INSIGHT

On Religion, History & Society:

A Forum for Conservative Christian Thought

Volume 2, No. 3, November 1996

In This Issue:

Ten Evil Influences:

Cultural War:  The Battle for Hearts & Minds

Some special interest groups say they fear Cultural War is coming --
don't look now, Cultural War is here!

(Author's note: this article is based on a sermon delivered at Evangel Assembly of God, Houston TX, July 1996.)

At the 1992 Republican Convention in Houston, Pat Buchanan stood to make a much-publicized speech. According to the mainstream Press, Buchanan called for cultural war -- actual violence -- against homosexuals, feminists, and other groups.

But those who were listening that night know better. What Buchanan proclaimed was the reality that certain forces are already warring against American society, working surreptitiously against Christianity, conservatism, traditional American culture, marriage, and society as a whole. We must, Buchanan said, oppose and expose these forces (see Sidebar, below).

Ungodly forces declared war against Christians and conservative values long ago. While the progression of events in this war against society could easily fill volumes, there have been at least ten particularly significant events and influences:


Evolutionary Theory

From earliest times, there have been secularists who have chosen to deny, or at least redefine, the existence of God and the creation of the world. Beginning with Charles Darwin, secularism became institutionalized. Evolutionists aggressively enforce an anti-theistic worldview in public schools, universities, and public debate. Meanwhile, creationists are marginalized, silenced, and disempowered.

In actuality, the evolutionary construct is so weak, so lacking in unequivocal evidence, its history so rife with personal ambition and outright chicanery, that evolutionists are compelled to exclude all competition. As New Age activist Jeremy Rifkin admitted, "Evolutionary theory has been enshrined as the centerpiece of our educational system, and elaborate walls have been erected around it to protect it from unnecessary abuse."

The result is that Western society has been divested of its faith, divorced from its moral underpinnings. Without absolutes, without a higher purpose to life or the expectation of heaven or hell, all that is left is the empty pursuit of power and pleasure in this world.


Scriptural Authority

In the so-called Enlightenment, or more accurately the Secularization Movement, intellectuals such as Voltaire and Rousseau began to openly attack Christianity and the authority of Scripture. Theories on the origin of the Bible arose, in particular Graf and Wellhausen's Documentary Hypothesis ("JEDP Theory"), which treats the Bible as a collection of myths and propaganda, pasted together. Much of Scripture is presumed to have been intended to empower certain groups, such as the Hebrew priests and, later, Church leaders. The Enlightenment had a profound effect on American society from its start. By the 17th-century, many English intellectuals were Unitarians. They claimed access to God, but recognized the authority of neither Church nor Scripture. Many of the Founding Fathers were Deists, who conceived of a distant God who had set up universal laws but was himself unknowable. One of their number, Thomas Jefferson, created his own New Testament by literally cutting out the passages he did not believe. To Deists, the Bible was a book of human, not divine origin -- an attitude which has prevailed in academia, and been pervasive among theologians, to this day.

From World War I to Prohibition

The First World War left Europe jaded and demoralized. Young American troops, seeking escapism from war's horrors, were for the first time exposed to the revelry and decadence of Paris. Many of them imported their newfound "sophistication" home to the U.S., along with venereal diseases.

Changing attitudes led to the Roaring Twenties, with all its preoccupation with drinking, gambling, parties, and sex. Characters such as the "flappers" appeared, widely known for their "liberated" sexuality.

At the same time, the automobile provided privacy for dating couples and a way for rural people to spend their evenings in the city. Motion pictures glamorized fantasy and excess. The infamous "Hollywood party" was born, known for its drunken debauchery. Silent movies often contained nudity, uncensored until moralizers prompted formation of the Hays Commission in 1921, followed by the Production Code in 1934.

Prohibition of alcohol was instituted in 1919 to curb excesses. However, alcohol was the fuel of the new lifestyle. A huge black market resulted, spawning everything from organized crime to backwoods bootlegging. Corruption of officials was widespread.

Liberals have enshrined the defeat of Prohibition as a triumph of the human spirit over oppression by narrow-minded prudes (a standard which is not now being applied to the efforts of liberals to ban tobacco).


The Arts

Before the turn of the century, the arts began to turn from the aesthetic to expressionism. Art came to focus not on capturing images of universal beauty, but on the artist himself and that which he wished to express. This self-absorption bred and attracted the self-obsessed and exhibitionistic.

At the same time, artists came to insist that no artistic expression has absolute meaning: it means what it means to the individual--an idea which reinforces relativism and deconstruction.

Expressionism has influenced not only painting and sculpture, but other areas. Theater and dance became avant-garde, often designed to shock, disturb, push back the envelope of perception and the sensibilities. Popular art became kitsch. Music became atonal and unmusical. Much that Western society valued and honored has been challenged, shaken, often overturned -- leaving in its place disquietude, groundlessness, even utter despair. Many people are left wondering what true beauty is, where it might be found, and whether life is worth living without it.


