Oil in Thy Lamp

Your life is comfortable.

You want for nothing.

You go about your day... Starting with coffee or some other morning ritual, you wake up and start going about your daily duties. For many, it's going to work or getting the kids ready for school.

Grocery shopping.

Laundry.

Dishes.

The monotonous, hum drum reality of daily life.

I want you to stop for a moment. Consider something for a second. You have heard it before, perhaps many times. Here it is again:

We are in the midst of an immensely vast spiritual battle.

Read it again.

Stop thinking about that list of to-dos over there for a minute.

Read it again.

To us, who lack nothing and obtain all that we desire... it doesn't feel like it.
How often do we consider the atrocities that are happening worlds away from us?

How often do we consider the atrocities that are happening down the road from us?

Before I go further, I would like to point out that in this blog post I am talking, among other things, about the ideology behind abortion. I am not seeking to venture into the "reality" of abortion. That is to say, I realize that the vast majority of women who actually seek abortions are not doing it to exercise their “right to choose”. Their decision to abort often comes from a place of desperation; they see no other alternative to their difficult and usually tragic circumstances. My post is going to seem harsh because I am attacking the rallying cry of pro-choice advocates: "My body, my choice". I do not wish to cause further pain or anguish to any women who have procured an abortion. The reality of abortion is absolutely heart wrenching. Therefore, please read the following at your own discretion.

We talk about abortion so often that many of us have become numb to the word. Let me remind you a little bit about what it means.

A woman finds herself pregnant and in such a deplorable situation that she feels the only option is to kill the child in her womb.

Or, a woman finds herself pregnant and decides that she would not like to sacrifice her lifestyle in order to raise a child for 18 years.

The circumstances are different, but the result is the same. The woman and her zygote/embryo/fetus/pre-born person enter into the facility, but only one comes out alive. Although occasionally, neither come out alive.

Abortion, not SARS CoV-2, is the atrocity of our time. It is silent, undercover, but 638,169 babies were killed in the United States in 2015 alone. Who would these poor innocent babes have grown up to be?

The ideologies driving the abortion industry today are even more insidious than the ideologies that once drove Nazism.

Hitler was a visible, flesh-and-blood entity. It was clear, to those outside of his sphere of influence, that what he was doing was unspeakable. How in the world did he manage to come into power and retain it for over a decade while committing indescribable crimes against humanity?

It's fairly simple: He offered a solution for Germany's problems.

How did he go about it? He eliminated all those deemed unfit for the party's vision of the Aryan race. Obviously how it all played out is more complicated, but that is the root of why his campaign was "successful" for 12 years too long. He was charismatic, outspoken, and hard times were definitely changing under his rule. Progress is good... right?

It's tempting to tell yourself "if I was there and saw all that going on, I would have done something about it!" Would you though? It's easy to say that because of your retrospective view.
The German people did not just wake up one day with anti-Semitic propaganda plastered all over the place. It started subtly, so as to normalize their beliefs into the subconscious of the public.

It advanced further through shutting down the free press.  More on that later.

The Nazi goal was to create a unified Germany. Under the party's conditions, of course. The ideology effectively valued the "good" of the community above the good of individuals - by claiming that some individuals were not persons at all.

Sound familiar?

Look at abortion. One reason why it's more insidious than Nazi ideology is that it puts the "good" or even just the "preferences" of the mother above the fundamental right of the child: the right to live.
It doesn't even have the somewhat more beneficent aim of utilitarianism: the "greatest good for the greatest number".

The ideology of abortion holds the foremost premise that the woman's autonomy of choice has precedence over the most fundamental right of the fetus (and, in fact, of all people) which is the right to continue living.

The vast majority of people today feel (because to them "feeling" is more important than "thinking") that any given person's preferences should be the determining factor in any given situation. Relativism, my friends. If I've said it once, I've said it a million times.

Originally, I stated that abortion is the atrocity of our day. That being the case, relativism is the fons et origo of this scourge upon mankind.

