Our Moral Migration: Where is it taking us?
by Bob Blundell
When I first decided to write this piece, I was going to begin by illustrating how things have changed over time and how being advanced in years allows me to contrast the world I knew growing up to the culture of today. I was going to say that some things never change. For instance, when I was young, I liked my music loud. My poison of choice was Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, and others, and I’m sure I rattled the neighbors’ windows as I cruised down the street in my ‘63 Pontiac Catalina. Sound familiar?
I was also going to reference how each generation seems to have their own means of expressing themselves to show their individuality. When I was a teen it was long hair and shabby clothing. Today, it’s more likely tattoos and hair spanning all the colors of the rainbow. I suppose you could say one person’s shaggy hair is another person’s butterfly tattoo. Again, some things never change.
But while there are many commonalities in those two worlds, I was also going to bring to light how our way of life has evolved over the decades. For example, I remember when kids used to ride their bikes without helmets. We did so without fear of serious injury or death. If we fell, we hoped it wasn’t on our heads, and we got up and dusted ourselves off and got back on our bikes. I recall when you had to get up out of your seat to change the channel on the TV and I don’t believe those of us who did that felt like it was an inconvenience. And I vaguely remember when the only way to call someone when you’re walking down a street was to find a phone booth. Of course, that was when phones were actually used for ‘talking’. And is there anyone in the audience that remembers when the only way to find out how to get somewhere was to use a map; made of paper? My children (ages 30 and 26) tell me that our planet has evolved, and thanks to technology, the world is different—and better. While I disagree with them on that latter point, I would have to admit that I have taken advantage of some of the breakthroughs in science. But it occurs to me that making life easier doesn’t always make things better.
Our morally migrating culture has changed both our value system and even the things that give us pleasure. I can remember when the raciest thing on television was when Marshall Dillon kissed Miss Kitty in one of the episodes of Gunsmoke. I also know that sexual aids were not advertised in commercials. And there was a time when Americans would have been appalled at the idea of a television series focused entirely on troubled marriages and the real-life heartbreak those individuals are going through, or the myriad other reality shows that capitalize on the drama of human suffering.
My original intent was to draw a distinction between that world that no longer exists and the new culture today—a moral migration from one point to another. But that was before May 18, 2018. That was before I received an email from my church asking me to “please pray for the people of Santa Fe,” a small town about 10 miles from my home. This was before a 17-year-old student entered the high school there and used a shotgun and a revolver to kill 10 people and injure 13 others. This was a horrific, senseless tragedy and one that has become too common in our society. And while many cry out for gun control to stop this bloodshed, others talk of arming teachers to defend themselves from this insanity.
But what isn’t heard is a cry out for God, a call to recommit ourselves to the most important thing in this universe.
We have become a tolerant society. What would have shocked our fathers and their fathers before them has become the new norm. Let’s look at some of the symptoms that might suggest we have migrated away from the ONE who created us:
*Based on some studies, less than 20% of Americans regularly attend church. In 1960, that number was estimated to be over 60%. The only state whose church attendance is keeping pace with population growth is Hawaii. “We should not stay away from our assembly as is the custom of some, but encourage one another” Hebrews 10:25.
*Prayer in schools has all but been eliminated. It began with the banning of opening prayer during school days, then soon progressed to elimination of voluntary prayers at commencement ceremonies and student-led pre-game prayers at football games.
*Adultery rates have increased over 50% since the early 70s. In one research study, 90% of individuals who admitted to committing adultery felt like it was justified.
*Pornography is also booming. In the US, three thousand dollars is spent on porn every second. And sadly, the most popular day for viewing pornography is Sunday.
I believe we have normalized ‘deviation’ to a point where we are numb to it and, in some cases, have accepted it as the new truth, no longer recognizing it for what it really is. In short, we have become a society of “Cafeteria Christians” picking and choosing those elements of religion that seem to fit our own personal value system. Too often we have rationalized as acceptable those things that we are comfortable with and discarded the principles and concepts that may cramp our lifestyles. We have become a nation of part-time Christians, losing touch with the most important concept we were taught. “You shall love the LORD your GOD with all your heart and all your soul.”
My heart breaks for the people who were brutally slain at Santa Fe High School on May 18, and all the others who have fallen victim to this type of evil. But I’m afraid the problem isn’t guns. We have allowed ourselves to step away from the path our Lord created for us. The basic laws and values that were instilled in us by our Savior have been bent and many times broken, often in the name of tolerance and political sensitivity. These same laws and values, I would argue, existed in the not too distant past. Sadly, it was not a gun that killed those innocent people in Santa Fe. It was evil that was allowed to flourish in that person’s heart when he pulled the trigger again and again, snuffing out innocent lives.
The answer is within us all. Jesus said ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.’ That tells me that there is hope. But, in order for this world to make a paradigm shift from the trajectory that it has taken, we must recommit ourselves to the real truth, a commitment that takes us back to the principles and laws that were taught so many years ago, a commitment to the One who saved us all.
Are we really like the Romans in the first century who sat in the coliseum and gained pleasure from watching the agony of those being sacrificed? Or are we better than that? What I see in the world today sometimes saddens me because I can also remember how things used to be in a more moral time.
But I also believe that our choices of the past need not define who we are nor who we become. Though God may not always appear to be present among us at tragic times like these, I know He’s there, waiting for us to come back to Him.
