“There is not a truth from history more certain than this: that civil liberty cannot long be separated from religious liberty without danger, and ultimately without destruction to both.” –Joseph Story, Associate Justice U.S. Supreme Court
Coming out of the Great Depression and World War II, the parents of the Baby Boomer generation (1946-1964) wanted to give their children the good life. The result was that the Boomer generation “did many did things which their fathers would have deprecated, and then drew about themselves a flimsy cordon of sophistry while talking about the advance of humanity and liberal thought, when it was really nothing more than a preference for individual license” (John Hall). Agreeing with this sentiment, Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, recently stated that Baby Boomers will “go down in history as the most disappointing generation ever, from sex, drugs, and rock and roll to what we have today.” Hyperbole? I am not sure. But I do see where this could be the epitaph of my generation unless we act firmly and decisively in doing that which is still within our power: changing the course of American civilization.
Along with the aforementioned influences, the Boomer era saw the curtailment of prayer, Bible reading, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, and the singing of Christmas carols in schools. In addition, they created Greenwich Village and Haight Ashbury, epicenters of the 1960s counterculture movement, orchestrated the passage of Roe v Wade, and saw some of the brightest and most ambitious among them take their talents to institutions of higher learning and to Wall Street where they could continue their bohemian lifestyles in more comfortable environs.
The collective result of these actions fueled the acceptance and teaching of Marxist ideas in universities, in the national media, and among the cultural elites. In other words, there was a steady cultural shift away from the traditional values upon which this nation was founded.
Accompanying these trends was America’s turning away from absolute truth and a sense of personal accountability. As described by a leading churchman, “We spend billions of our resources in litigation one against another. Our spiritual power is sapped by a flood tide of pornography, by a debilitating epidemic of the use of narcotics and drugs that destroy both body and mind, and by a declining moral standard that is alarming and devastating to relationships, families, and the integrity of our nation as a whole. In too many ways, we have substituted human sophistry for the wisdom of the Almighty.” (Gordon B. Hinckley)
While we live in a generally prosperous and optimistic age, yet grave problems persist, namely crime, violence, chronic poverty, teen depression, suicide, teen pregnancy, broken families, corruption, changing the meaning of words, fiscal irresponsibility, and other signs of cultural decline. The confrontation in which we are engaged is transforming popular ideas, beliefs, and our national character. Evidence abounds that the fight for the survival of our nation is upon us.
Having won the tacit approval of much of the press, influential policymakers, and a great many ordinary Americans, what has taken place is the triumph of sin and selfishness. In one of the great ironies of freedom, a growing number of our most gifted young people–as well as our citizens overall–are turning away from the principles of our founding, from the nobility of Western civilization, from the rule of law, from sound economic principles, and from the sacred, the very sources of our prosperity and survival.
Data also shows that the decline in foundational virtues–work, marriage, and religion–affects all levels of society. Wrote one essayist, “What a surprise! We raised a generation of bright kids without a foundation in religion . . . We never told them that the virtuous life was both necessary and hard, that character was something that had to be built step by step from youth, that moral weakness was contemptible and natural.” (Walter Russell Mead)
Affirming that although there are many successes in raising great individuals, a renowned scholar writes that conditions in today’s world are particularly difficult for boys. “Confusion regarding manhood abounds, including confusion about a proper understanding of virility. Fathers are missing from boys’ lives in devastatingly high numbers. Children are exposed to a dizzying array of cultural signals about what it means to be a man.” (William J. Bennett)
In search of answers as we cross traditional political and cultural boundaries, the driving force in the potential resolution of this conflict will be an increasing awareness that the fate of our nation depends, perhaps like never before, on this truth, as articulated by Aristotle, “All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth.” Order supplies the basics in training the rising generations; the fate of nations hangs on their education.
Thus, the biggest task at hand is to strengthen the home, family, and community, to remind ourselves of America’s Grand Design through a reaffirmation of our divine heritage and potential. To turn things around, we need a restoration of public sentiment in favor of America and to reintroduce classical literature and civic virtue into the classroom and the culture at large.
But there is a danger lurking. Alarming reports indicate fading respect for absolute truth and foundational traditions, which have obscured enduring values. With great numbers turning away from Christianity, and with many on the pathway to atheism, significant numbers from all generations are turning their backs on the religious traditions of their upbringing.
Each of these conditions point to the fact that if there was ever a time for religious influence in our society to be re-examined, the time is now. To achieve our common goals of the public peace, progress, and prosperity, we must be more articulate and persuasive in making the case for Christ, for Christianity, and for the principles of meritocracy, liberty, and justice, which are at the heart of the American system of government.
The rights of conscience and freedom of expression developed gradually and took centuries of struggle to establish. For these essential characteristics of life in America to continue, we must stop the mindless destruction of our Western and American heritage. We need not pretend to have a divine commission and a sacred destiny. America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s Grand Design.
In a partnership between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born, we must honor the great primeval contract of eternal society, underwritten by the Golden Rule, which connects the visible and invisible world and finds expression in our Declaration of Independence as “the right to life.” Driven by an all-consuming desire to amass power through the doctrines of scarcity, privilege, and fear, we must also realize that freedom’s future hinges on an essential truth: we do not have to choose between a clean environment (via socialism) and a prosperous economy. We can have both.
The roots of this clash extend back hundreds of years. It is a battle between capitalism and Marxism, between the power of the state and equal opportunity for each individual, and between freedom and coercion. It is therefore essential to re-emphasize that a democratic system depends on its legitimacy, not upon equal results, but a sense of equal opportunity.
It has been said that we are fast approaching that moment when, “Even this nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground and when the Constitution is upon the brink of ruin this people will be the staff upon which the nation shall lean and they shall bear the Constitution away from the very verge of destruction.” (Joseph Smith)
“To those who have discerning eyes, it is apparent that the republican form of government established by our noble forefathers cannot long endure once fundamental principles are abandoned. Momentum is gathering for another conflict–a repetition of the crisis of two hundred years ago. This collision of ideas is worldwide. Another monumental moment is soon to be born. The issue is the same that precipitated the great premortal conflict–will men be free to determine their own course of action, or must they be coerced? . . .
“The war in heaven over free agency is now being waged here on earth, and there are those today who are saying, ‘Look, don’t get involved in the fight for freedom. Just live the gospel.’ That counsel is dangerous, self-contradictory, unsound.” (Ezra Taft Benson)
In the movie Apollo 13, as the spacecraft faced multiple perils with three astronauts on board, the chance for a safe return was greatly diminished. Upon hearing his supervisor say, “I know what the problems are. This could be the worst disaster NASA has ever experienced,” Gene Krantz (Ed Harris), the leader in Mission Control, turned towards him and said, “With all due respect, Sir, I believe this will be our finest hour.”
As a generation of Baby Boomers, the challenge before us to preserve human freedom is daunting. Will we be remembered as the generation that lost liberty because of “sex, drugs, and rock and roll?” Or will we, in our finest hour, be the generation that reestablished America as “the world’s best hope?”
Brent Russell is the author of America’s Grand Design. http://www.americasgranddesign.
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