Blog by Justice Promoter Kelly Litt[/caption]
What happened to truth?
Over and over I heard "It's scary;" "This political climate is not normal;" "What happened to truth?" As I gathered with others in our Dominican family for the North American Dominican Justice Peace and Care of Creation meeting at Techny Towers north of Chicago, I found myself in deep conversations about truth and this post-truth era we find ourselves in. As Dominicans, we claim our charism to preach truth; it's that very veritas that propels us to work toward justice and overcome oppressive structures and practices. We spoke about the importance or returning to our roots of disputatio, the use of conversation and questioning rather than using issues merely to twist facts to reflect your opinion. Through these conversations, we can better understand our differences and find avenues that lead us to understanding, empathy and solidarity.Finding hope in a post-truth era
The past few months have been filled with this "post-truth era," and our communities are suffering from harmful rhetoric and a demonization of the media and news outlets. Communities are struggling with figuring out whom they can trust and where they can turn for safety and inclusion. Perhaps you've even found yourself wondering what truth even is anymore. [caption id="attachment_4610" align="alignleft" width="300"]
I am the way and the truth and the life. (John 14:6)[/caption]
I found a sense of strength and hope through this meeting with fellow Dominican Justice Promoters. Their presence and passion reminded me that despite this difficult "post-truth" time, we can continue asking, like our brother Antonio de Montesinos, who is benefiting from this distortion of truth and who is suffering, and then we can work to find commonalities with those of opposing opinions. While it is our mandate to continue speaking truth, we cannot only speak the truth and expect it to be effective. In what ways can we continue meeting people where they are and affirm the truth of their own experiences, though our experiences, politics, and opinions may differ greatly? Can we continue using our truth and continue building bridges between God, truth, and humanity like St. Catherine aimed to do in this twenty-first century post-truth era?
I am grateful for my time with the North American Dominican Justice Promoters and this renewed energy and passion to persevere through this post-truth era and continue bringing the Gospel message of hope, love, inclusion, and truth to the world.
I am the way and the truth and the life. (John 14:6)