Editorial published in the AC Press..12/22/1998
There has been much talk lately about President Clinton and whether or not perjury was committed. Debate t.v. is rampant with attorneys- defense and prosecutors- arguing their points. Polls state that the general public wants to move on and forgive, even if he did commit perjury. But forgiveness is a process, and in most relationships, it takes more than one for the forgiving process to work.
Legally, perjury is defined as "an actor, in any official proceeding, while under oath or equivalent affirmation, making a false statement or swearing or affirming the truth of a statement previously made, when the statement was material and the actor did not believe it to be true." That is the legal definition.
But since our judicial system is rife with human error, someone can lie straight faced and get away with it.
However, there is one source of justice that the actor must eventually face One of the 10 Commandments states that we are not to bear false witness against our neighbor. However, on judgment day, those who believe in a God of justice should be aware that you may have answer to Him if you haven't made amends.
The tricky part is, none of us know when that day will be. Maybe we all need to remember that today is not the first day of the rest of our lives but it may indeed also be the last. Those who protect and know the actor lied are responsible too.
Marian R. Carlino
12/22/1998.
