The Gospel of John gives us a more in-depth picture of a conversation between Jesus and the Roman governor, Pontius Pilot, than do the other gospels. In John 18, Pilate attempts to turn Jesus back over to his accusers, for trial according to temple law; they refuse, because they are “not permitted to put anyone to death”. How desperately the religious leaders wanted to be rid of this pesky rabbi who was stirring up the people, talking about loving their neighbor, threatening their positions! Pilot went back inside, and summoned Jesus to be brought to him, where he questioned him further. Finally, “Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’ Pilate asked him, ‘What is truth?'” (John 18:37 -38)

In that same chapter, Peter had lied – denying three times that he even knew Jesus. Peter lied out of fear. The religious leaders of the Sanhedrin had brought in false witnesses, and then they had sworn to Pilate that Jesus was a dangerous criminal. In this passage where Pilate asks, “What is truth?” those who are the religious leaders have lied, to protect their positions, to remove this man whom they considered to be a threat. I suspect that Pilate knew this.

Pilate himself was a skilled soldier and politician – they were one and the same in much of the Roman empire. He recognized skewed truth and “alternative facts” when he heard them, knew when he was being manipulated by the religious leaders; he likely used falsehoods in his reports to Rome. He was eventually removed from office because his cruelty was stirring up the population against Rome. His question, then, is more than metaphysical; it is practical. What “truth” is it most politically expedient for him to act on, whether or not he believes it?

When we lie in our private relationships, we are valuing expediency over relationship. The relationship becomes less important than our “getting away” with something – think the teen-ager slipping out after curfew, then lying to her parents, or the spouse sneaking around and lying about it. The relationship is not what is important to these people, getting their own way is what is important. And we call that betrayal.

When we lie in public relationships, it is also a breach of trust, a betrayal. The religious leaders who handed Jesus over to Pilate were concerned about themselves – and betrayed their obligation to God and the people. When leaders lie to the people they are supposed to serve, it is betrayal.

Pilate knew about lying to maintain power – that is why he questioned. There are those in power today who lie to manipulate the people. When called out on the lie, they call it “alternative facts”, but it is still lying for expediency. There is, in other words, purpose behind the lies. They are meant to manipulate, to frighten. Make no mistake, lies by a political figure, be they on social media or in court, are a betrayal of the trust of the people.

Safety is a basic human need, right there at the base of Maslow’s hierarchy along with food, water, and shelter. Homeless people lack safety, and can be defensive as a result. Refugees have lost the safety of their homes and communities. Those parents would love to have their children safe, just as you and I want to keep our children safe.

But any parent knows that we must make judgments about how “safe” to keep our children. A child may skin her knees learning to ride a bicycle, but we generally consider that activity to have a good outcome and allow it. We cannot keep our children wrapped in bubble wrap and at home for all their lives!

We make judgments on the basis of our safety every day. We risk our safety when we get in our cars – I saw a bad wreck on I-4 as I was returning from Orlando today. Odd that I was thinking of this very thing as I drove over. Driving is probably the most dangerous thing most of us do; it is certainly more dangerous than flying on a commercial jet, yet we fear flying and don’t think twice about driving! Our safety fears are often based more on perception than reality.

As a society we do things to make our people safer. We have speed limits and seat belt laws. People screamed about those seat belt laws being an invasion of their rights, but now most accept them; and today there are laws being passed against texting while driving – to make us safer. We also pass regulations on businesses and manufacturers to make their workers safer, and to protect the safety of our children and grandchildren from chemicals and other damage to our environment. We had made progress in reducing our dependence on foreign oil, as our reliance on foreign oil was seen as a threat to the ultimate safety of our country.

Our values are also a part of decisions on safety – if we value God’s good creation we will make decisions that protect the environment. That also keeps us safer. Jesus gave us values related to the care of the stranger. Remember the story of the Good Samaritan? The Jews in Jesus’ audience at the time thought Samaritans were dangerous; but Jesus taught that they were neighbors. Are Muslims dangerous? A few, who adhere to ISIL likely are. Does that justify hating all Muslims? You might as well hate all white people because a few white people are dangerous! Most of the Islamaphobia in this country is manipulation – you are supposed to feel fearful; you are supposed to feel unsafe, because that benefits Mr. Bannon and Mr. Trump. You are being manipulated.

So – are you safer today than you were a week ago? Mr Trump has met with auto manufacturers to say basically that his administration will not enforce regulations – so all those protections for workers, and protections for your children’s earth? Gone! He also passed a ban on people from seven predominantly Muslim countries coming to this country, and a longer ban on refugees. Does that make you safer? No! ISIL uses that sort of discrimination to recruit against us. There were refugees who had undergone a four-year vetting process who were sent back to refugee camps where their children are not safe. Some of those families were sponsored by churches – that didn’t matter. They were sent back. Jesus closed the parable of the Good Samaritan with the question, “Who was the neighbor?” I ask you, “Who is your neighbor?”