After a little research into the history of moral relativism, I'm appalled to discover that its source is none other than my beloved field of anthropology. Of course, I am not surprised. The golden rule of anthropology is that diversity exists among human cultures and one may not impose one's values upon any given culture. If we are viewing other ways of life as we would a precious, ancient artifact, then of course this makes perfect sense. We do not want to disrupt the integrity of the piece. As an academic discipline - meant to study and understand these cultures - there is a place for relativism. As long as it's taken with a grain of salt.

When it comes to issues of morality (think arranged marriages, female genital mutilation, cannibalism, abortion, assisted suicide, euthanasia, etc), relativism has to be shut down.

There is so much confusion regarding absolute moral truth. Feelings get in the way of objectivity. Feelings are the golden calf of our times. That’s why everybody is offended about everything, and why companies go above and beyond to rectify “offense”. The one and only commandment of our day is this: Thou shalt not hurt anyone’s sensibilities, intentionally or unintentionally. This webpage is a good starting point for those who don't understand why relativism is an inferior philosophical worldview.

The pervasiveness of relativism is a fundamental reason why organized religion is so abhorred and maligned in secular society. Catholicism is one of the few remaining institutions that upholds absolute moral truth, rooted in God. Every single “rule” within the Catholic religion can be traced back to the premise that God exists. Everything from “you should wait to have sex before marriage” to “you should only receive Communion if you are Catholic” can be traced back from premise to premise to the fundamental principle that God exists. If you reject that premise, then you reject all that follows. The implications, however, are eternal. So you better be damn sure you’ve made the right choice. See below:

                                                                                                                     

Figure 1: Pascal’s Wager

Credit: https://www.reasonablefaith.org/question-answer/P20/pascals-wager

Let's go back to the thread now and think about the implications of the phrase "my body, my choice". If it's your body, then shouldn't you be able to kill it as well? It is only a matter of time before euthanasia becomes popularized in the Western world. Look at the alarming rate of suicide in the United States.

 This is how relativism has served us. No one is wrong, as long as they are following their hearts. If they want to kill their babies, okay. If you want to kill yourself, hey go ahead. We never cared for you much anyway. What about if they wanna kill the guy standing next to them on the train? Well, why not?

GOD is the arbiter of life and death.

Killing in all of its forms – homicide, suicide, assisted suicide, abortion, and euthanasia - are severe transgressions against the inherent dignity of the human person.

I’m writing today to implore you not to allow the fluffy political arguments of the day cloud your vision regarding this issue. Those who do not wish to abolish abortion outright have blood on their hands. If you vote in this way, you too have blood on your hands. This is not strictly a political post. I’m not writing to push a political agenda; I’m writing with the hope that the Holy Spirit will change hearts, save lives, and – most fundamentally – save souls.  

Earlier I touched upon the subject of the free press. In Nazi Germany, the "Nazi Propaganda Ministry" took control of all media including "newspapers, magazines, books, public meetings, and rallies, art, music, movies, and radio" (source). They literally paraded in the streets destroying and burning any books that threatened Nazi beliefs. 

 

"Un-German" book burning, May 1933 

Imagine if they could have gotten their hands on the Internet.

It has recently struck me (I know, I'm slow). Facebook - and Twitter, while I'm at it - is the perfect tool for pushing ideology and squashing critical thought. Anyone can censor or ban anyone else on these platforms - not from the site, but from their own pages or feeds. If one disagrees with a certain ideology, one can mute it instead of confronting it. Additionally, one can "follow" any number of outlets that agree and line up with ones' chosen ideology. Personally, I enjoy following a few leftist and international outlets to keep myself current with the zeitgeist.

As it stands, these social media platforms are essentially reinforcing peoples' preferred worldviews while also tricking them into thinking they've had real interactions that make a difference. The truth is,  arguments on the internet often do nothing more than reinforce the beliefs of both parties involved. Adding to that, social media is the source of news for many - dangerous if you consider how much power these companies hold to silence whatever they see fit. Why should we put our trust in them? They are biased humans, too, and journalism nowadays is becoming more blatant about which "side" they're on.

