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Column Fodder: Traditions and Values
My mother said last night that the country was losing it's values. I let her have a pass on this since I really didn't want to get into it. I should have asked her just what values we have lost. I don't think it's so much the values that we've lost, but traditions.
See, traditions can be all well and good, but traditions change, whether through societal changes or just upgrades in technology and such. After a while, things changed. Somewhere along the way, Christians started eating pork...probably because the people they were trying to convert ate pork and didn't want to give it up (and I don't blame them!). So there, a tradition lost. The Christians left the kosher practices behind, and I'm sure there was someone there that was saying "Hey, you with the bacon! You can't do that! We're totally looking at our values going down the drain here!" (Translated from the Aramaic)
We all know that nothing is stable. Judeo-Chrisitan values are still the backbone of things here in the US, but that may be changing for a more diverse culture. The fact that people are still rallying around a statue of the ten commandments that's been a part of a courthouse for only a couple of years means that they aren't going to give up easily. There's a culture war, and it's already started. The right-wing Christians are worried about losing the upper hand right now, and any decision that goes against their system is a threat to civilization's survival. It's all getting a little too dramatic.
The right wingers are feeling voiceless. Although they have a bigger stranglehold on the media than they think, they aren't happy because they don't see their values on regular TV. Now look, really nice Christian people aren't dramatic. A show, say 7th Heaven, that espouses those views rarely makes people look twice. There's little drama in people that get along and are moral.
Look, It's Wild on Abstinence!
The fun part is that they keep telling us that the country was founded on Christian Principals. You know what, they're right. The funders came over from Great Britain knowing they wanted something different from the monarchies of the Old world, but they still brought with them several legacies of that old world. The religion of the times was pervasive - and sponsored by the state.
They wanted people to be able to believe, but they understood how devisive the whole thing could be. Why make it where only certain people can worship without being harassed by the state, or forced to live another way that they truly believe. A radical concept. Again, another chance to make a really liberal change. I'm sure there were many discussions about the allowance to people to worship the way they pleased, but isn't that why many of them ran off to America anyway? Would you run off to a wilderness for your religious beliefs right now?
Values have changes a lot over these thousands of years. Traditions have come and gone. sure, i think it odd to call it a holiday party instead of a Christmas party, but I'm sure someone else is grateful for that change. Times change. Traditions change. The important values, they shouldn't change, and I think for the most part, they are still there, even if they aren't always practiced.
I told Mom, "You know, there's only one real Christian value, Love One Another. It's too bad I don't see that more often." It really is sad, the main tenant of a religion sometimes is the hardest for people to grasp. I also said, " You know, one of the ten commandments is "Love Thy Neighbor". Funny that it doesn't seem to come with any disclaimers.
See, traditions can be all well and good, but traditions change, whether through societal changes or just upgrades in technology and such. After a while, things changed. Somewhere along the way, Christians started eating pork...probably because the people they were trying to convert ate pork and didn't want to give it up (and I don't blame them!). So there, a tradition lost. The Christians left the kosher practices behind, and I'm sure there was someone there that was saying "Hey, you with the bacon! You can't do that! We're totally looking at our values going down the drain here!" (Translated from the Aramaic)
We all know that nothing is stable. Judeo-Chrisitan values are still the backbone of things here in the US, but that may be changing for a more diverse culture. The fact that people are still rallying around a statue of the ten commandments that's been a part of a courthouse for only a couple of years means that they aren't going to give up easily. There's a culture war, and it's already started. The right-wing Christians are worried about losing the upper hand right now, and any decision that goes against their system is a threat to civilization's survival. It's all getting a little too dramatic.
The right wingers are feeling voiceless. Although they have a bigger stranglehold on the media than they think, they aren't happy because they don't see their values on regular TV. Now look, really nice Christian people aren't dramatic. A show, say 7th Heaven, that espouses those views rarely makes people look twice. There's little drama in people that get along and are moral.
Look, It's Wild on Abstinence!
The fun part is that they keep telling us that the country was founded on Christian Principals. You know what, they're right. The funders came over from Great Britain knowing they wanted something different from the monarchies of the Old world, but they still brought with them several legacies of that old world. The religion of the times was pervasive - and sponsored by the state.
They wanted people to be able to believe, but they understood how devisive the whole thing could be. Why make it where only certain people can worship without being harassed by the state, or forced to live another way that they truly believe. A radical concept. Again, another chance to make a really liberal change. I'm sure there were many discussions about the allowance to people to worship the way they pleased, but isn't that why many of them ran off to America anyway? Would you run off to a wilderness for your religious beliefs right now?
Values have changes a lot over these thousands of years. Traditions have come and gone. sure, i think it odd to call it a holiday party instead of a Christmas party, but I'm sure someone else is grateful for that change. Times change. Traditions change. The important values, they shouldn't change, and I think for the most part, they are still there, even if they aren't always practiced.
I told Mom, "You know, there's only one real Christian value, Love One Another. It's too bad I don't see that more often." It really is sad, the main tenant of a religion sometimes is the hardest for people to grasp. I also said, " You know, one of the ten commandments is "Love Thy Neighbor". Funny that it doesn't seem to come with any disclaimers.
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Well I'll be damned. You have just impressed me tremendously. Thank you.
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"the God I know is a God of love, and wouldn't condemn anyone to hell for loving someone. Period"
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There's only one real misnomer and I'm not really educated enough to expand on it beyond saying that this country was not founded with Christian ideals in mind. It was founded by intellectuals and philosophers -- educated men, rational men. The first colonists to this country, contrary to modern mythology, were deists, not Christians. It's why they were persecuted in England and fled for the New World.
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Of course they did add the whole freedom of religion thing for a reason.
You'll have to explain "deists" perhaps I'm not understanding that.
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de·ism n. The belief, based solely on reason, in a God who created the universe and then abandoned it, assuming no control over life, exerting no influence on natural phenomena, and giving no supernatural revelation.
I'm currently reading The Power of Myth by Campbell and Moyers. Campbell has some very interesting things to say about how this country was founded, and how the "founding fathers" created this country such that it was completely different from the attitudes and traditions of Europe, not based upon them.
funny you should mention that...
Many were started to honor God. One was the washing of food utensils (I know, why wouldn't you wash food preparation items. But I didn't start this one and it was the example used so lets roll with it.) This washing of items was supposed to honor God. But, over time, people forgot why they were performing the ritual, only that it needed to be done. And eventually, some came to worship the ritual, not the meaning behind it.
So its not all uncommon. But we all need to be reminded every now and then why we do what we do.
AMEN!!
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Hey, I need to talk to you...could you email me your number?