Lenten Reflection 13, Seven Words You Can Never Say

“Sometimes he would send them chieftains of their own, to rescue them from the invader’s power, but even to these they would not listen; still they would play the wanton, and worship alien gods; so quick were they to forsake their father’s ways, and disobey the Lord’s known will. First a chieftain would arise, and the Lord, in his days, would relent; would listen to the plaint of a people in distress, and save them from the threat of destruction; then, once he was dead, the sons would prove worse than their fathers before them; would pay court to alien gods, and enslave themselves to alien worship; still they would not leave their false imaginings, the rebellious path they trod. So that the Lord complained in high displeasure, This people of mine have annulled the covenant I made with their fathers, and refuse me obedience; and I, in return, will spare the nations which Josue left unconquered at his death, to make proof of Israel still; will they remember and follow the divine commands like their fathers, or not?” (Judges 2:16-22)

In the 1970s, comedian George Carlin achieved great fame with a monologue he called “The Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television.” They were seven obscene words audiences were shocked to hear out loud. Today these words shock nobody. We have been so accustomed to hearing and seeing filth that we no longer recognize it as such.

But we still have words you can never say. Here are seven:

1. Responsibility
2. Judgment
3. Sacrifice
4. Sin
5. Hell
6. Faith
7. God

Popular culture does not want to take responsibility. It does not want to be judged (to be held accountable). It does not see value in sacrifice, that is, in giving up something pleasurable or enduring something painful for a good cause. It does not acknowledge that something it does or thinks can be labeled evil, and certainly does not believe it can be punished for eternity. It believes faith is a caveman’s superstition (excuse me, I should say cave-person), and it not only denies the existence of God but suppresses any discussion of the possibility of God.

It is not a very inspiring culture, and what has it achieved?

In Carlin’s day, it was cool to be counter-cultural. Today, the counter-culture is the culture, and the counter-cultural are cancelled.

This brief historical survey sounds like bad news, but not necessarily. It demonstrates that culture can change, change quickly, and change radically. It’s human nature to feel that the conditions of today will be the conditions forever. But it’s rather the case that today’s conditions will change. Conditions may worsen, or they may improve. What happens and when, that, as in the days of the Judges and always, depends on God’s will and our receptivity to His will.

Reflection

Are my decisions influenced by my faith or by my culture?