All of this to say... We're idiots if we think we're immune to propaganda. We are more susceptible to it now than at any other time in history, because of the way social media functions. Given the pandemic, it's a perfect storm for ideological censorship. People are holed up in their houses with only the Internet for human interaction. It has never been easier for individuals to wall themselves up into ideological echo chambers that reinforce their own mistaken beliefs while also protecting them from the harshness of real truth-seeking debate and discussion in the face of someone they disagree with.

Whatever semblance of free thought remains in Western culture is deteriorating at record speed. I see it in political arguments on social media. I see it even in my own beloved Church - a place that, as a idealistic, naive baby Catholic, I believed upheld capital-T Truth and was impervious to the swaying trends of culture. This year, sadly, the veil has been lifted from my eyes.

The division and hatred in the world today is the work of Satan.

It is not the work of white people, or black people, Trump-lovers, or Biden-supporters, pro-choicers, or pro-lifers.  

Satan always divides, he always accuses.

He is laughing right now as the world around us literally burns. He knows that he already lost the war, but that won't stop him from reveling in the destruction caused by his spirit in us.

 

Do you know what he hates? He hates it when we retreat, disconnect from the divisions in our feeds, and work on our own hearts. He REALLY hates that.

 

The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility. For, as he does not know at all how to employ it, neither does he know how to defend himself from it.

– St. Vincent de Paul

What we need to do is refine ourselves. It is the only realm over which we have any semblance of control. Stop... STOP pointing your finger at anyone outside of yourself.

We are in the midst of the battle. Right now, at this very moment. Even among the vast pile of laundry and dishes needing to be done.

Take up your rosaries. Fast regularly. For Catholics, Confession, Holy Mass, and Adoration will give you the supernatural grace you need to fight the good fight. Learn from my stupid mistakes - the devil is much cleverer than we are if we don't have Jesus within our hearts. The surest and quickest (and easiest) way is through the Sacraments that Christ himself established when he walked the earth.
Get off of social media, at least for a little bit. Our prayers and penances will be like fire to our souls, cleansing us, purifying us, making us more like our Lord. If we begin to love, in the proper sense of the word, imagine how the world will be transformed. Our Lady promised that her Immaculate Heart will triumph. 

Christus vincit

Christus regnat

Christus imperat

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Consumerism of Religion

   Sitting in the library this afternoon, I glanced up and noticed that my chair was situated right next to the "Religion" shelves. Religion. Hmm... when I see this word I get a strange blend of feelings initially. The first is a feeling of prickly guardedness and caution, while the secondary one is a sense of familiarity and confidence in the all that the word means.

 I ponder what kinds of books will be housed in this section, and the Holy Bible, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, and the autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux float across my consciousness. Then of course I imagine there must be books about Judaism and Islam as well, but it is less easy for me to imagine their works apart from the Q'uran and the Talmud. It's a strange thing isn't it. Centuries of conflict, all resting peacefully together in one tidy little section of a vast library.

   In some way, this situation strikes me as humorous. It's a secret little joke I share with myself. I realize that the categorization and smallness of the "Religion" section is somewhat analogous to the American attitude toward religion in general. The attitude among my peers, and indeed more than a few of my elders, is one of somewhat disinterested choosiness. Many young people have the idea that they can pick, choose, and filter what they want to believe from any number of different religious systems without any sense that this could lead to instability, inconsistency, and a false sense of reality. I have a hunch that this consumerism of religion has a deep root in our cultural heritage...

      I have plenty of friends who have bounced from church to church, with no real rhyme or reason. If asked, a lot of times their reasoning is along the lines of, "Well, their beliefs just didn't quite add up with mine", or "I didn't like many of the people there". I find it kind of strange how they see their own views on Christianity, probably less informed than a pastor, as holding more weight and value. It would be like me - having never taken a physics class in my life - telling someone with a PhD in this field that his views are irrelevant because they don't correspond with mine. That's just pretty absurd.

