Are We On The Verge of a Revival?
Today, I watched a couple of videos from ARC (Alliance for Responsible Citizenship) that were inspiring. What made these videos inspiring was the public conversation among intellectual elites from diverse backgrounds, all of whom referenced the Christian worldview. These comments were made against the backdrop of a seminar whose topic was the collapse of social liberalism. The fact that a statement like that could even be written about, let alone publicly presented in a secular seminar, shows that seismic cultural changes are underway.
In the collapse of the old order, there is a vacuum begging to be filled with a moral and social framework robust enough to carry the weight of the present moment. There was general consensus that the Christian worldview is a fitting framework to fill this void. It offers a structure based on a personal relationship with God, in whose image we are made. This relationship inherently requires the respect and dignity of others, a concept that WOKE ideology has made verboten in the name of social justice for victims and perpetrators alike (such as stay-at-home moms). The Christian worldview, in addition to upholding the dignity of humanity, also explains the present moral morass through the ideology of the "Fall." But it isn’t a pessimistic worldview; it offers the hope of redemption and restoration. No other sociology in the modern era has accurately captured the human experience and need like the Christian worldview.
The election of Donald Trump signaled a tidal shift in our culture. There is no clearer evidence that secularists are now talking about the validity of Christianity’s narrative framework as a sufficient thread to bind our culture together. It also has the added benefit that its “reintroduction” today is really a “return” to the moral framework of the founders of our nation. The vision they had included an ethical government protecting the liberty of a virtuous citizenry. A return to “common sense” governance, which limits its role to that of a guardian of society’s good by protecting the liberty of its citizens, means government functions best when it suppresses evil through civic order and legal punishment. However, government cannot create virtuous citizenship. That task is best left to other institutions, which can pursue the moral formation of a community within the safety and stability of the state, provided that the state does not infringe upon the exercise of religion.
The moralizing influence of non-governmental institutions means the church has a seat at the cultural table. Who, if not the local church, holds the teaching that can transform the human heart, offering redemption to those who embrace their fallen state and restoring a relationship with the living God? The church also teaches individuals to take responsibility for their lives, care for others around them in the same way they have been cared for by God in Christ Jesus. We teach that people are made to work and produce before they consume. We teach people to be good neighbors, friends, and family members. We teach men how to be husbands and women how to raise children in stable households that offer safety, stability, and security.
Imagine with me for a moment… no, dare to hope with me for a moment, that we could be seeing the first rays of light of a dawning sun that could illuminate a reality where government functions within its proper sphere, where the church and allied institutions of moral formation operate within their sphere, and where the family operates within its sphere. This is a three-legged stool that cannot be easily tipped over. America flourished on this foundation, and she can again when we each individually decide to take up our personal responsibility to bring about this world — at home first, in our church and community secondly, and, as we have the opportunity, in the governmental sphere. The first step toward this bright future is embracing bold humility, expressed in benevolent kindness to our neighbors and the stranger.
If you were born after 1980, all you’ve ever known is social liberalism. The dawning light is bright and might cause you to squint. Those whose eyes are open shouldn’t point and laugh at them. We should come alongside and let them know it’s okay to open their eyes to a future brighter than our recent past.
You can watch what inspired me below. Watch them in order.
