‘I cannot tell a lie’
When I was in elementary school, we learned the legend of young George Washington chopping away at his father’s cherry tree – and, when confronted by his angry dad, admitting that he had done it with the famous words, “I cannot tell a lie.”
As a child, I found the spirit behind this story reassuring. Honesty is a quality I’ve continued to value in the years since, especially as my study and practice of Christian Science has progressed. It is heartening to acknowledge that man (meaning each of us) has a spiritual nature that includes integrity.
This spiritual identity is actually our only true identity. As children of God, we reflect God’s nature, one of truth and uprightness. In fact, Truth is a Bible-based synonym for God, as elucidated in the Christian Science textbook, “Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures” by Mary Baker Eddy. With such a divinely bestowed character, we have a natural inclination to love truth and to actively think and act with integrity – and an innate ability to do so.
Numerous accounts in the Bible point to this. For example, in the book of Genesis, a couple named Abraham and Sarah were staying in the land of Gerar. Abraham intentionally did not tell King Abimelech that Sarah was his wife, hoping that misrepresenting their relationship would prevent him from being killed by someone who wanted her for himself.
So King Abimelech took Sarah into his harem. Fortunately, God revealed the truth to King Abimelech, who immediately course corrected and sent Sarah back to her husband. The consequence of King Abimelech’s integrity was that his household was healed of infertility and bore children (see Genesis 20).
When we tell the truth, we are living in a way that’s consistent with what we truly, spiritually are – the reflection and expression of God, Truth. This puts us on the path to seeing God’s infinite goodness more readily in our lives.
But sometimes truth-telling can seem challenging. What if we hesitate to be totally upfront about something for fear it could be detrimental to us, or to someone else?
One time the principal of the school where I taught at the time asked me to evaluate another teacher, as part of an overall assessment of her performance. From what I had witnessed, this colleague was a very well-meaning but not particularly competent teacher.
I realized I had a choice. I could whitewash the situation and be a bit vague in my assessment of her skills, or I could compassionately, but honestly, attest to what I had observed.
As I prayed about how to handle this, the thought came that since God is Truth and Love, as the Bible teaches, telling the truth and expressing brotherly love cannot conflict, but must work together for good. Reliance on God as both Truth and Love opens the door to harmony that blesses all involved, in every kind of situation.
That’s because on this basis, genuine truth-telling doesn’t stem from a desire for personal gain or praise, but comes from obedience to our natural proclivity to do what is just and principled. It is our natural disposition to do what is loving and right. No one is irredeemably prone to lying, altering facts, or subjugating the truth, because the motivation to do less than good could never come from God, who is entirely good. Rather, we can maintain that man’s heritage is integrity. This fact strengthens us and those around us.
Hand in hand with a genuine desire to be truthful and loving, we can trust that divine Love cares for all in just the right way. I realized that this included my colleague and her students, as well.
These ideas gave me the strength and confidence to be kind as well as honest in sharing my observations with the principal. Afterward I felt that I had done the right thing.
Ultimately, this teacher did not finish out the school year. I ran into her a few years later and learned that she had subsequently shifted to a different profession. She mentioned how much happier she was and that her new career was a much better fit for her than teaching had been.
Because we are the offspring of God, Truth, our birthright is truth. We each have the intelligence, wisdom, and courage to tell the truth. God also reveals to us the humility and grace needed to do this lovingly and to support others in expressing their innate integrity, as well. It is natural for each one of us to live a life of honesty – with confidence and sincerity.
