Our media has been proclaiming the death of this or that for decades. The death of Reason, which came after the death of Unreason. (Reason never had a chance.) Marx proclaimed the Death of Capitalism. Reagan talked about the death of Communism. There was the death of the Republican Party, followed by the death of the Democratic Party – which was never very democratic, if you know what I mean.
Unfortunately, there’s a different death, that I want to talk about.
The Death of Goodness.
And no, I’m not talking about morality. That died a long time ago. No, I’m talking about goodness as something that people want to see themselves as.
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The Death of Goodness
Our Friday night class isn’t meeting tonight, so I’ve indulged in some extra research and writing. I feel guilty about having to scale back my work on Omega Shock. There is a lot to write about, and my other responsibilities are taking me away from that.
The good thing is that so many others are picking up where I leave off, that… well …I know that you’ll be in good hands, if you are reading what THEY are writing. If you are reading from that list of websites that I post at the beginning of my research section… you don’t need me to tell you ANYTHING. But, I’ll keep writing. I can’t help myself.
Cultural Goodness
Today’s topic might actually be a surprise to you. You’ve seen ‘goodness’ dying for a long time. In fact, it really died in the Garden of Eden. But, I’m not talking about Godly goodness, or anything like a Biblical form of goodness.
No, I’m talking about that sense of goodness that we assume all cultures have. As an American or a European – or of some such extraction – you believe that every culture sees itself as ‘good’ and desires to be ‘good’.
But, you’d be wrong, if you believed that way.
If you spend enough time in Asia or Africa, you’ll find out that a sense of ‘goodness’ in a culture is rare. No, it actually doesn’t exist in most cultures.
Being Asia
I’ve spent 21 years in Asia, and I am just now starting to realize what my wife has known for a long time. Outside of Christianity, goodness is completely relative. Everywhere.
I first began to realize this when I challenged my students to identify Evil. No matter how much hatred, genocide or destruction I pointed to, they could not put the label Evil upon it. Mrs. Little knew the wall that I was going to run into, but she also knew that I had to experience it for myself.
In the West, they call it post-modernism. Over here, it’s just Asia.
Why?
Well, let me put it to you this way…
Is there ANY religion in the world that preaches a belief that God loves and values each person individually?
That each human life has worth and value?
That each person was made in the image of God?
The Value Of The Individual
I was talking about this to our students in our Wednesday night class. I challenged them to tell me of a single religion that placed individual value on every human being on this planet.
They couldn’t think of any, except one:
Christianity
Yes, there is also Judaism, but they are too tiny of a group to have much impact.
The Origin Of Human Rights
But wait, you say… what about the concept of Human Rights?
Yes. Human Rights.
Where does such an idea come from?
Think about that for a minute.
What is the Atheist view of humanity?
To the true Atheist, humans are just animals with a sense of self awareness. That’s it. That’s all. The only ‘human right’ in Atheism is societal – the survival of the fittest, the progress of the genome, etc.
Just as science came from the idea that God created a Universe that was orderly, Human Rights came from the idea that each human being was uniquely valuable in the eyes of God.
Lose that idea, and you become Asia.
Back To Asia
Okay, you’ve got confusion written all over your face. Let me try again.
Asians do not have a concept of good and evil. Yes, yes, they know the words, but try to convince them of YOUR definition… and they’ll just go all confused on you and change the subject.
Whoops, India!
And, if you don’t have strict rules about ‘good’ and ‘evil’, you run the risk of being India. Just look at the insanity going on their now. In fact, I just read something writing by an Indian, and the word ‘insanity’ figured prominently. And yes, he really meant it, and it’s really true.
India is insane.
What sanity they have is a leftover from the British. Yes, seriously. Just ask them.
And, All The Rest
And, China?
Massacre, genocide, invasion, war, bad harvests and more genocide. And that’s just the good part. Here in Taiwan, they were chopping heads.
Southeast Asians were pirates. The whole lot of them. And, when the Muslims invaded, Malaysia and Indonesia said, “Sure, why not?”
Just think about South America before the Europeans invaded. A fine bunch THEY were. In fact, the aborigines of North AND South America were violent, thuggish brutes that massacred each other with complete abandon.
Need we talk about Africa?
No?
Right. The concept of Human Rights comes from only ONE PLACE, God. Ours. The God described in the Bible. THAT is where human rights comes from. Nowhere else.
So, what happens when you chuck out God?
The Salt Of The Earth
There goes any rational ability to establish that lofty concept that we call ‘Human Rights’. And, that is EXACTLY what we are doing. As we rip God out of our society, we are killing what goodness our societies had.
When Jesus said this…
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
– Matthew 5:13
…He meant it.
We Christians are the preservation of our society. We are the salt that keeps neighborhoods, communities and nations from consuming themselves. What goodness there is in a society, comes from the presence of Christians who fear God and love God – COMPLETELY.
But, we have lost our ‘savour’, so goodness is dying.
However, in Asia, that goodness has taken root. Ten percent of Taipei is Christian. There are a hundred million Christians in China. And, those courageous Chinese Christians are spreading the gospel through Central Asia.
But, in the West?
What goodness we had, is dying.
I truly hope that you’ll be ready for this
(That’s a link. Click it for a discussion on preparation.)
A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished. – Proverbs 22:3
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If you find a flaw in my reasoning, have a question, or wish to add your own viewpoint, leave a comment on the website. Your input is truly welcome.
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