To be honest with you . . .

GARY: That's a great question, but to be honest with you . . .

BRADLEY: You mean as opposed to the lies you usually tell me?

Gary, my vendor sales rep had become a good friend so it was just using a little sarcasm between friends. It was the NY TIMES that once did a piece on the use of sarcasm and its affects on the culture. I'm afraid it's something that I tend to over use, but with any type of humor there's usually a common truth that makes it funny.

During a long conversation with my friend Gordon who was the chaplain at my parent's senior living center we touched on the "pastoral voice" versus " the "teacher voice". It's something that I became very interested in. Knowing that he's was close to my parents we discussed the need to present the truth but not create anxiety or concern. It's a balance that you can only achieve when you know the person well or ask some exploratory qualifying questions.

When it comes to the "teacher voice" or a "preachers voice" you are usually speaking to an audience that came to hear the truths of your message. When the "vaccines" for COVID were becoming available a Priest preaching on the scriptures of that particular Sunday was relating his message to the fear and truths of the emerging pandemic.  He shared that he, would not let his mother or father receive the shot. Word got out and the priest's bishop ended up responding to some of the push back that was created in the media. I believe the bishop even put out the word to be aware of the messaging in relation to the times we were in. As you can imagine there is much more to the story but when another steps in, does that mean the priest has to be "less than honest."

There is always an audience that wants to hear the truth. The level of "agenda driven truth" is like sarcasm in a way, but where humor has a common truth, 'agenda driven truth" creates a "slippery slope" as they like to say. It's subjective and deceptive.  During "immigration Sunday" another priest got into trouble for teaching about the threat of another religion. it was red meat for headline creating media. His bishop had the priest write a letter of apology to be read at all his mass' because the story was picked up by those that like a good headline that draws eyeballs without actually exploring the truth of the message. Let's be honest our times seem to be less than honest or at least feel disordered from the truth.  I apologize for the agenda driven truth, "but to be honest" . . .