   I'll tell you my rough "theory" on how this phenomenon came about. Cultural relativism. If you've ever taken an introductory Philosophy course, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Cultural relativism is a philosophical view which holds that no culture is superior to another in any regard, and that whatever one culture views is true must be legitimate.
 
   It permeates all aspects of American culture, including politics, law, education, entertainment, morality, and religion. Let me make it clear, as an anthropology major in college I was constantly bombarded with this standard, because from the academic standpoint it is the least dangerous to the cultures we are trying to understand and study. The core maxim of anthropology as a field (particularly in the "cultural anthropology" sub-field) is this:

"In conducting and publishing their research, or otherwise disseminating their research results, anthropological researchers must ensure that they do not harm the safety, dignity, or privacy of the people with whom they work, conduct research, or perform other professional activities, or who might reasonably be thought to be affected by their research."

   This idea is hammered into our empty skulls from day one, and I am always wryly reminded of the Wiccan Rede, summed up by one of its statements,  'An it harm none, do what ye will'. Oh well, I take it with a grain of salt. I can appreciate the relevance of cultural relativism, properly utilized, in my chosen field. However, I will never allow cultural relativism to trump my moral convictions that are informed by Christ and His Church.

   By no means am I an expert in history, so bear with me if the following seems a little generalized. I will state an educated guess about the formation of this subjective, relativistic worldview. It seems to me that it must have come about, particularly in America, as a counter-movement against the conquesting mentality of our European ancestors.

   The Anglo-Saxons in Europe and their descendants as well as the Romans and all those who made up the "dawn of civilization", as it were, left a lot of death and destruction in their wake as they conquered and assimilated smaller, less advanced peoples. They swept across Europe through the centuries until there were only several large empires remaining in the Eastern hemisphere.

   After the Spanish, French, and English sailed the Atlantic Ocean to colonize the New World,   important ideological views were shifting. The initial impetus of conquest was informed by religion, under the conviction that God wanted His Church to subdue all of the earth and bring it under Her dominion. Over time, this idea shifted to the desire to escape from the all-encompassing authoritarian rule of the crown. Some of those who left Europe and their descendants decided they wanted to have supreme ownership of their brand new country and the British were overthrown and cast out (wow talk about history 101 in fast-forward). They wanted a fresh start, and did not want to be accountable to the British, nor to have to pay taxes to the monarchy.

  Of course, the ideal of freedom from oppression and hierarchical rule,  among other things, eventually lead to the American Revolution and Independence. It's no wonder Americans have a serious problem with authority, particularly when presented with the hierarchical structure of the Catholic Church! And it's certainly no wonder we have a problem with telling people that they may or may not be wrong about anything. After all, we all have freedom of speech and everyone has a right to their own opinion! Sigh.

(Pic credit here)

    I believe that as globalization has progressed and greater strides have been made in our knowledge of the world and other societies, we realize all of the horrible things that have been done in the name of religion. We see also the damage that has been done by cultures who deem their own to be superior and the "only way to do things". A humorous side note: I know some English people who still hold this mentality to some extent, although they do not carry it through to its tyrannical end!

  Anyway, cultural relativism is a worldview that attempts to reconcile all people without taking the moral or cultural high ground. However, this view has the potential to be dangerous, as it rejects all objective truth. A relativist, if remaining consistent with this perspective, would not be able to look Hitler in the eye and say "what you're doing is wrong". There is no justice within a relativistic system.

   Say, for example, that according to a particular culture cannibalism is not only morally acceptable, but is even actively encouraged. According to American sensibilities, cannibalism is both morally wrong and extremely repulsive. Objectively speaking, both of these views cannot be true. An action is either objectively immoral or objectively moral. The only grey, subjective area is intentionality - but only God truly objectively knows what a person's intentions were.

