Hey, Alex!
We should talk seriously about the seriousness of society. You know I listen to commentaries about politics, culture, and religion and there’s a pattern that I saw emerge from among them all. It turns out that people are upset about everything! (I know, it’s shocking. I’m surprised more people aren’t talking about this. Truly All Is Found on the internet).
This person is upset because people in power won’t do something about this and another person is furious about what that person said. This person is suing that person because they don’t like them and then all these other people are cheering or booing depending on what boxes they check on voting ballots. Everyone gets into a tissy at each other for this or that other reason and nobody likes their fellowman. (I guess some things never change) Why has the world lost all its marbles?
Well I’m here to fix all the world’s problems in 5 minutes or so and it all begins with a 3 minute monologue on intergalactic trade negotiatio(-snore). But, seriously though, despite the fact that everyone has different beliefs religiously, politically, and culturally, shouldn’t we be able to have some common ground. Like, we all were conceived, born, and raised by parents, we all would like to continue to live and work in peace and invest in the next generation because life is intrinsically good.
And there’s the rub: every foundational truth upon which society is built has been called into question. Whether it’s the institution of marriage in general, who gets married, the value of conceiving children and when, the value of family and what it should look like, the value of love and what that looks like, the value of work, the value of peace, the value of future generations and how to raise them, and the value of life: all of these values have come into question and no one can agree on what is right and true. In fact, truth itself has been under scrutiny and society sees fit to run headlong into the unknown. Why? Who can say?
I have observed from my conversations with other people and from social media that all we like sheep have gone astray; everyone to his own way. (Hey, that’s a good way to phrase it! Someone should write that down!) Basically, truth and reality are the base upon which we build our lives. As soon as a person destroys their foundation, then their house will crumble. For instance, if the purpose of sex is pleasure rather than procreation (and children thrive with both of their birth parents present), then why must it be restricted to marriage? And if it is not restricted to marriage, then why restrict it to heterosexual couples? If that, then why restrict it to couples at all? If the sexes are equal, then why can’t I be a woman? If it’s my body and my choice, why should I not be able to harm myself?
Essentially, when we question the bedrock of society, then what will hold society together? Nothing. All of a sudden anxiety, depression, loneliness, and other mental illnesses crop up among young people. Young people who have such a high potential to impact the world around them suddenly find themselves lost in the woods without a clear path forward. Who am I? What am I supposed to do? How am I supposed to do it on my own? What is the right thing to do? At that point we lose the excuse of: “I’ll know better when I am older.”
All of this hedonistic selfishness is meaningless. We’re facing the wilderness of our self-imposed ignorance, but we don’t have to. The truth is that (for those listeners who haven’t realized) there is a spiritual world beyond the material world. The two are connected in a sense that everything has a purpose and a meaning behind it and that by no means excludes humanity. When we try to do our own thing and go our own way, using our own judgements and moral standards we will always lead ourselves astray. Even in the most essential parts of living you can show yourself to be inconsistent, misguided, and broken. Every person is that way.
(And we both know this, Alex, but hold on, I’m preaching!) We all know deep down in our hearts what is right, good, and just, but whenever people treat themselves like animals, they become animals. What keeps us from doing the next right thing is the fact that we’re always looking back with regret on how we’ve failed and what we’ve done wrong in the past. You know, that might be why reindeer are better than people. For that, there is only one cure…
Alex, we’ll talk on Tuesday!
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