IT is always interesting to reflect on how language evolves and words change.

A centuries old example from the 1662 Anglican Prayer Book would be the phrase to ...indifferently minister justice.

Then it meant impartially and now it is often understood as detached and lacking concern.

The words we use and the ideas we wish to convey by them are important aspects of the way we live and communicate.

The last 20 years, with the explosion of the internet, social media and smart phones has expanded yet compounded and complicated the way we communicate. This in turn affects what we trust as reliable and how we perceive our world.

Ours is an age where the quantity of words broadcasted is greater than ever but where the equivalent quality or depth of understanding is not always present.

New terms have entered our vocabularies to accommodate these changes; words like - sound-bite and, more recently, fake-news and post-truth.

Modern communication means that we carry in our pockets the means to be connected and receive almost instantly events from around the world.

While saturated with information whether it be the wars in the middle east, the famines in sub-Saharan Africa or even the latest political intrigues closer to home, there remains the real danger that information does not become understanding.

Do we understand the implications between a hard and soft Brexit? Why do Sunnis and Shiites differ? What is the difference between a derivative or a junk bond? These are just some examples.

News channels have similarly adapted to these new circumstances.

In previous generations the predominant term was reporter. This was someone on the scene describing the events.

News now is a much more multi-layered business with a growing interplay of reporter, correspondent and commentator.

Make up your own mind or receive a pre-digested opinion of another reported as facts, highlight the extremes.

There are many positives but there are real dangers in this new reality.

This season of Lent is one for serious thought. As a wise person told me, make sure that you are not given just enough truth to be inoculated from Truth.