Imagine That II

How interesting it is that the news media cannot come to grips with the Manti Te’o story.  Reporters and anchors on CNN and major networks all seem to be scratching their heads asking, “How can this have happened?  Why did this young man fall for a hoax?”

            My response:  think about what media professionals do for a living.  Newscasts resent stories in which professional “spin doctors” (especially in political situations) or international incidents (with interpreters) may have some truth and a lot of, shall we say, slant.  So-called “reality television” creates a set of characters who are creating a reality, not living in it.  Movies and television episodes tell stories that take ingredients of daily life and add large doses of fantasy.

            So how is this different from what Manti Te’o has to answer for now?

            Then, at today’s inauguration, the story has come forth that the singer Beyonce simply moved her lips to her pre-recorded voice singing the national anthem.  The orchestra made motions to appear as if the instruments were being played.  The spin—which has some truth—is that voices and musical instruments do not do well in colder weather.  On a side note, that makes me wonder about all of those college marching bands I’ve seen on television over the years at different bowl games….  

            The moral challenge versus the pragmatism of the producers’ decisions about the orchestra and Beyonce is another discussion for another day.  The interesting issue to me is whether we trusted too much in the reality of what we saw.  Did we use our imaginations without our permission?  That’s the line of reality and imagination.

            And there’s an important spiritual lesson here, for a core understanding of evil is that we are led to believe something that is not real.  Demonic forces lead those unaware souls into falsehoods.  Satan is the “father of lies.”

            We must be careful and prudent in the use of the mental capabilities that God has given us through the Holy Spirit.  We must pray for the power to discern what indeed is real, what is virtual, and what is false.  The line can be hard to see.  In Christ, we can find truth and know the Truth.  “Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’ (John 8:31-32)  The challenge of the virtual and the imagined and the perceived, as can be seen, is nothing new.  The Good News is that we do not have an imaginary or virtual Jesus.

            In Christ there is no lip sync or virtual reality.  And we don’t have to imagine that.