Back in the day you would grab a newspaper or watch the nightly news to know what in the world is going on. Then came the 24-hour news cycle and the proliferation of biased mainstream media reporting. Today we live with a beast in our midst. No, I don't mean the biblical beast of Revelation 13. The monster I want to describe in metaphorical terms, and the imagery I have used to convey this idea, is that which is seemingly at work in American society specifically, and the world at large.
First, everyone is looking for a scape goat. Whatever the disaster, there must be someone to blame for it and that person must be severely punished, humiliated and excoreated. The public square equivalent of a flogging, with the riotous mob cheering every crack of the whip and every drop of blood shed.
Second, is the villification and demonization of the "other side" for its political, social or religous views. The side you take must include justice for the oppressed and condemnation for those perceived as guilty of that for which they stand accused. Tolerance has itself become intolerable. Polarization of American society into fractured special interests continues unabated. As our culture breaks down to the point of civil unrest the divide looms large and grows exponentially.
I recall a prime example of this effort to divide opinions. About 30-years ago there was a young boy who made it to America as a Cuban refugee. I remember that his mother died in the escape from Cuba. Arriving on American soil he was placed with close relatives living here. The boy's father, still iving in Cuba, wanted him returned. The eventual outcome was the child's return to his father in Cuba. American opinion and media offered opposing, and oft-filled vitriol to the mix with one side claiming the child had been forcibly ripped away from his loving American family, and the other side claiming he had been reunited with his loving and grateful father. After the furor died down we never heard another word about the boy, or what happened to him.
For what it's worth, I have personal opinions about the evils communism has perpetrated against humanity. By definition, I am not and could never be a communist! But I am also a father. I know what it feels like to have children taken away by a mother whose motivation is control. From my point of view, both perspectives have individual merit. Yes, a loving family in America might have made an incredible impact on the boy. And yes, a young child reunited with the father who gave him life, might raise him well despite the hardships of the local political climate. Despite my predominantly conservative inclinations, I think sending the boy back to his father was the right thing to do after the death of his mother. And unlike my own experience, I do not know what the mother's motivation might have been to risk her son's life on such a hazardous journey. We know for sure that it took her life.
My question, the one that remains with me to this day is; Was this story about the boy, or part of something more insidious? In the absence of follow-up to check the child's condition, or his eventual outcome, this appears to be another case of human fodder sacrificed to feed the beast, which continues to grow exponentially larger with each passing day, or as I have come to call it, The Daily Outrage.
As with most things, time does nothing to make such situations better. Most Americans have abandoned traditional media news outlets in favor of social media, which in my humble opinion only makes things worse. The algorithmic nature of social media enforces one's personal beliefs, serving up ever more egregious examples of how those from the opposite point of view are being pummeled, annihilated and publicly tried, convicted and executed in the court of public opinion. Or, how you are being victimized by the other side as perceived enemies are oppressively and tyrannically imposing their will on you and society at large.
I submit that regardless of your personal persuasions that our society is not breaking down because the other side is winning. It is breaking because the beast is winning. It is winning daily battles with every highly publicized viral news story and social media post. It is a malevolent man-eating black hole swallowing our present lives, and our children's future. It is the cacophony of voices straining to be heard over the roaring growls of a hungry, ill-willed and intemperate monster. The hour is late. The day is long spent. Our time could be short. And while we are sounding the alarm, ramping up our defense and driving home the point that our side is right, we are losing the battle for souls. Literal millions could be lost if we refuse to cease our malignant rhetoric instead of focusing our efforts on that which Christ has called upon us to do; Love thy neighbor as thyself.
I Corinthians 13:4 - 8 (Not a direct quotation, but how I read it.)
4Charity, which is love, suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; it is not conceited,
5Love does not act in its own interests alone, love is not easily provoked, love does not contemplate or consider doing evil;
6Love does not take pleasure in doing evil, but finds great satisfaction in discovering and knowing truth;
7Love overcomes life's hardships, love looks forward to a hopeful future and love endures the unendurable.
8Love never fails. Everything else fails except pure and undefiled love; the love for our LORD God and Jesus Christ, His love for us and our love for one another.