The writing of history, as in all kinds of writing, is a pursuit of truth. And the pursuit of truth is no different from the search for knowledge and wisdom, the spirit that animates the scientific method, the teaching profession, journalism, and indeed the very search for God. After all, what is truth?
Truth is, in the Christian point of view, God itself (Jesus as "the way, the truth, and the life"); truth is no less than God.
The search for truth among fallen humanity is thus at best laughable even though necessary because, while everything must be exhausted just to arrive at truth, eventually truth is not fully knowable as God is not fully knowable in the face of human limitations. With such nature of the quest for truth, God remains in the realm of mystery.
As one theologian puts it, "Truth is a mystery," in the sense that God is a mystery. This means only God can lay claim to the truth.
What is reprehensible, therefore, is not conflicting sides of the same story but outright lying to suit one's preferred narrative of history. This is what we -- all of us without exception -- must guard and rail against.
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