Intentions and meaning

Bob Lovett reflects on the nature of truth

by Bob Lovett 22nd June 2018

How do we recognise true news from fake news? Some fake news is sensationally obvious, but could it be that some ‘fake news’ is ‘true news’ falsified, told in a different way, selectively edited and nuanced to present an event in a particular light? Who, then, is to say where, in a range of accounts, truth lies? As Quakers our history has been underpinned by a belief that the truth can be revealed to us by direct divine insight, and can be tested for its veracity through our processes of discernment. We record these truths in our minutes and in other documents, but, inevitably, we have to use language to do so.