Truth
6. Civic Knowledge and Skills
We are not philosophers, so defining "truth" is as thorny as defining "peace" and "justice." But truth, together with peace, justice, and mercy, are all necessary components of John Paul Lederach's notion of "reconciliation," to which we subscribe. So how did Lederach define Truth? He defined it in terms of his "meeting place exercise," where participants discuss the meaning of all four concepts.
When discussing the images of Truth, the participants suggested honesty, revelation, clarity, open accountability, and vulnerability. ... [In the context of conflict,] truth is the longing for acknowledgement of wrong and the validation of painful loss and experiences.
Truth is getting increasingly difficult to discern in the age of social media where "disinformation" and "fake facts" abound, and "fact checking" is politicized and error prone. Given these challenges, it may well be that the most difficult element of reconciliation in the current era is not peace, justice, or mercy — but rather, truth.
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