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‘What is truth?’ Those were the words of Pontius Pilate to Jesus just before he had him hung up like the traitor he was. We can’t forget that Jesus was killed as an enemy of the State because he dared to challenge Rome’s monopoly on truth, meaning, and power. Standing before Pilate in his headquarters, on Pilate’s turf, Jesus refused to back down to the Roman occupation and declared, “For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”

It was there that Pilate was brought up short. Those words from Jesus must have pierced his soul, as they pierce mine even now. The impact of Jesus’ life and ministry instilled a moment of doubt in Pilate’s mind—a doubt that could have opened his eyes to the ultimate futility of Roman violence and power when confronted with Love Supreme. Pilate asked, ‘What is truth?’ as if he was on the verge of finding it in Jesus. Yet, he turned back, turned away, and executed an innocent man because he lacked the temerity and courage to listen to the voice of truth even when it looked him straight in the face.

Embracing the truth is hard. Telling the truth is hard. Those things are hard because the reality of Truth does not depend on our ability to construct it, manage it, or massage it. Truth, and those things that are True, exist apart from us, and Truth demands that we adjust our life according to it, not the other way around.

So, for a follower of Jesus, what is True can be summed up this way: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40)

To know Truth, one must love outwardly, unselfishly, without reservation or fear. To know Truth, one must be open to God, or in non-religious terms, open to knowledge and experiences that help you gain a fuller grasp on the variety of human experiences.

Going back to the ‘Truth’ of Jesus, at its core is the idea that in order to be most fully alive ourselves, we must invest in the health and well-being of our neighbor. Without our neighbor, without our enemies even, without the exchange of love that happens when we look outside of ourselves, we cannot be the fullest, truest version of ourselves.

I realize that my article last week made several folks angry. I understand that, and I don’t want to take that away from you. Truly, I’m grateful that anything I write can produce an emotional reaction in someone I’ve never met. That’s humbling because it means that I’m not just writing into a void. I’m thankful for everyone who has engaged with my work, regardless of whether you agree with me or not. And, just as a little note, I don’t speak for my church. What I write here are my own opinions, formed by my own reading and my own experiences.

I stand by my words and my convictions because I believe they are rooted in Truth. I assume that those angry with my words believe the same thing about their positions. That is what makes political and religious discourse so hard in our society. We have been forced into binary thinking. Us vs Them. Left vs Right. Democrat vs Republican. Saved vs Unsaved. Baptized vs Unbaptized. The lists go on. We love to create binaries in which we place ourselves. That makes dialogue and progress nearly impossible.

A few people responded to my article via email and in face-to-face conversations. Those were rich, engrossing conversations where much Truth was shared and agreed upon. There have been those who have criticized me anonymously. I honestly feel pity for them, because they are depriving themselves of the opportunity to engage in conversations that might answer the question raised by Pilate so long ago: “What is truth?”

As a public figure whose life has been committed to the pursuit of answering that question, I can’t be anything other than true to myself and my own convictions. I cannot promise that my writing won’t make you angry again. However, I also remain open to conversation and collaboration so that we can discern what is truly the Truth together.

If nothing else, let’s at least try to be excellent to each other, even and especially when we are angry with each other.

Chris Adams is the Rector at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Washington.