The Sexual Revolution

For all practical purposes, the Sexual Revolution was started by Hugh Hefner. Hefner founded Playboy in 1953 on the strength of a nude photo of Marilyn Monroe to which he obtained the rights -- his first "centerfold."

Hefner was largely responsible for popularizing the Kinsey Report which, among other spurrious claims, purported that one out of ten Americans was homosexual. Playboy also has been integral with the James Bond series of movies, which idealize a hero who is pursued by women and has sex at every opportunity.

Hefner and his daughter, Christie, continue to aggressively defend pornography as a First Amendment right. They bitterly attack the Meese Commission Report, Pat Robertson, Judith Reisman, and any other critics. With Playboy, Hefner launched a juggernaut which has led to the destruction of sexual mores, the eroticizing of millions of men and boys, and an obsession with women's bodies, to name a few.


Education

The pivotal years 1962-64 marked the beginning of a steep decline in SAT scores and a continual rise in the number of teen pregnancies and suicides. Much of this can be directly related to the removal of prayer and other positive moral influences, such as the Ten Commandments, from public schools.

Liberals have for the most part co-opted government education agencies and teachers' unions. The real aim of new programs such as America 2000 is to undermine parental influence and extend governmental control into the home. Educators have de-emphasized the acquisition of skills and knowledge, replacing them with politically correct attitudes, such as environmentalism, moral relativism, secular humanism, use of birth control (not abstinence), and elements of New Age religion.

The views of some influential educators are blatantly sinister. For instance, Dr. William Pierce of Harvard stated, "Every child in America entering school at the age of five is mentally ill, because he comes to school with certain allegiances toward our founding fathers, our elected officials, his parents, etc. Patriotism, nationalism, sovereignty, all that proves that children are sick, because a truly well individual is one who has rejected all these things."1


Planned Parenthood

Margaret Sanger's crusade for birth control eventually led to the founding of Planned Parenthood. Her writings, considered obscene at the time, led to several criminal indictments, and she fled the country. Sanger's first birth control newsletter, "The Woman Rebel," was subtitled "No Gods No Masters." In 1914, she wrote,

"Birth control appeals to the advanced radical, because it is calculated to undermine the authority of the Christian churches. I look forward to seeing humanity free some day of the tyranny of Christianity, no less than capitalism."

Sanger promoted the segregation and sterilization of "inferior" races. She associated herself with Nazis, publishing their racist propaganda. "The Negro Project" was a program founded by Sanger which used black ministers to promote birth control:

"The most educated approach to the Negro is through religious appeal. We do not want word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population, and the minister is the man who can straighten out that idea, if it ever occurs to any of their more rebellious members."

Planned Parenthood continues to defend unrestricted abortion. The Alan Guttmacher Institute, the organization's research arm, purports to be an independent and objective source of information, but always touts the party line. Planned Parenthood's abortion clinics nationwide are big moneymakers, demanding cash payment up front. The organization is heavily funded through the United Way; and by 1980, government funding of "family planning services" increased to close to $300 million a year.


Roe vs. Wade

The Supreme Court decision in 1973, officially called Roe vs. Wade, opened the door to abortion on demand, for any reason, at any stage of pregnancy. Of the 1.5 million or more legal abortions every year, only 1-3% are due to rape or incest, and few others truly threaten the life of the mother. The vast majority can be attributed to teen pregnancy, birth control failure, or personal convenience.

Since abortion is legal, and liberal federal judges are entrenched, abortion proponents use the force of law and a biased media to silence critics, crush protest, and portray pro-life forces as criminals. Politicians have distanced themselves from pro-lifers, convinced that being "pro-choice" is necessary to win women's votes, and the "extremist" label is too much of a liability.


The ACLU

The American Civil Liberties Union was founded by Roger Nash Baldwin during World War I to aid conscientious objectors. Baldwin resisted the draft, proclaimed himself a socialist and anarchist, and served a year in prison.

Early in 1920, Baldwin began to share a New York office with the Communist Party paper, The Masses. The charter members of the ACLU included three top Communist leaders, the editor of The Masses, and activist defense lawyer Clarence Darrow (best known for defending Evolution in the Scopes Trial). Throughout a long career as founder and head of the ACLU, Baldwin associated with Communists, and participated in numerous Communist front organizations which served as recruitment centers.


Feminism

There have been times when feminist activism has been necessary to gain women such common rights as property ownership, the vote, and child custody. However, modern feminism has taken a radical and ominous turn.

Today's typical feminist harbors considerable animosity toward men which, as in the case of Gloria Steinem, often harks back to a poor father image or other bad experience with men. Until driven underground by criticism, rhetoric involving images of male emasculation was a staple of feminist speech. Many feminist organizations have become bastions of lesbianism.

