OPINION:
The Brittanica describes the word propaganda as the “dissemination of information — facts, arguments, rumors, half-truths, or lies — to influence public opinion. It is often conveyed through mass media.”
Does any of that sound familiar? Well, it certainly should as it clearly applies to the current political climate in our country.
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The airwaves and written pages are being littered with at best half-truths and at worst bald face lies purportedly to enhance the chances of candidates being elected to various offices including the highest and most powerful position in all of the world, the presidency of the United States.
Admittedly propaganda can take the form of either a positive form of building up a candidacy or the negative form of tearing an opponent down. While it may be in widespread use by both major political parties, it simply is not capable of rising above the level of collective putrid confabulations of garbled deception. If it is nothing else, the easy use of propaganda by those who would be in power over the lives of any people group is at least a clear sign of a morbid fixation on moral decay in the very marrow of the bones of a culture. Such is the case when it applies to politics Americana.
The Brittanica article goes further to define the term in this manner:
Propaganda is the more or less systematic effort to manipulate other people’s beliefs, attitudes, or actions by means of symbols (words, gestures, banners, monuments, music, clothing, insignia, hairstyles, designs on coins and postage stamps, and so forth) … To maximize effect, they may omit or distort pertinent facts or simply lie, and they may try to divert the attention of the reactors (the people they are trying to sway) from everything but their own propaganda.
To be perfectly honest (pun intended), though this type of manipulation is spreading like wildfire in America, it is far from a novel concept. In fact, it is as old as the Garden of Eden where Satan, who then self-identified as a snake, deceived Eve and Adam into violating their relationship with their Creator. Through the ages, bad philosophies have perfected their appeal to gain power over an unsuspecting and naïve populace. No better example can be found than in the proponents of Marxism and Communism who are finding more than their niche in our culture.
Certainly, the utilization of this form of deceptive wordsmithing should never be confused with education, yet it is currently widely accepted as the norm in America as a base curriculum at all levels of our instructional system. If it had not been shown to be so effective, particularly with the young or those susceptible to confusion, then perhaps our situation would not be so dire. However, because it has been so widespread in its application and so often repeated, the use of deceptive language has proven to be the central catalyst in the deterioration of American society as we know it. The old adage that if you tell a lie often enough, with enough emphasis, it will become the norm is alive and well in America, and it is working. In describing political jargon and its effect, one observer lamented that we can no longer expect our leaders to talk sense to us. But the greater calamity is that so many are still believing their nonsense!
If bad philosophy gives rise to propaganda, then the antidote for bad philosophy is good philosophy. Likewise, the obvious cure for the poison of falsehood of any kind can be found in what is required of witnesses in the courtroom: “The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” It is, then, logically based classical education that must step into the fray to induce a reluctant culture to assemble and evaluate relevant evidence for themselves and thereby avoid the pitfalls of unrealized, latent ignorance. The resulting growth in morality, innate intelligence and courage are all necessities of a republican form of government.
The stakes are just too high for our nation to succumb to a half-hearted attempt to understand the magnitude of our present predicament. As was said of the winter in Valley Forge, “These are the times that try men’s souls.” Petty party politics devoid of thought cannot and will not assuage our frustrations. As citizens of this nation, we must now decide what kind of future we will deliver to the next generation. Will it be one of rampant economic stress brought on by excessive government, lax border protection, loss of personal freedoms, especially that of our precious freedom of religion, and crime-ridden streets? Or alternatively, will there be a rebirth of the American ideal that once graced our nation? To be perfectly clear, neither candidate for president has the capacity in their own right to provide the stability so sorely needed in America at this moment in time. However, there is surely a choice to be made even in the midst of the fog of Decision 2024.
As important as this election cycle may be, there is a far greater confrontation between truth and falsehood that is looming over the inhabitants of our nation. In fact, it is one of those “once to every man and nation” moments that confronts us, and it is this: will we cast our lot with earthly governments, or will we be found in Christ alone? Common sense and the Second Law of Logic (known as the law of non-contradiction) will tell you that two opposites cannot both be true at the same time and under the same circumstances. So, not only is there a political decision to be made between two opposing candidates, but our nation must now also decide the course of our future as a people and as individuals.
In John 14:6 Jesus proclaims, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Then in John 8:31-32 this same Jesus tells his followers, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
That is why the very foundation of Southern Evangelical Seminary is built upon the truth of the Gospel message, the written Word of God, and good philosophy. While so many in our nation, including some of those who call themselves Christians are blinded by the flimflam flashiness of fraudulence promulgated by the culture of deception that surrounds us, Christ’s Church, and those of us who name the name of Jesus must be ever vigilant to learn, defend, and live the truth of the Gospel.
I am no prophet. I do not have any greater insight than anyone else as to who will inhabit 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue come January. Whatever that outcome may be though, on inauguration day you will find all of us at Southern Evangelical Seminary living in the last verse of that great hymn:
Though the cause of evil prosper, Yet the truth alone is strong; Though her portion be the scaffold, And upon the throne be wrong; Yet the scaffold sways the future, And behind the dim unknown, Standeth God within the shadow, Keeping watch above His own.
In the storms of our lives, there is no safer place than to be steadfast in the truth of the Gospel, the only real truth that matters.
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After a successful career as a lawyer and judge, Judge Phil Ginn retired as the Senior Resident Superior Court Judge for the 24th Judicial District in North Carolina. Throughout his 22-year judicial career, he had the privilege of holding court in almost 50% of the county seats in North Carolina. Currently, Judge Ginn serves as the president of Southern Evangelical Seminary (ses.edu) and is a regular contributor to Christianity.com and The Washington Times. Judge Ginn has also been featured on Fox News, CBN, Newsmax, Decision Magazine, The Christian Post, Townhall and many others.
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