--- title: Olympiad dilemmas: friends, truth and telling — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «Olympiad dilemmas: friends, truth and telling», a lesson of the religion ethics course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: In an ethics olympiad you meet dilemmas where truth, loyalty, kindness and safety pull different ways, and the judge --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Religion ethics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/) / Olympiad dilemmas: friends, truth and… # Olympiad dilemmas: friends, truth and telling Lesson 99 of the religion ethics course of Mova's primary school: 19 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/0/) — In an ethics olympiad you meet dilemmas where truth, loyalty, kindness and safety pull different ways, and the judges reward the answer that gives reasons and weighs both sides. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/1/) — Sam is hiding from bullies in the toilets, and the bullies ask Leo, "Where's Sam?"; Leo doesn't owe bullies information, so "Not telling you" and fetching a teacher is often best, and most people think even a lie here would not be wrong. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/2/) — The Bible has hard cases too: Rahab hid the Israelite spies and misled the king's men (Joshua 2:4-6), and the Hebrew midwives misled Pharaoh to save baby boys (Exodus 1:15-21); Christians still disagree whether the lies themselves were right. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/3/) — Some answers are not open: if a friend is frightened of being hurt at home, a trusted adult needs to know, and if an innocent person is blamed, loyalty to the guilty friend has limits. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/4/) — For the open ones, "it depends, and here are my reasons" is often the best answer, as long as you name what matters on each side. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/5/) — Rahab hid the spies and misled the king's men (Joshua 2:4-6), and Hebrews 11:31 praises her faith; the midwives misled Pharaoh, and God was kind to them (Exodus 1:15-21). - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/6/) — Kant said you must not lie even to a murderer at the door; most philosophers disagree and say protecting a person comes first; many suggest refusing to answer and getting help. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/7/) — Jesus said to speak to the person privately first, then bring others (Matthew 18:15-16); "Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer" (Ephesians 4:28). - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/8/) — When someone might be in danger, safety comes first: say you can't help, don't point, and get an adult or call for help. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/9/) — "Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed" (Psalm 82:3); if a child is frightened of being hurt at home, a trusted adult needs to know. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/10/) — "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves" (Proverbs 31:8); if a grown-up cheats, tell your parents so they can raise it. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/11/) — Carers of people with dementia (an illness that makes people forget) disagree: many say it is kinder to go along gently than to make them grieve again each time; others worry it disrespects them. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/12/) — "Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong" (Exodus 23:2); in famous experiments in the 1950s, many people agreed with a group's obviously wrong answer just to fit in. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/13/) — "Do not pervert justice or show partiality" (Deuteronomy 16:19); judges should step back when a friend takes part, which is called a conflict of interest. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/14/) — Some Christians say a dodge is better than even a small surprise fib; most people think fibs that protect a surprise are harmless; Kant still says no lie at all. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/15/) — "Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent: the Lord detests them both" (Proverbs 17:15). - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/16/) — Augustine and Aquinas taught that every lie is wrong; many others point to Rahab and the midwives; all agree truthfulness is God's will. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/17/) — Most agree a lie needs a very strong reason, like saving a life; olympiad judges reward the team that weighs both sides. - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/99-olympiad-dilemmas-friends-truth-and-telling/18/) — Slang check: "narc" means a telltale; a "fiver" is a £5 note. - ← previous: [Honest with yourself: excuses, pride and the truth inside](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/98-honest-with-yourself-excuses-pride-and-the-truth-inside/) - next →: [Olympiad practice: the hardest cases](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/100-olympiad-practice-the-hardest-cases/) - ↑ back to [Religion ethics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/)