War in the Heavens
“Where is the road of modern culture taking us? The real question is not whether there are intriguing, entertaining, and even edifying details along the route, but what is the final destination. Are we Christians asking this question as we consume contemporary cultural material? Or are we gradually losing our bearings, the moral compass spinning aimlessly? What is the dominant terrain, the pitch of the slope? I believe it is heading downward, and the occasional bumps in the road that offer a sense of upward mobility contribute to an illusion. In order to see clearly the extent to which we have been absorbed by the illusion, we first must recognize how strong is the need in human nature for confidence in the world, and the instinctive aversion to the threat of ‘negativity’ or ‘intolerance.’
...
Imagine two mothers, or two fathers, having a discussion about what kind of cultural material is best to give their children: One parent is cautious about the way most contemporary fantasy mixes good and evil (and sometimes inverts them). The other parent has grown accustomed to the septic environment and is more trusting of the surrounding culture. When he tastes the mixture his tongue reassures him that it is honey.
‘It is sweet,’ he declares. ‘It is good. The virus, the bacteria, the toxin you speak of is a figment of your imagination, the product of your irrational fears about contamination!’
‘Do not be deceived by the taste,’ says the cautious parent. ‘It is better for people not to consume such mixtures.’
The trusting parent says with a certain tension: ‘So you want to quarantine your children, lock them away in an antiseptic environment!’
‘Not at all,’ replies the other. ‘Regardless of the exact ratio of healthy and unhealthy materials, is it not obvious that consuming any virus, toxin, or virulent bacteria is detrimental to health? I simply do not want to feed this particular honey to my children.’
‘But by not giving them this honey you are harming your children.’
‘Explain to me, precisely, how I am harming my children by abstaining from giving them infected food.’
‘It is not infected! Besides, you’re going to isolate your children, make them strangers in their own culture. Do you want them to be weird?’
‘But I just saw you dip your finger into a septic tank and lick it. That seems a little weird to me.’
‘It is not a septic tank. It is a very large reservoir containing, admittedly, some unpleasant things, but also many good things. We need to focus on the good. You really have a problem with negativity, you know. It’s making you intolerant.’
‘Yes, I am intolerant.’
A shocked pause. ‘Pardon me?’
‘I’m intolerant of anything that will make my children sick.’
‘Are you accusing me of making my children sick?!’
‘I respect your right to make your own decision. I have no respect for the contents of the septic tank.’
‘What?’
‘I was making a distinction.’
And so it goes—the seemingly irresolvable, supposedly rational dialogues of the Western world as it loses its bearings, its sense of the actual moral order in the universe.”
~Michael O'Brien (excerpt from the article: War in the Heavens)
...
Imagine two mothers, or two fathers, having a discussion about what kind of cultural material is best to give their children: One parent is cautious about the way most contemporary fantasy mixes good and evil (and sometimes inverts them). The other parent has grown accustomed to the septic environment and is more trusting of the surrounding culture. When he tastes the mixture his tongue reassures him that it is honey.
‘It is sweet,’ he declares. ‘It is good. The virus, the bacteria, the toxin you speak of is a figment of your imagination, the product of your irrational fears about contamination!’
‘Do not be deceived by the taste,’ says the cautious parent. ‘It is better for people not to consume such mixtures.’
The trusting parent says with a certain tension: ‘So you want to quarantine your children, lock them away in an antiseptic environment!’
‘Not at all,’ replies the other. ‘Regardless of the exact ratio of healthy and unhealthy materials, is it not obvious that consuming any virus, toxin, or virulent bacteria is detrimental to health? I simply do not want to feed this particular honey to my children.’
‘But by not giving them this honey you are harming your children.’
‘Explain to me, precisely, how I am harming my children by abstaining from giving them infected food.’
‘It is not infected! Besides, you’re going to isolate your children, make them strangers in their own culture. Do you want them to be weird?’
‘But I just saw you dip your finger into a septic tank and lick it. That seems a little weird to me.’
‘It is not a septic tank. It is a very large reservoir containing, admittedly, some unpleasant things, but also many good things. We need to focus on the good. You really have a problem with negativity, you know. It’s making you intolerant.’
‘Yes, I am intolerant.’
A shocked pause. ‘Pardon me?’
‘I’m intolerant of anything that will make my children sick.’
‘Are you accusing me of making my children sick?!’
‘I respect your right to make your own decision. I have no respect for the contents of the septic tank.’
‘What?’
‘I was making a distinction.’
And so it goes—the seemingly irresolvable, supposedly rational dialogues of the Western world as it loses its bearings, its sense of the actual moral order in the universe.”
~Michael O'Brien (excerpt from the article: War in the Heavens)
Comments