   Imagine the "Ghearlapha" (made up) tribe believes that every day the sun is pulled into the sky by a giant unicorn pegasus that has rainbow fur. In the United States, most of us believe that the earth rotates around the sun and each day represents one full turn of the earth on its axis. One of us is correct... but according to cultural relativism, the US culture does not have a right to tell the Ghearlapha culture that they are wrong. If the Ghearlapha tribe wants to believe that a unicorn pegasus brings the sun into the sky, they can, because who are we to tell them their truth isn't true? LOL HAHA

Here is something for all of you relativists to consider: the classic relative trump card. Here it is: If all truth claims are relative, and there is no objective truth, then how can you make that claim? Isn't that statement self-refuting? If there is no objective truth, then you cannot say that your relative view is true.

   On a more serious note, this relativistic attitude carries over to religious views. Looking at the book shelf categorization of Religion in the library, I came to this realization. Religion, in American society, is just another category we get to shop around in. It's very nonchalant, and appears to be of no consequence. All over the internet, people proclaim that everybody has a right to choose which religion to follow and that no one can be more right than someone else about religious truth.

   We are encouraged to pick which religion to follow based off of... well, what? How we feel? What "seems" truest? Did everyone suddenly become Biblical and Quranic scholars overnight?? No. No, they did not. Oftentimes they dabble here and there and settle with whichever religion makes them feel best. (Um yes, I was very guilty of this in my earlier days - before college, mind you! Which is kind of ironic because it seems to me that a lot of college students pick this up while they're in college. But I digress). How have we come to this? I believe it is the result of a dangerous mixture of cultural relativism, consumerism, and the mistaken view that the goal of life is happiness and comfort.

   If all religions were philosophies, then perhaps this pickiness would be justified. After all, how would we even know which religion is true, since they all come from different premises? For example, some religions claim there are many deities (pagans), some religions believe there is no Supreme Being at all (atheists), etc. Everyone has their own arguments as to why they think they hold the most reasonable position. Fine. That's just how it is. Christianity, however, is not the same as the all the other world religions.

Here is why.

   To steal an idea from Fr. Robert Barron (from his DVD "Catholicism"): The Dali Lama would say he has discovered divine truth, and is the instrument of God who disseminates this knowledge. The prophet Muhammad would never in his wildest dreams claim that he is God - no, he was a Prophet of God, but not God himself. Jesus, on the other hand, claims - and proves - that he is the Son of God. He is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life", and no one comes to the Father except through Him.

(borrowed from catholicmemes.com)

   To steal a wonderful quote from another great thinker of our times, C.S. Lewis,

 "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse."

 Luckily for us, Jesus was and is truly the Son of God. He is the second person of the Trinity, the Son, begotten, not made, of the Father, and he came to redeem us and reconcile our broken humanity with Himself. He humbled himself in the form of a slave and poured out His blood for our sake. The Resurrection confirms all the truths of the Gospel, and they were written by the apostles and disciples who had a personal encounter with the one True God. If you want or need more information about proofs of the Resurrection, here is an excellent starting point, written by one of my favorite modern Catholic apologists, Peter Kreeft:
http://www.peterkreeft.com/topics-more/resurrection-evidence.htm

   So if Jesus is truly who He claimed to be, and really meant everything He said, and really wants us to take up our crosses daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23), then don't you think that the most important pursuit of our lives is to determine what we need to do to really know Jesus, His teachings, and what He really wants from us?

   If we disregard Christ, then we disregard not some aloof abstract ideal. We reject a person, a person who loves us so much that He endured unimaginable torture for our sake, knowing full well that He possessed the power to make it all stop. He did not do that for some abstract "humanity". No, He did it for each and every individual who has ever been conceived. When you look upon a crucifix, imagine Christ's eyes piercing yours as you hear Him whisper solemnly "I did this for you".

   Will you reject his love by remaining in sin? When I sin, I imagine myself spitting in Jesus's face as he is burdened with the cross. It breaks my heart that I'm capable of offending Him so, after He has forgiven me countless times, but He is always there to accept my repentance as soon as I implore it of Him. Our God is Love unconditional.

Please pray for me, I'll be praying for you.

Next blog post: A Mystical Rosebud - the source of my blog title!