Authenticity
If you are to be a credible witness, you have to be able to speak with authenticity and authority; you have to have some experience to report, some first-hand knowledge to share. Others can tell us about Jesus or point us towards God, but we will not be effective witnesses until we can say something about our own experience. We don’t have to be eloquent; we only have to be authentic.
-Br. David Vryhof, SSJE