By Hanne Nabintu Herland, WND, 3/24
As history is twisted to fit the atheist Marxist narrative, we are made to believe that modern Western values are of secular or atheist origin. This is not correct. Leading scientists and philosophers during the 1600s’ Enlightenment period and earlier were devout Christians. They developed ideals such as equality regardless of race, creed and gender; the value of human life, basic human rights and the need for rationality when examining nature. At that time, science and belief in God went hand in hand.
The 1776 American Revolution and the 1789 French Revolution only revived ideals of the rights of men that previously had been developed by Christians during the Middle Ages, when the monasteries were the high seats of knowledge. American historian Kenneth Scott Latourette explains in “A History of the Expansion of Christianity,”“After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the Church, impelled by its Christian purpose, had become the schoolmaster of Western Europe and the tutor of the barbarians of the North. Under its auspices most of the universities of the Middle Ages had arisen.”
Famous French philosophers Bernard-Henri Levy and Michel Houellebecq state thatWestern civilization would never have the high view of human life and rights if it were not for the Judeo-Christian idea of a blessed creation made in the likeness of God and, therefore, sanctified.
When Karl Marx, the father of atheist communism and socialism, called for the abolition of eternal truths such as justice, religion and its morality, he thereby legalized hatred for the traditional Christian moral standards. I point this out in my latest book, “The Billionaire World: How Marxism Serves the Elite.” From this extremist pool of thought has come brutal attacks on Western stability, traditional jurisprudence and virtues, and the right to life, freedom and property. It is as if Marx were hired by our worst enemy with the goal of destroying Western civilization.
Marxism fundamentally denies the existence of the metaphysical dimension. The ideawas that since the existence of God cannot be verified by examining the materialistic sphere – that which is observable by the naked eye – He does not exist. Only that which is empirically observable is real. The denial of the metaphysical dimension led to the denial of Bible-based morality, which is God’s advice to humankind for the best possible life: “Do not steal, do not lie, do not desire that which is not rightfully yours, love one another” and so forth.
The leading European philosopher and atheist, Jürgen Habermas, is famous for radically changing his stance on the need for religion in society. He previously advocated strongly for the relegation of religion to the private sphere, yet now writes in “The Dialectics of Secularization: On Reason and Religion” that secular political theory has erroneously removed Christian ethics from society. In history, it has been religious morality and its belief in the universal law of nature enshrined in each man “which willeth the peace and preservation of all mankind,” to quote John Locke, the intuitive knowledge about right and wrong, and the demand of men to do what is right that has been the most successful normative thought system able to motivate individuals to do good, show compassion and act more in accordance with the principles of solidarity with others.
These are the values upon which a democratic system depends, as it has the ability to make its citizens care about one another, as there is a higher degree of trustworthiness among state governors, who are held personally accountable to do what is in the best interests of the people.
Author Dr. Don Boys points out in a Daily Caller article: “Christianity changed the rules of behavior and produced a middle class not known to mankind. It had always been the rich and poor, the elite and the serfs. But with Christ, who was a carpenter, and Paul, who was a tent maker, physical labor was now respectable and no longer limited to slaves and serfs. There was honor in all work, and workers were to be treated fairly. All ethnic groups would be respected since all people were created by God. Laziness and idleness were seen as sinful. ‘If a man will not work, he shall not eat’ was an admonition by the Apostle Paul. Precisely this attitude helped produce a vibrant middle class. It taught people to question the established church and legal systems.”
The atheist focus on materialistic progress alone has created a moral vacuum in the West. We now suffer greatly from a serious lack of emphasis on moral energy. With the removal of traditional morality, empathy and solidarity slowly evaporate.
Christian values defined the Western success story
This is terrific! It should be required reading in every college and university, many of which originally began with a Christian orientation anyway. There could perhaps be simplified versions made available to the lower grades.
It aptly explains the moral degradation leading to the disintegration that began with the gradual removal of Bibles from schoolrooms, courts of law, and congressional proceedings.
Materialism has no moral laws and therefore cannot be lawful because there can be no immoral laws. Marxism, which had the same basis, played no small part in the demise of Western civilization.