Do We Really Need A National Honesty Day?
Categories: Church of Christ Bulletin ArticlesDid you know that this past April 30th was National Honesty Day? The day was established in the early 1990’s by M. Hirsh Goldberg. Mr. Goldberg is now president of M. Hirsh Goldberg & Associates LLC, a Baltimore-based public relations and marketing agency.
He was a former press secretary and speech writer for a Maryland governor and a mayor of Baltimore, and established National Honesty Day in response to corporate scandals, consumer fraud, identity theft and Internet schemes.
Mr. Goldberg selected April 30th because, as he stated, “April begins with a day dedicated to lying [April Fools] and should end on a ‘higher moral note.'”
Brethren and friends, what a sad commentary on our society that such a holiday should even be suggested, much less established. But no wonder, because we live in a society where lying has become rampant — no one trusting anyone. Gone are the days when a contract was sealed with a merely a handshake, the days when a promise was regarded as good as fulfilled, and the days when a man’s word was his bond.
Back in the 50’s and 60’s, this writer can remember writing a check for a purchase almost anywhere in this country, and it would be accepted without having to show a driver’s license or any other documentation, simply because folks trusted one another.
Some of the excuses given for lying today run the gamut from the “little white lie” to deliberately deceiving someone for monetary or other types of gain. We hear about potential employees giving false information on their employment applications, of politicians deliberately making promises which they don’t intend to keep, and taxpayers who cheat on their tax returns.
The Bible identifies Satan as the “father of lies” (John 8:44).Thus, whenever we lie, we identify ourselves with Satan. Paul tells us that mankind once changed the truth of God into a lie by worshipping idols (Romans 1:25; cf. Isaiah 44:9-20; Jeremiah 10:14-15), and we still do. Lies have been used to promote false religion for centuries (Matthew 24:5,11; cf. Acts 20:29; 2 Peter 2:1), and they are still being promoted today.
The question then needs to be asked, “Do we really need a National Honesty Day?”
No, we just need to be honest with ourselves, with one another, and with God every day! (Ephesians 4:21-25; cf. Zechariah 8:16-17; Colossians 3:9-10).