Wake-up Time

Let’s stroll down memory lane.  I remember saying the Lord’s Prayer in public school until the Supreme Court banned it.  Up until then Christian faith was respected; America was Christian and that was OK.

But the siege had begun.  The Ten Commandments were removed from courthouses and crosses were torn from hilltops.  Christmas morphed from a celebration of Jesus’s birth into a legal free-for-all as lawsuits to ban Christmas from public schools and crèches from town squares became common.  Political correctness dictated we say “Happy Holidays,” and “Merry Christmas“ became an almost subversive greeting.  Anti-God ads on buses, subways and billboards slammed Christianity annually.    

A “work of art” depicting a crucifix submerged in the artist’s urine got wide publicity.  It was distasteful and outrageous, but the media made sure every sentient human being in America could see it.  The press promoted stories about unhinged "Christians," like the tiny hate group that picketed military funerals or the obscure preacher who threatened to burn the Qur'an.  Splinter groups got the spotlight while the vast majority of Christians observed their faith in quiet anonymity.

Christianity has been relentlessly assaulted and its status chipped away, but we believed the government would protect our rights until the madness passed.  Until recently.

The federal government ordered Roman Catholic hospitals, charities, colleges, parochial schools and social service agencies to provide insurance coverage that violated church teachings.  In a nutshell, they must pay for abortion pills or face many millions of dollars in punitive fines that will threaten their existence. 

The rule isn’t sensible on a few levels.  First, these institutions have always been subject to the conscience clause which allows them to avoid complying with such mandates, so this order violates precedent.  Second, everything mandated can be obtained by individuals privately without forcing the church to violate its moral standards.  If abortion pills, contraception and sterilization are critically important to an employee he can buy them privately or find another job that offers coverage for them.

The third is the most mind-boggling.  Catholic organizations play a huge role in our society.  Communities across the country will suffer if these institutions are compelled to curtail services or close down. 

If they’re financially unstable who will fill the void?  Here’s a scary thought: maybe the strategy is to force the church to sell out to private companies.  Secularists would get a twofer: the rules would be enforced and Christian outreach slashed at the same time.

This isn’t about contraception; it’s about freedom of religion. It’s triggered a firestorm of protest and the rule may yet be modified.  Even if it is, the lesson remains that secularists are willing to go beyond filing individual anti-Christian court cases brought by private citizens to issuing unilateral government commands that limit religious expression.

Our society has trashed God for decades, and now we’re on the cusp of making Him legally irrelevant.  History shows what happens when matters of conscience are dictated by whoever has political power, and it is dangerous.

It’s wake-up time.

Photo Credit:  bedbathandbeyond.com

Sprituality for Sale

Karl Marx

Karl Marx, who would’ve made a great shopping mall Santa, said “religion is the opiate (actually, “opium”) of the masses,” seeing it as a fabricated device that comforted naïve, ignorant common folk. Marx’s 19^th century Communist theories were thoroughly discredited in the 20^th century, but somehow he still has credibility among those insulated from reality enough to still think he was onto something. 

Communists are atheists for good reason.  They need to destroy the moral framework of a society in order to impose their system, and this means repudiating God.  And they did, rejecting God’s guidance and implementing a system that eliminated freedom and individual rights.  It impoverished entire populations and killed millions around the world.

But it couldn’t kill the thirst for God. Trying to deny man’s need for a higher power is a fool’s errand.  Even if people aren’t Christian they still have a God-shaped hole in their hearts and seek ways to fill it with something that provides peace, understanding and hope.  In the spirit of Herr Marx, our skeptical culture has tried to marginalize and discredit Christianity, leaving people to seek  answers elsewhere.  They don’t have to look far for options.

Books, seminars and websites with enticing hooks claim to fill the void.   Surf  the web and you’ll find promises to  “shift you into a new magical awareness of your life,””learn the secrets of how our souls work,”  give you “a profound understanding of the deepest forces of your essence,”  “make you the captain of your subconscious mind,”  take you “to a shining place of candid self-realization,”  teach “healing that aligns you with the vibration of money,” get the “happiness which is your birthright,”  find “the enchanted path of enlightenment,”  and “romance the God I AM within.”    Graduates of the last program will have a particularly interesting discussion with St. Peter at the Pearly Gates.

Practitioners offer psychic, numerological, “energy pattern” and astrological readings.  Some sell self-hypnosis, Feng Shui, meditation and life coaching help.    There’s probably a fortune teller with a crystal ball out there too.

See any similarities between them?  First, they charge handsomely for their advice.  Capitalist sages see the opportunity to fill a need and make a buck.  But secondly - and more importantly - they all focus inwardly on the self, as if we have the capacity within ourselves to reach spiritual fulfillment.  If this were true, mankind would have figured out which therapies worked and weeded out the imposters long ago.     

The problem is they’re all imposters.

Unlike followers of the guru du jour, Christians understand their own weaknesses and imperfections, know the source of their strength is outside of themselves, and that it comes from God.  When a society practices the lessons taught by Jesus, the result is personal responsibility, sensible decision-making and a moral framework that discourages the rampant social dysfunctions we see today.  Our politically correct culture dismisses God just like Marx did, and we're drifting into chaos because of it.

“Spirituality for sale” schemes only misdirect the attention of those who really need Christian faith.  And by distracting people one at a time, they impede a return to the Christian values our society profoundly needs.

Photo credit: en.wikipedia.org