Mr. Murdoch, Father of Fox News and Father of Lies may be a GOAT— Greatest of All Time–in his chosen profession of reducing journalism to lies for the single purpose of appealing to the resentments and racism, hurt and lie-mongering of citizens in order to make profits.
He may go down in history as the “Greatest of All Time” in deceiving the masses and rendering them addicted to his lies.
What is evident is that in his role as media mogul in three countries, Australia, Great Britain and the United States, Lies, not Truth, has been his motto. And destruction of democracy has been his footprint.
At the same time, he is a Father of Lies because he plays father to tiny-souled people, giving out salaries of $45 million per year to Mr. Hannity and $35 million per year to Mr. Tucker to carry on their on-the-air lies which, when the cameras are turned off, they themselves confess are lies. All this is in e-mails we can read from current court proceedings. Paying people 35 and 45 million dollars to lie certainly qualifies as GOAT.
Hannity and Tucker did not sell their souls cheaply.
So Murdoch the father of Fox News and his media children ought to be meditating on Lent and Ash Wednesday this season and asking, near the end of his life: “What has it all been about? What have I given back and to whom and with what intentions? What good have I done?”
Instead, his legacy is the sordid distortion and destruction of a valuable and needed profession, journalism, and of democracy itself.
In contrast, the mystics have a lot to say about truth. St. Teresa of Avila says that we should “draw out the truth in everything…God is supreme Truth; and to be humble is to walk in truth.”
Can the super-rich and super powerful walk in truth? Or at least try to? Can all of us—and especially those in the powerful and needed vocation of journalism—aspire for Truth? That is, at least try to seek out Truth, to be hunters and gatherers (very healthy masculine archetype) for Truth?
Or is Truth too much for them to grasp. St. Teresa teaches us more about truth.
God is everlasting truth. I am reminded of Pilate, how he was questioning our Lord when during the Passion he asked him ‘What is truth?’ and of the little we understand about this Supreme Truth. Let us conclude that in order to live in conformity with our God and spouse it will be well if we always study diligently how to walk in this truth.
Maybe a retreat and time with the mystics who praise Truth might be in order for Murdoch and his company along with the rest of us. Truth is not easy to come by for anyone—and evidently not for overly paid media people barking and spreading lies.
See Matthew Fox, “Hunter-Gatherers,” in The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors for Awakening the Sacred Masculine, pp. 43-76.
To read the transcript of Matthew Fox’s video teaching, click HERE
Banner Image: “Rupert” by ChrisM70 is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Queries for Contemplation
Are Teresa of Avila’s teachings on Truth useful for you? In what way? How do you practice “hunting-gathering” for Truth?
Recommended Reading
The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors to Awaken the Sacred Masculine
To awaken what Fox calls “the sacred masculine,” he unearths ten metaphors, or archetypes, ranging from the Green Man, an ancient pagan symbol of our fundamental relationship with nature, to the Spiritual Warrior….These timeless archetypes can inspire men to pursue their higher calling to connect to their deepest selves and to reinvent the world.
“Every man on this planet should read this book — not to mention every woman who wants to understand the struggles, often unconscious, that shape the men they know.” — Rabbi Michael Lerner, author of The Left Hand of God
11 thoughts on “Teresa of Avila on Truth; Murdoch, GOAT of Lying”
Matthew, Today you tell us again for the fourth day in a row, that Rupert Murdoch is the Father of Lies. St. Teresa of Ávila (1515-1582), Doctor of the Church, mystic, nun and reformer, led a movement of spiritual and monastic renewal, reforming the Carmelite Orders of both women and men. So this would suggest that you would like to see Murdoch, the Father of Fox News and his media children, even though he is not a man of compassionate faith, to do the work of St. Teresa of Avila–that is of reforming and renewing Fox News. You even say that he and his media children ought to be meditating on Lent and Ash Wednesday this season and asking, near the end of his life: “What has it all been about? What have I given back and to whom and with what intentions? What good have I done?” Do you really think this will happen ??? I personally doubt it. So therefore it might make more sense to pray for him in this season of lent–Jesus said to pray for those who despitefully use you. He also said to Peter, the so-called rock of the church, that he should not only be willing to forgive his brother not seven times, but seventy times seven. This might seem like the easy way out for us, but the earliest Christians could have rose up in protest against the Roman government that made their religion illegal and punishable by death, and as a result we have untold thousands of martyrs who bore witness of their faith by living their faith rather than protesting the status quo. I know that you teach that prayer is a racial response to life, so for me its time to focus on what I can actually do about this. And what I see is I can do is tell others about this injustice and pray for Murdoch and his cohorts. And as far as St. Teresa of Avila’s teachings on Truth go, here we are talking about two different kinds of “truth.” One has to do with honesty in our behavior, but St. Teresa’s was TRUTH in all capitals–in other words “Ultimate Truth”–and I don’t think that’s what we’re are talking about with Murdoch–I don’t think his words are even comparable to the words of St. Teresa…
Teresa’s words, “Draw out the truth in everything”, really speaks to me. Putting this into practice is like drawing living water from a deep well. First you have to thirst for truth. Then you have to go to the well, that sacred space and place of communion with Spirit. Then you have to look into the well, with a willingness to be honestly vulnerable and self-reflective. Then you have to descend into the depths of the shadow, where things appear distorted due to emotional reactions or negative thoughts splashing as you make contact. Then you have to be willing to surrender, going deeper, trusting that Spirit will draw you into the unknown and that She will help you to see, with the eyes of your heart, what lies in the darkness… which is that which you fear. Then Spirit will speak to you, in this deep silence, words of truth, that comfort and console… along with offerings of wisdom. Now you must draw this sacred blessing unto yourself, and drink from this cup… allowing this living water of truth to unfold, evolve and emerge from within your heart… which has not only quenched your thirst… but that also moistens your parched lips and dry tongue… freeing you to give voice to that which has been revealed and made known.
