大象传媒

I once heard about a bizarre American radio show. Dedicated to things like crop circles, UFO sightings, and conspiracy theories of all kinds, it told you how rich Americans were getting secret brain transplants and how the moon was really just a holographic projection in the sky! So wacky it was entertaining, after listening to it you came away with the feeling that conspiracy theories were just a bit of fun. Well, like many of us, I鈥檓 not so sure about that anymore.聽

Not long ago a woman told me her small community had been torn apart when some of its leaders came to believe the earth was flat. Last month a friend told me her relationship with her parents had broken down after they鈥檇 come to believe a group of 鈥榚vil elites鈥� was secretly running the world. And ever since I posted on social media about getting my second vaccine jab, I鈥檝e been inundated with viral videos about the pandemic being a hoax or a covert plot to depopulate the world. These have been sent by people I鈥檝e known for years and care about鈥攖heir relationships and health put at risk by baseless beliefs.

Researchers tell us conspiracies theories thrive during times of crisis and uncertainty, because they offer simple explanations for confusing events. I鈥檓 struck by how religious these theories can be too鈥攑romising hope and belonging by offering 鈥榤essiahs鈥� to fight for us and fellow 鈥榖elievers鈥� to shelter with. But like Jim Carrey in the聽Truman Show, when the metaphorical lamp falls from the sky and we realise we鈥檝e been living in a made-up world, we鈥檙e left more confused than ever.

For me, it鈥檚 faith that tells me how important facts are. Numerous聽stories circulated about Jesus聽in the first century. In order to sift the fanciful from the true, gospel writers like Matthew, Mark and Luke became investigative journalists鈥攖racking down eyewitnesses, recording names and historic details that can even be checked today. For them, verifiable facts trumped conspiratorial whispers. Without those facts, there was no reason to believe.

So here鈥檚 my personal inoculation plan against the virus of conspiracy theories: I鈥檓 going to keep faith and facts together, find hope and belonging in God, and give the viral videos and bizarre radio shows a miss鈥攏o matter how good the brain transplant stories are.