Truth has many facets

The culture of the United States and many cultures in the world, like the individuals who live within those cultures, view the world as black and white. We tend to see two sides to every conflict, good guys and bad guys. We like happy endings where evil is vanquished by good.  Life rarely works that way, not in our families, our communities, or our world.  No wonder we are often dissatisfied!   Life is much more complex, and truth is a messy business. When more than one person is involved, truth is often in the eye, or experience, of the beholder.  It’s only occasionally either/or.  More often it is both/and. 

After growing up learning about the horrors of the Holocaust and seeing movies about the persecution of the Jews in Europe and Asia going back centuries, I agree wholeheartedly that the Jews, like any other people on the planet, have a right to live in peace and security.  Unfortunately, those are the same aspirations of Palestinians, some of whom occupy the land now called Israel.  I can wish for peace and security for the Jews of Israel AND the same for the Palestinian people who recognize Israel’s right to exist.  I can also stand against any terrorist group or state entity that seeks to eliminate any other group of people from the planet because of the way they worship, look or believe.

I love my country, the United States of America and all it proposed to become in the Declaration of Independence.  And I acknowledge that our history includes many areas where we have fallen short of those ideals. 

As we celebrate our Independence Day, it’s not disloyal to acknowledge that many of us live on land that was taken by force or coercion from the people who were originally here.  That is a messy truth.  The founders of our country made many mistakes along the way.  It is precisely that love for our country and what its potential that I call on us to continue to strive to do better and be better.