When dinosaurs roamed the earth — you know, forty years or so ago — kids played a game called “gossip” or “telephone.” Sitting in a circle the first person whispered a secret message into the ear of their neighbor. The game was the comparison of the first and last message. By the time the message was whispered into the ear and passed along to each progressive person, the final reported words bore almost no resemblance to the initial whisper.

The text message world makes this game less applicable today, although there does NOT seem to be any downturn in misinformation or malicious rumors among texters or tweeters. The ability to uniquely interpret revealed information seems to be a constant issue for the duration of human history.

In today’s gospel text we read John’s (as opposed to Matthew…