intent and proclaim we are promoting democracy.

In the Realm of Make Believe we refer to citizens as white and black, yet in reality there are no white or black people in the United States.

Do we dwell in the Realm of Make Believe because we can’t handle the truth or is the price “truth seekers” may have to pay too high?

In the name of God that some say they believe in – in the name of the Good that others believe in – it is time for those with the courage and strength to “handle the truth.”  Now is the time to leave the Realm of Make Believe and become “seekers of the truth” for therein lies the salvation of our civilization and the planet earth.

So let us begin…