Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
I've written a lot about how our nation seems to be in moral decline.
About how many people these days are devoid of any sense of remorse for their actions.
What better way to sum up the moral decay in this country than the recent spate of church burnings.
One must wonder what motivates someone to torch a church. It's the perfect symbolism for absolute defiance of moral authority.
The people who burn churches, like lots of other people who defy moral authority, have no fear of final judgment.
There used to be a time in this country when the motivation to do the right thing came from within. People had a strong sense of right and wrong. They did the right thing not out of fear of retribution, but simply because they were morally opposed to doing the wrong thing.
They had a conscience.
Sadly, growing numbers of people today seem to have no conscience. For them, there is no moral imperative. No right or wrong.
The only thing that even remotely affects their behavior is the fear of getting caught by the police. Since that likelihood is small, there is nothing to keep them from doing whatever they please.
They lie, cheat, steal, burn and even murder. They fear no final accounting of their actions.
That's where the value of religion becomes apparent.
Does this mean that people who don't go to church have no sense of right and wrong? Of course not. But where do you suppose that sense of right and wrong came from?
How is one's conscience formed?
From the beginning of time, mankind has sought his origins. For billions of people, religion has been the answer. Whether it's Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam or any of the hundreds of other religions of the world, the message is the same.
Be good or else. The hingepin of morality. That morality is passed on generation to generation. Why practice traditional family values? Why bother being good on earth?
A. Because, simply, it's the right thing to do as taught by your ancestors.
B. Because if you don't you'll have a bad, bad time in your afterlife.
But today, many people bristle at some of these time-worn values.
Case in point.
A pastor in Kansas attempted to sum up our country's moral dilemma in a prayer he recited in front of the Kansas General Assembly. The prayer originally surfaced on the Paul Harvey radio show. It generated some hostility and opposition by some members of the legislature.
The prayer asks God for forgiveness and seeks direction and guidance.
It says, in part, "We know Your Word says 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that's exactly what we have done...
We have ridiculed the absolute truth of Your Word and called it moral pluralism.
We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism.
We have endorsed perversion and called it alternative lifestyle.
We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.
We have neglected the needy and called it self-preservation.
We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.
We have killed our unborn and called it choice.
We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.
We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building esteem.
We have abused power and called it political savvy.
We have coveted our neighbors' possessions and called it ambition.
We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.
We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment...
Guide and bless these men and women who have been sent here by the people of Kansas, and who have been ordained by You to govern this great state. Grant them Your wisdom to rule and may their decisions direct us to the center of Your will..."
Pretty much sums it up.
Not long ago, something like that would draw little or no criticism. It would go without saying.
But now we seem to be in this lapse period where morality is concerned. Lots of people think religion - the purveyor of morality - is just plain stupid.
How do you suppose the children of today's church burners will grow up? Morally sound, you think?
And what about the children of the growing number of today's societal miscreants?
I can just about guarantee that if enough people start thinking religion - and all its precepts - are stupid, this country will become a very bothersome place to live.