The Feminist Movement has led to a blurring of gender roles -- contributing to gender confusion among children and adolescents. More women added to the workforce has broadened the nation's tax base, but has maintained steady unemployment among male breadwinners. Anti-male ridicule and violence in entertainment (e.g., the ubiquitious shot to the groin) are rampant. Conversely, a veil of political correctness has settled down over the land, wherein all women are brave, noble, and above all smarter than men. Studies have shown that many children now perceive women as the sexual aggressor.

Besides having a distortedly negative image of men, reinforced by their collective rage, feminists now envision a female-centered world. They continue to work toward placing women in the highest offices, including the military. Because they are offended by the male image of God, they have written their own "gender-neutral" Bibles. More dangerous, many feminists have bought into a resurgence of witchcraft and ancient pagan goddess worship.


Conclusion

There are too many evil influences at work in American society than can be treated here. First Amendment rights have been inflated until special protection is ascribed to all manner of smut. The American family has been torn apart by no-fault divorce, an emphasis on self-fulfilment, the validating of alternative lifestyles, etc. Homosexuality is not only acceptable, but trendy. The continuation and expansion of New Deal programs has created huge, dependent, politically-beholden classes mired in a welfare-state mentality. There has grown up amongst us a twisted culture of death, promoting abortion, suicide, and euthanasia as lofty ideals. Freedom of religion has become freedom from religion. People believe in UFO's, angels, and psychics, but not in the one true God.

In the near future, unless revival comes, it appears that the "religion" of America will be a syncretism of New Age mysticism, paganism, and Human Potential -- all of which point to the original heresy that man can become a god. Society will become increasingly secular; more addicted to substances, gambling, and the pursuit of pleasure; less tolerant of moral absolutes, traditional values, and Christianity; and less willing to take responsibility for their sin and its consequences.

Cultural war is upon us, and the Enemy is winning. The Church might not be able to save or convince the nation as a whole, but can save and convince some. But in order for the Church's message to prosper, Christians must first realize that we are in a cultural war and under vicious attack. Then we must begin to fight back, not with guns and bombs, but with the weapons of Truth and the Spirit.

Note: An excellent video on this subject, entitled "A Nation Adrift," may be obtained from:


Sidebar:  Sounding the Trumpet

"My friends, this election is about much more than who gets what. It is about who we are. It is about what we believe, it is about what we stand for as Americans. There is a religious war going on in our country for the soul of America. It is a cultural war, as critical to the kind of nation we will one day be as was the Cold War itself."


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Losing One's Head Over Politics

by Dr. Craig Keener

When Herod Antipas had an adulterous liason with his brother's wife, he thought John the Baptist's denunciation of his sin merited imprisonment. John's preaching was not good for Antipas's political career. When Antipas decided to marry Herodias, he had to send his first wife back home to her father Aretas, king of the Nabatean Arabs. This was a bad move on Antipas's part, because King Aretas took it as an insult. Aretas invaded Antipas's land and defeated him so soundly in battle that Antipas would have lost his kingdom, had the Romans not intervened. Herod Antipas was humiliated, and unrest stirred among his own Nabatean subjects.

When John denounced Herod Antipas's affair, he was making a profound moral statement:  it is immoral to betray one's spouse by adultery or groundless divorce. But Antipas heard this moral statement as a political statement, because John's denunciations pointed to the costliness of Antipas's own mistake and threatened the stability of his kingdom. Instead of repenting, Antipas threw John into Machaerus, his prison fortress. Descending deeper into sexual sin by craving his own stepdaughter, Antipas ultimately trapped himself in a web of sin that forced him to behead John, God's true prophet.

The gospel cannot be bound by mere human political parties or ideologies. But the gospel has moral and social implications, which often translate into political implications. Like John, we may be forced to choose between faithfully proclaiming God's demands and bowing to political expediency. Justice and compassion are costly, and we, like John and so many of the prophets of old, must be prepared to pay the supreme price for them.

Dr. Craig Keener is Visiting Professor of New Testament at Eastern Baptist Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.


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A Whale of a Fish

A women's fishing club had a rare encounter with a Whale Shark off the Texas coast near Freeport in early August. As the apparently curious, docile female shark loitered around the fishing boat, the women were able to videotape and even pet it.

Rhincodon typus, the largest known extant fish, is a strong candidate to be the "great fish" that swallowed Jonah, or at least a close relative.

Estimated to grow up to 49 feet in length, the Whale Shark is a rarely-seen, non-aggressive shark that feeds on plankton rather than flesh. It swims along the surface, scooping water into its oversize mouth and sifting it through its gills.

Another harmless giant, the Basking Shark (Cetorhinus maximus), can measure 32 feet in length.


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ABOUT THE PUBLISHER

Rev. Paul A. Hughes, M.Div., is an ordained Assemblies of God minister, Bible teacher, writer, musician, and songwriter. He is available nationally for pulpit ministry, Bible teaching, singles seminars, Holy Spirit conferences, and music ministry.

© 1996 Paul A. Hughes
Last updated October 2001. For more information, comments, or suggestions, write westloop@yahoo.com or pneuma@aggienetwork.com