Hosken-News Blog: May 2019

Monday, May 27, 2019

The Most Social of All Actions

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!

For many years, those like the Target stores promoting sexual promiscuity would say that it's nobody else's business what two consenting adults do in private, it's much more important what they do in terms of social action. But this is merely a smokescreen, a deception: while sexual activity is a very intimate, private matter, it is also The Most Social of All Actions. In fact, unless it is done right, human society as we know it would cease to exist!

As our news article RUSSIAN PATRIARCH KIRILL CALLS FOR ENDING ABORTIONS TO BOOST POPULATION tells us, Russia along with most other European countries has been experiencing a serious decline in birthrates and population. Abortion and homosexual behavior are two leading factors in this problem. If two people just live together without marrriage, either man and woman tend to have few or no children, or two of the same sex never have any children. As my grandchildren would say, "Duh, Grandpa!"

But the younger generation is being brainwashed - er, propagandized - er, "educated" - to think that what two people do in private is nobody else's business. Hogwash! Utter nonsense! Why are Russia, Hungary, Germany, France, England, etc. worried about declining population and migrants? When children are taught that living together and the various LGBTQ lifestyles are just fine, indeed respectable and cool, some of these children will adopt those lifestyles that in just a few more years translate into declining birthrates and population. And yet, these people think that somehow society will simply continue on as it always has, with no changes.

How should Christians respond when this topic comes up? We should be respectful of others and not ridicule their lifestyles: these days we can get in deep trouble for that! But the Apostle Peter wrote that we should "always be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason concerning the hope that is in you, with humility and fear: having a good conscience; that, while you are spoken against as evildoers, they may be disappointed who revile your good manner of life in Christ" (1 Peter 3:15-16). They will sometimes accuse us of being intolerant, bigoted or hateful even though we express our position calmly, kindly and rationally, so be prepared for that.

Here's what happened when the Apostle Paul was arrested and brought before the Roman governor - "But after some days, Felix came with Drusilla, his wife, who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ Jesus. As he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was terrified, and answered, 'Go your way for this time, and when it is convenient for me, I will summon you'" (Acts 24:24-25). Felix, a Roman, had married a Jewish woman without converting to Judaism, and they both knew this violated her religion. Telling unbelievers the Gospel includes telling them about righteous living and self-control, which might well get them upset with you!

We also must keep in mind that the Christian lifestyle of sexual continence outside of marriage and sexual faithfulness within marriage is not the rule nowadays for many non-Christian people. We do business and have social contact with these folks on a regular, day-to-day basis, and should not reject or condemn them. As the Apostle Paul stated - "I wrote to you in my letter to have no fellowship with sexual sinners; yet not at all meaning with the sexual sinners of this world, or with the covetous and extortioners, or with idolaters; for then you would have to leave the world. But as it is, I wrote to you not to have fellowship with anyone who is called a brother who is a sexual sinner, or covetous, or an idolater, or a slanderer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner. Don't even eat with such a person" (1 Corinthians 5:9-11).

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We don't condemn secular people who are greedy or worship their cars and other possessions or who drink to excess, so we shouldn't condemn secular sexual sinners. We need to distinguish between what is acceptable in secular society in contrast with what is acceptable in the Christian community: Paul goes on to write - "For what have I to do with also judging those who are outside? Don't you judge those who are within? But those who are outside, God judges. Put away the wicked man from among yourselves" (verses 12-13). We must not judge or condemn those outside the Church, leave that to God. But we should maintain purity within the Church.

In the very next chapter, St. Paul continues on this topic - "Don't you know that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don't be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor male prostitutes, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor extortioners, will inherit the Kingdom of God. Such were some of you, but you were washed. But you were sanctified. But you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and in the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

The real issue comes down to repenting and being sanctified, changing what or Whom we worship: when Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well and asked for a drink of water, He knew that she had been married five times and the man she was currently living with wasn't her husband, but He didn't condemn her for that. Instead, He steered the conversation toward God:

"You said well, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband. This you have said truly. The woman said to Him, 'Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.' Jesus said to her, 'Woman, believe Me, the hour comes, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, will you worship the Father. You worship that which you don't know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to be his worshippers. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:17-24).

And when the Scribes and the Pharisees brought to Jesus a woman caught in adultery, He didn't condemn her; instead, He forgave her and enabled her to repent, which means to turn about-face and change the way she was living: "Jesus, standing up, saw her and said, 'Woman, where are your accusers? Did no one condemn you?' She said, 'No one, Lord.' Jesus said, 'Neither do I condemn you. Go your way. From now on, sin no more'" (John 8:10-11).

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! Christ is among us! He is and ever shall be!

(Linked to www.Hosken-News.info of 27 May 2019.)

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Saturday, May 11, 2019

The Abolition of Man

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!

