When you trust someone...

How were referees introduced into sport?

Surely the earliest form of games developed out of a sense of healthy competitiveness. Two or more individuals or teams, pitted against one another in a battle of strength, skill or wit.

Games were based on trust and therefore the adjudication and fairness of a particular play or move were left in the hands of the players themselves.

With the development of the games came a corresponding raising of the stakes for winning or losing, whether financial or just for prestige. Suddenly there was an incentive to cheat.

Quickly, our honesty was questioned and we doubted the testimony of our opponent. We stood to lose too much, and our adversary gain too much. We could no longer trust or be trusted.

To reinstate fairness into the system, we introduced a neutral third party. These arbitrators would act as objective outsiders, incorruptible and fair. This ushered in the age of the referee ‒ policemen for sport.

Trust is at the core of every relationship. If you have it, the relationship will flourish; if not, it will perish.

In religious circles, trust was supported by using God as the referee.  One would take an oath or pledge using the name of God;  the fear of taking His name in vain would serve as an insurance policy, protecting against fraud and deceit.

It seems, however, that God's status as a referee has become inadequate even in religious circles. An oath in the name of God has lost its value.

If players no longer respect the referee, then the game loses all its integrity. If civil society can no longer trust one another, then society will cease to be civil.

The risk of trusting is being deceived.

The risk of not trusting is far greater.