For those of you who don't believe in a higher authority I must warn
you -- that's primarily what this column is about. Having said that, I
think it's also appropriate to recognize that what I believe in may not
be the same thing you ascribe to. That's OK; the main point I'm trying
to make here is that regardless of our beliefs, it's important as a
nation that we reaffirm the fact that there is a higher morality than
most of our leaders and institutions care to recognize.
For me that higher authority is God Almighty, consisting of the
Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. And what I base my personal
morality upon is the Ten Commandments because, to me, it is the most
precise collection of statements that guide, or should guide, human
behavior. I realize there are different rules for different methods of
belief and that's not really the focus here anyway.
Instead, the focus is on what we want to be as a nation. In the
future this question will become ever more important as the forces of
evil, however you define them, increase their attacks on everything
righteous, decent and just that this country was built upon. I know it
and you know it.
So, the reason I felt compelled to make a statement about morality is
because over the past few months, in other columns, I have alluded to
the need to restore some semblance of decency within our culture because
frankly, without it I am not confident of our future.
Whether you believe in God or not, I think it's safe to assume that
millions of Americans know that something is wrong. As a people
we may have different ideas about what has caused our society to lose
its collective decency, but generally speaking I believe most Americans
are of the opinion that something's "not right."
Some of us blame our problems on bad government, bad leaders and a
broken political system. That's part of it.
Some of us blame our problems on racism, divisiveness, and a lack of
unity. That's part of it.
Some of us blame our problems on the media, on the entertainment
industry, and on pop culture. That's part of it.
Some choose to blame the courts, the justice system, and the way laws
are passed and enforced. Agreed.
Some say the education of our children is poor, and those methods we
used to use to educate some of the best and brightest people in the
world are long gone. That also gets my vote.
All of these things are true; in each area of our lives there are
issues, problems and seemingly irreconcilable differences for which
there is no single answer.
Or is there?
Enter morality, or, rather, the lack of it.
With no moral compass to guide our behavior, each area of our lives
becomes susceptible to destruction. If we have nothing on which to base
"proper" behavior -- how to act, how to treat others, and how we expect
to be treated -- then there is no single thread binding the patched
quilt of society together.
In my view, that thread we lack is an acceptable and universal code
of ethics and morality.
Like commonality of language, a set of moral standards is the "glue"
that holds people together and allows each of us to define a singular
code of decency. Without it, people drift aimlessly through life
justifying the horrible, explaining away the terrible, and
hypocritically denying the awful.
But therein lies the problem; in such a diverse country, there is no
singular code of ethics that all of us can subscribe to.
And I can't, as one person with one voice, prescribe what that code
ought to be because I have neither the knowledge nor the inclination to
make such a blanket declaration.
So what's the answer? Honestly, I don't really know. I didn't write
this column to give you the "answers." I wrote it simply to draw
attention to an issue I believe more and more Americans are becoming
aware of.
But I do know this; collectively, as a nation, we all had better take
some time thinking about this issue and figuring out -- together -- what
the answer is. If we don't, we're out of here. It's just that simple.
A nation that no longer has any idea what morality consists of cannot
survive the long term. History has proven it; once a country or an
empire loses its soul, it loses its life. And we're there, folks -- here
and now.
What we do about it will ultimately decide our fate. But it's not
like we don't have any guides to help us; there is a higher authority
that has already figured it out for us. We just need to be willing to
listen and follow.