"We have been trying, like Lear, to have it both ways: to lay down our human prerogative and yet at the same time to retain it." Thus wrote C.S. Lewis in his book The Abolition of Man, describing how education was intended to form human beings from barbarians into civilized creatures. True human life is civilized life, and civilization is only possible when mankind submits to a historically-recognized moral order.

In this book, Lewis does not argue for the existence of God: he leaves that for his other books such as Mere Christianity. This book simply tells that all advanced cultures throughout human history have subscribed to moral codes that are remarkably similar, with rules such as "Love your neighbor as yourself" and "Do to others as you would want them to do to you." Without such rules, a society withers away and self-destructs.

This book was written in 1943, the year I was born. As a teenager, I began reading some of the books by Lewis and they have shaped my spirit for the better. The Russian word for "education" is "obrazovanie" from the word "obraz" that means "icon" or "image" - so education's goal is to restore the image of God that man was originally created for. Even though that image has been distorted by sin (we as Orthodox Christians do not hold to Augustine's doctrine of total depravity), man is capable of some good. Every culture that lasts has similar positive value systems.

But during my lifetime, we have seen a radical shift in values. What was considered immoral and unmentionable has now become trendy and propagated by the media. Adultery was hushed up, now it is nearly celebrated. Homosexual acts were illegal and offenders were sent to prison, now it is politically incorrect to say anything negative about it. The prophet Isaiah wrote - "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" (Is. 5:20).

Now it is considered child abuse to tell a child "No! Don't do that!" Today people suffer from the delusion that a child should be allowed to do whatever he or she wants to do, to become whatever "gender" they-it-ze identify zemselves to be. So if in fact I'm fat, I simply identify myself as slender: I'm trans-slender! Or I identify myself as an ostrich, so watch out: I spit, I can kick you really hard, and if I don't like how you react, I'll just stick my head in the sand and you will cease to exist.

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche outlined "the transvaluation of all values" in his book The Antichrist that railed against what he considered to be the Christian doctrines of total depravity, that man is constantly struggling against sin... and unable to shake free from the curse. Christianity's elevating chastity, for example in Mary's virginal conception, which to Nietsche contradicted the "natural values" of sex and procreation. What began as a philosopher's brainstorm has gradually filtered down to the common man. By now, his ideas have turned the Christian value system upside-down and inside-out.

In a given culture, value system X is thought to be the best value system to have, so people with value system Y are ridiculed and followers of Z values are put in prison. But imagine a post-transvaluation of values culture where people who follow Y are thrown in prison, those who follow X are mocked, and nearly everyone follows Z. This is where we are today: we don't have to imagine it, we're already there.

The Apostle Paul wrote to his disciple Timothy - "If anyone does not provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever" (1 Tim. 5:8). Why would Paul need to write that? It is because, with the Gospel message of caring for the sick and needy, some people would identify themselves as poor or disabled so they could receive charity from the church. But he wrote here that the primary responsibility for care is within each extended family. Those who hide their wealth so that the church or the state will support them are worse than a pagan, wrote Paul: even pagans have better morals than some who pretend to be Christians!

St. Paul, after listing who should qualify as a needy widow in verses 9-15, went on to write in v. 16 - "If any man or woman who believes has widows, let them relieve them, and don't let the church be burdened; that it might relieve those who are widows indeed." The church or the state has limited resources, society is not able to provide for everyone. There must always be more "makers" than "takers" or else the church and the state will exhaust its resources and go bankrupt.

And yet, lawyers and financial advisers will counsel people with a sick, disabled or elderly relative to hide that person's resources in a trust fund or under the name of someone else so that person will qualify for social benefits. I personally know of cases where a disabled person had a relative keep his money in a separate bank account under her name so his own bank account wouldn't have more money in it than what would qualify him for welfare. But they, in turn, would deceive him: on his birthday and at Christmas they "gave" him money gifts - from that bank account!

Here is another case: an elderly woman put her home in her children's names so she could qualify for Medicare. But after she died, the government found out about it and the family had to pay back. And here's a third case: elderly parents in Russia signed their apartment over to their son, but when the father died, the son beat up his disabled mother so badly she had to go to a nursing home, then he took over the apartment. But his former wife worked for the FSB (the former KGB) and when she learned what happened, some thugs gave him such a beating that he lost several teeth and was laid up himself.

The only cultures that last are those which observe traditional value systems; those that fail to do so... fail. Keep in mind St. Paul's above warning: if you do any such deceitful thing, you've denied the faith and you're worse than a pagan. Remember what happened to Ananias and Sapphira when they tried to deceive the Apostles (Acts 5)! Finally, St. Paul wrote - "Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil. Cling to that which is good" (Romans 12:9). Evil is still evil, and good remains good: there's no real transvaluation of values, those who think there is are only deceiving themselves.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! Christ is among us! He is and ever shall be!

(Linked to www.Hosken-News.info of 11 May 2019.)