1995. Culture of Life vs. Culture of Death “God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the...
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Transcript of 1995. Culture of Life vs. Culture of Death “God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the...
Culture of Life vs. Culture of Death
“God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living… It was the wicked who with hands and words invited death.” Wisdom 1:13, 18
“I am the resurrection and the life.” John 11:25
Christian View of Man
Christ Reveals Man
to Himself• Teacher• Reconciler• Obedient Son• Just
judge/Peacemaker• Self-Giver
Modern View of Man
• Pleasure Seeker• Consumer• Individual• Relativist (no moral absolutes)• Skeptic (no knowledge is possible)
Christian Community: Love & Sacrifice
“God is love, andwhoever remains in love remains in God, and God in him.”
I John 4:16
Inalienable Rights
“We holdtheseTruths tobe self-evident…
…Life,Liberty,and thepursuit ofHappiness.”
ValuesModern View
• “Freedom;” Doing what I want, when I want
• Individualism
• Materialism
• Skepticism
• Moral Relativism
Christian View
• “Freedom;” Being free from sin and doing what is good
• Community
• Generosity
• Truth
• Moral Absolutes
The Heart of Liberty?
“At the heart of libertyis the right to define one’s own
concept of existence, ofmeaning, of the universe,
and the mysteryof human life.”
Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)
A Connection
Griswold vs. the State of Connecticut (1965):legalizes sale of contraceptives
Roe vs. Wade (1973): legalizes abortion
Compassion in Dying vs. the State of Washington (1996): legalizes assisted suicide
Lawrence v. Texas (2003): legalized sodomy
Further Differences
Modern Values• Man is sovereign
over all• Suffering is
useless• There is no life
after death
Christian Truth• God is sovereign
over all• Suffering has redemptive value
• Man has an eternal destiny with God
The Modern Tragedy: Godlessness
“In seeking the deepest roots of the struggle between the ‘culture of life’ and the ‘culture of death,’ we cannot restrict ourselves to the perverse notion of freedom….We have to go to the heart of the tragedy being experienced by modern man: the ‘eclipse of the sense of God and of man.’”
Evangelium Vitae 21