Compromise or confront?

There are some careers that are just not meant to go hand and hand with each other. According to someone I know, journalism and Christianity are an example of this.

The reasoning is that journalism involves questioning everything. Christianity involves questioning nothing. In fact, when you begin to question Christianity, the flaws just become too obvious to ignore.

So even if I did stay a Christian, would I have been a good journalist? If I stay a journalist, would I have been a good Christian?

It makes a lot of sense that you can only take one over the other. Every journalist is biased in some way, and although the goal is always to report a balanced story, it never happens purely. For example, the angle of your story will always push a certain agenda.

Take an example. Here is the first paragraph for a wire story from NZPA about the recent Tuhoe protest on Waitangi Day:

“A stand off with police by a handful of Tuhoe activists near the flagpole on the historic treaty grounds today, proved a minor confrontation in an otherwise peaceful day at Waitangi.”

Click here for full story


See how the journalist excels in terming the Tuhoe deviant by being one of the only protestors on New Zealand’s national day? This is only the first paragraph! The Tuhoe, by the way, are the only tribe not to have signed the Treaty of Waitangi.

I imagine a Maori journalist would not have written it from the police perspective. They wouldn’t have written it from the perspective of “just another group of Maori’s disturbing the peace”. Their protest to me was legitimate – they were protesting against the anti-terror raids that had occurred in October last year and had resulted in the arrest of prominent Tuhoe activist Tame Iti.

Anyway…my point is that, regardless of what they say, there is a great deal of bias in the media. That is why there needs to be a great diversity of media in this country so people can forge their own opinion.

So a lot of the ideals I believe in are in direct opposition to Christianity. So the choice was – should I be illogical and decide to compromise these beliefs with the religion, or would I have confronted my religion for the sake of my beliefs?

I chose to confront it. And I’m glad I did.

There is no point not being true to myself. If I am to be logical in all areas of my life, I can’t exempt anything.

Christians will tell me what I lack is “Faith”. That is a shallow way to fill in the gaps.

I love many Christians, but I wish some would stop worrying so much. This is my decision.