Blog #3: Morality & Music

There has been a stripping away of the moral foundation that we have all been governed by. This is problematic in and of itself, but it also hasn't been replaced by anything. Society is in the middle of a political and social crisis because it's foundation has been removed.

I am old enough to remember walking into public school as a starry eyed first grader, singing the national anthem, reciting the Lord's prayer and then settling in for Bible story time. It seems a far cry from the public schools of today but it really wasn't that long ago. Separation of church and state has been a much debated topic since I was born and is still going on today. Regardless of the nuisances of it all, I could always understand the debate and was able to sympathize with those who were for it.

In my lifetime the country has become much more diverse and although I believe outsiders should acclimate themselves as best they can, I do understand that freedom means freedom for all. If that means learning from a strictly secular curriculum, so be it. After all, there are plenty of options for Christian education in private schools and church programs. All of this seemed reasonable to me, besides, I'm the son of a pastor, my Christian education was much further along than the simplified bible stories of a grade one class room.

As time went on, Christianity was removed from more and more of the mainstream landscape and while many Christians felt increasingly uneasy about it all, we still had the freedom to learn and speak about our faith wherever and whenever we chose. Had that been the only issue created by the removal of church from state, I would imagine most Christians would be just fine with it, but there was a less visible beast born from the ashes that has only shown it's face in full within the last decade or so.

Immorality has always been present in our society and while deeply immoral things are always easy to spot, the lines between moral and immoral have been blurred significantly in recent years. As someone who has been involved in the music industry for decades, I can tell you, there is no shortage of problems in this world. Not just because the music industry is full of deviance and degradation, but also because we package and sell that degradation to the masses. That's not to say that everyone in the industry is a heathen but, in many ways the entertainment industries are leading the charge in immorality.

Having said that, the question isn't who is the worst offender because there is good and bad in all facets of life and honestly we are all imperfect. In my estimation, the real question would be, how did immorality become so prevalent in recent times?

When North America was first settled, the vast majority of us were Christians. This meant that regardless of our differences, all choices were made from a biblical sense of right and wrong. This moral foundation gave everyone a bottom line on any question of morality and that benefitted everyone. It was the foundation of what our society was built on. Not necessarily the Christian faith but the values inherent in the bible. Regardless of your personal beliefs, you could always rely on a set of ground rules that all were governed by.

With the rise in secularism in recent generations there has been a stripping away of the moral foundation that we have all been governed by. This is problematic in and of itself but it also hasn't been replaced by anything. Society is in the middle of a political and social crisis because it's foundation has been removed.

There are generations growing up now who have no understanding of the value of biblical morality because they're misunderstanding the difference between "forced religion" and the basic morality born from biblical scripture. As a result, society is taking it upon themselves to re write the basics of morality that have served to keep us free and functional. The problem with this, of course, is that no one can agree on what these morals should be and everyone is now condemning everyone else for not following the rules they never agreed to. Virtue signaling and political and social grand standing has replaced humility and empathy. Protests and riots have replaced debate and compromise. Not because the world is worse than ever but because without a moral foundation, there is no right and wrong.

Social media has provided everyone a voice that can be heard the world over. On the surface this seems to be a great thing. The issue isn't that you have a voice, it's that everyone has a voice! The angry, the manipulative, the nihilistic, and the evil all have ways of reaching all of us. This allows ill intentioned individuals to use our emotions like strings on a puppet.

The end result of all of this is that we have lost truth. Truth has been replaced by popular opinion. Even science can't persuade the masses who have been brain washed by the emotional triggers of social media and an immoral society. Universities have taken it so far, that they are teaching the immoral, feeling based, pseudo intellectual, anti truths that have poisoned our way of life already.

So, what is the solution for such a layered global issue? It may sound simplistic, even cheesy but, I believe it's empathy, understanding, civil discourse, and most of all love. We cannot function without a moral base to rely on when questions arise.

I am by no means a beckon of moral fortitude but I would bet that with everything life has thrown at me, I would be a complete disaster without the moral foundation that my parents and teachers instilled in me when I was young. The same moral foundation that all of us used to cling to when big questions arose! I honestly believe we are stronger as a society than the last few years have shown.

Bite down on this bone unbreakable

Taste frustration

Today feels like another day to fall to "innovation"

When night turns to day without warning

Turn down your radio waves

Where has truth been?

-Paper Walls Don't Fall by Wishing Well, 2001