For the leader; “upon the eighth.” A psalm of David.
I
Help, Lord, for no one loyal remains;
the faithful have vanished from th children of men.
They tell lies to one another,
speak with deceiving lips and a double heart.
II
May the Lord cut off all deceiving lips,
and every boastful tongue,
Those who say, “By our tongues we prevail;
when our lips speak, who can lord it over us?”
III
“Because they rob the weak, and the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the Lord;
“I will grant safety to whoever longs for it.”
IV
The promises of the Lord are sure,
silver refined in a crucible,
silver purified seven times.
You, O Lord, protect us always;
preserve us from this generation.
On every side the wicked roam;
the shameless are extolled by the children of men.
Psalms 12:1-9
As I read the opening lines of this psalm, I am disappointed at how much I relate to its sentiment. He says, “the faithful have vanished from the children of men,” and I sadly recall how often I feel that way.
Of course, it would be easy to just blame politicians (on both sides) for my discontent, and they are certainly a big part of the problem, but it goes beyond that. Another obvious source of the problem is popular culture. Actually, the two are complexly intertwined in our society, and I think that is why it becomes so frustrating.
There is a spin on everything, and I’m not sure how to gain enough perspective to recognize every time we are being manipulated by that spin. That said, how can we teach young people to see it?
In many ways, I wonder if this is a natural byproduct of the secularism that increasingly dominates our culture. I have read so many discussions of secularism lately, that it is something I consider a lot. But maybe it’s time to really wrap my brain around what it is and where it leads.
Mirriam-Webster defines secularism as “indifference to or rejection or exclusion of religion and religious considerations.” (found here) The urban dictionary defines it as “the belief that church and state should be entirely separate, and that the citizens should be free to believe whatever they want.” They further posit that, “the government of America is based on secularism.” (found here)
A Catholic encyclopedia, New Advent, describes the first known use of the term “about 1846 by George Jacob Holyoake to denote ‘a form of opinion which concerns itself only with questions, the issues of which can be tested by the experience of this life'” (found here) They describe three essential purposes of secularism today: “1. The improvement of this life by material means. 2. That science is the available Providence of man. and 3. That it is good to do good.”
The National Secular Society website gives more detail:
The principles of secularism which protect and underpin many of the freedoms we enjoy are:
1. Separation of religious institutions from state institutions and a public sphere where religion may participate, but not dominate.
2. Freedom to practice one’s faith or belief without harming others, or to change it or not have one, according to one’s own conscience.
3. Equality so that our religious beliefs or lack of them doesn’t put any of us at an advantage or disadvantage.
(found here)
So, speaking of spin, how do these principles translate into the society where we find ourselves today? Is secularism about freedom of religion or freedom from religion. How much do the practitioners of secularism stay true to some of the ideals given in their own definitions?
I am particularly intrigued by how much the National Secular Society definition seems to agree with my own thoughts about religion. I certainly don’t want the state interfering with my ability to practice my faith, and I want to be free to practice it without worry of losing equality.
But I feel like they wouldn’t use the term, secularism, if they disagreed with its meaning as given by such a widely accepted source of definitions as Mirriam-Webster, who uses the words indifference, rejection, and exclusion to describe the treatment of religion by secularists.
As I’m sure I’ve mentioned several times before, I am worried that a secularist attitude prevails in modern pop culture and creates a new morality that could have dangerous ramifications. It strives to replace God with “Mother Earth,” which eventually can rationalize the devaluing of human life. Even worse, the secularists seem to be making progress in an effort to paint Christians as mean, judgmental, and evil. (Although, let’s just admit that some of our fellow-Christians help them with that argument when they forget the judge-not-lest-ye-be-judged teaching of our faith.)
But all is not lost! Let us remember what this psalmist recalls, that “the promises of the Lord are sure.” I am currently studying church history, and this week in particular has been about the first 150 years of Christianity. The first Christians were certainly surrounded by a predominant culture that did not support Christianity, but they were persistent.
The Apostles preached the good news of Jesus Christ and lived lives that demonstrated His teachings. St. Paul, in particular, implored the early Christians to remain loyal to the teachings of Jesus and to be an example of His love in the world. With such leadership, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Church flourished against all odds.
If people in the first century were drawn to the love shown by early Christians, can’t we do the same? I’m not saying any of us has the responsibility to be like St. Paul, but we can all vow to take on the role of the early Christians. Let them “know we are Christian by our love!”