The Cold Grip

Written By Jeff Rybacki
 

“What is truth?” Pilate was a soldier, a politician and, apparently, a philosopher. Serving Rome will do that to you. How many times had he, as Rome’s local “supreme court,” heard case after case, each person arguing that theirs was the correct account, only to find under cross examination that things were not what they seemed. I could maybe give Pilate a little slack when the tight-lipped person in front of him facing judgment claimed to be not only a purveyor of truth but of Universal Truth.

In the early ‘80s I saw a poster of a man with a wry smile on his face looking right at me. I guess if it had been on social media if would have been called a “meme.” The caption read “Do not seek cynicism — it will come naturally.” Maybe Pilate would have put a poster like that on his office wall ... in Latin, Greek and Hebrew, of course.  It sounds accurate, doesn’t it? Cynicism (the colloquial kind, not the philosophy) seems very easy to come by. A Google search on cynicism yield hundreds, if not thousands of quotes from famous (or infamous) people from around the world and across history. Many decry it, a few embrace it, but everyone explicitly or tacitly acknowledges that it is everywhere.

George Carlin once said “Scratch a cynic and [underneath] you will find a disappointed idealist.” The cynic was different early on in life, when ambitions were fresh, the view of the world was narrow, the problems seemed simpler and betrayal was just a dictionary word.  As the years wore on however, success was never complete (if at all), solutions seemed to create more problems, personal agendas hijacked progress, and truth seemed to be a frequent casualty. And so a cynic was born. Recognize that person? 

Disappointment is inevitable in this sinful world. We let our guard down and our expectations rise, then something happens to force a course change.  Reality 1; expectations 0. Again. But disappointment does not inexorably lead to full-blown cynicism. There’s a key ingredient that needs to appear: lack of hope. George Carlin cut his definition short: a cynic is not just a disappointed idealist, but one who has lost hope. 

Christian, hope needs to be stamped on your forehead, tattooed on your arm, emblazoned on everything you eat, wear and do. It is our brand, so to speak. Without it we can’t love properly and we fall with the world into cynicism or worse, despair. It gives us the reason for trying again.  It is a confidence that there are ideals that are still meaningful, still worth pursuing. It is knowing that eternity is in the balance, not the next election. It is faith that God is able to fulfill all of his promises, now and forever.  It is resetting your expectations to align with the One Who has proven Himself to be True through his life, death and resurrection.

I’ve wondered what would have happened if Pilate had asked the question in good faith — the most important one of his life — and waited for an answer.  I think Jesus would given him the same answer that He gave another doubter, Thomas: I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.  Let that answer reverberate in your soul and you will find hope, the only cure for cynicism.

Jeff Rybacki
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