Thank you Jeanette for your reflection. It reminded me of the encounter of Jesus with the woman at the well in the gospel of John. I often read, pray and contemplate this encounter. At times being the woman and other times Jesus.
It is always a profound transformation.
Blessings on our journey this Lenten season as we seek the Truth in ourselves, in our world and then go out as the woman of the well did to proclaim the TRUTH.
Sincerely,
Sr. Brigid Cannon, OP
For me it is good to point out the liars at Fox. But To me as a progressive and as one is trying expose the lies of the establishment, the powerful liberal elite who are friends of capital if we are going to establish justice. We must hold the Clintons, the Obamas, and the Bidens, of the world accountable. We must also name the lies by omission committed by the corporate media. Otherwise we will just have status quo at best but actually things will just continue to get worse. A great person who holds the media accountable is Bernie. Here is a post of him doing this.https://youtu.be/dC2TGXAxfnE
Another great post from independent media is on the train crash. There has been a ton of lying that the main stream media has ignored. Hopefully the media will pick it up.
https://youtu.be/CAeu_dZqTrk
So we need also focus on the lies of omission of all the media who by and large ignore the poverty that is at the root of gun violence, mass incarceration, and disease.
After tracking my mysticism for many years, I realized that there was much secrecy regarding the mystical Revelation. It seems that this wasn’t just because its radical non-dualism was “impossible to convey” (which is true), or because Revealed specifics were secret, but also that the TYPE of awareness — radical non-dualism, with its utter strangeness, extraordinarily different from all ordinary perception — was also regarded as sacred, chosen by G*d as the Holy INNER Temple of deepest consciousness, set aside from “ordinary (profane) awareness” as “cleansed” of (free from) everyday matters/thought/perception. That ENTIRETY of sacredness was marked, preserved, and conveyed to all future generations by, for example, keeping the innermost, secret part of the Temple from contact/sight by anyone except the High Priest and by not creating art (attempting to) depict G*d or Christ. Artistic rules changed, but the secrets of the mystical Revelation/”Union” were (and still are) veiled, pointed TO but not directly conveyed. There are sacred boundaries around them.
You have to look for the hints in religious mystical texts and piece them together, while knowing that “ordinary understanding” of the ideas isn’t their (full) Truth and is not their purpose. You’re meant to integrate the mystical Wisdom, try to become like the Truth (as Jesus showed as exemplar in human form), and honor the Sacred One (G*D). That is mystical Truth.
Melinda, Today you write: “After tracking my mysticism for many years, I realized that there was much secrecy regarding the mystical Revelation. It seems that this wasn’t just because its radical non-dualism was “impossible to convey” (which is true), or because Revealed specifics were secret, but also that the TYPE of awareness — radical non-dualism, with its utter strangeness, extraordinarily different from all ordinary perception — was also regarded as sacred…” I don’t know if it was “secrecy regarding the mystical Revelation” but as you say: “its radical non-dualism was ‘impossible to convey’” and you refer to “radical non-dualism, with its utter strangeness…” You see, according to non-dual mysticism there is no good and evil–the ultimate dualism for the Christian–and yet mystics like Rumi said: “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right doing there is a field. I will meet you there.” And William Blake even wrote of the “Marriage of Heaven and Hell.” Thank you for getting us back on track–even if it was unknowingly…
The heart of justice is truth telling—so walking in this truth is practicing justice. I agree with Richard that we cannot expect Rupert et al to turn away from their lies because they are profitable both in terms of money and in terms of power. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. We must pray the hell out of them, as the Rev. Dr. Jacqi Lewis says.
I also agree with Edward that most of the media are tainted by concerns for the bottom line, and powerful people from both parties are complicit in their lies—again for profit. I believe that all these truths need to be exposed–I always try to ask, cui bono, when reading or watching “opinions”–that is another trend that is dangerous IMO, that there is less and less news and more and more opinions and talking heads. It is exhausting. But asking who benefits? usually can ground us in what is really going on and how much truth there will be in it. If it results in injustice, it is not truth.
Please explain why prayer is a racial response to life. I believe we are all one in Spirit and our loving prayers for others cannot but positively effect them.
Barbara, You write today: “Please explain why prayer is a racial response to life. I believe we are all one in Spirit and our loving prayers for others cannot but positively effect them.” First of all, Prayer: Is a Radical Response to Life is a book by Matthew that will lay out the whole idea from you. But yes, I too believe “our loving prayer for others cannot but positively effect them.”
Thank you for sharing this write up on Theresa of Avila. It reminds me there is hope despite the fact that as humans we will continue to make mistakes but to keep going. To keep walking in truth as best as we can will bring us closer to our creator and that the truth will always bring us peace and resolution.
I believe it was meant as prayer as a “radical” response to life. Prayer in its many forms is difficult, but it is one way of understanding non-dualism or the bridge between man/woman and God.