That is not to say that every age does not have problems of its own. At least we don't have to deal with the Black Death or marauding Vikings. Our generation, however, has a few problems of our own that are particularly troubling. Part of it is technology. Part of it is culture. All of it is bad.
We have been given an opportunity that no people in history have ever been given. In the space of a decade, the amount of data and information that we have access to has exponentially increased. In a matter of seconds, you can find just about anything you need to know. Want to know who the foreign minister of Austria was in 1815? That's easy, its Metternich. Need to know the Mandarin word for pig? Done, its zhu. It's that easy.
Technology is not all bad. Nothing is inherently evil. The advancement of our age allows for an unprecedented level of global connectedness and information. The problem is that we abuse this power just as we abused the tree of knowledge of good and evil in Eden.
What do we do with this wealth of information that is literally at our fingertips? We play games. In the space of a few days, a new application can spread across the country and even the world. Games and apps, whistles and bells, all of the bright colors and sounds, they're all so distracting. It can even become addicting. How many times have you been at a restaurant and seen someone playing a game on their phone instead of talking to the person sitting in front of them? How many hours are wasted tapping a screen that could have been spent forging better relationships, praying, or following your vocation?
Bingewatching is even worse. Netflix has become synonymous with sloth. We consume an incredible amount of TV, streamed or otherwise. And how much of it is good for us? There is only a handful of shows that are not utterly morally corrupt. All too often, television glamourizes sex and violence. It normalizes homosexual attractions and deviant behavior. Rather recently, the show, Scandal, had an episode that featured the main character getting an abortion for the sake of convenience - on the screen. It was little less than a long advertisement for Planned Parenthood. Pay attention to what you watch! The eyes are the windows to the soul. Windows work both ways.
And these are the tame things that the world distracts us with! The number of people, adults and children, men and women, who are addicted to Internet pornography is insane. You can find images of violence, terrorism, abuse, and anything you could possibly think of all too easily. Drugs run through our streets, ruining families and lives. Underage, premarital sex has become a veritable fact of life. Abortion is called a "right." Sexual perversity in the form of homosexual "marriage" has been legalized. Every single day, people lie and steal and hurt each other. When will it end?
It is hard not to fall into despair seeing the hardness of our times. We hope for distraction, a way out of the pain and the hurt of the world that we find ourselves in. And that is the doorway for the very lies of the world we try to run from. The world offers us distractions from itself that only leads us deeper and deeper into sin. Deeper and deeper into darkness. There is so much noise in this world that it is nearly impossible to think straight.
As a Christian, one of the hardest things to do is live within the world. We walk an edge, the line between earth and heaven. Our stewardship of this earth is not something to be forgotten. God has given Himself to us through the True Presence in the Eucharist, but He also appears to us in the form of our neighbors. "Amen: I say to you, as long as you did it not to one of these least, neither did you do it to me." Matthew 25:45.
At the same time, we cannot forget that we were made for heaven. "Our hearts are restless until they rest in you." St. Augustine said. This is our challenge: to be children of God while on His earth.
This is a challenge that Jesus Himself lived and breathed. For "we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin." Hebrews 4:15.
Jesus knew exactly how hard life is. He ate and dined with the lowly of the world - prostitutes and tax collectors - instead of the celebrities of His age - the Pharisees and Sadducees. His friend Lazarus died when he was away. He was betrayed and abandoned by His closest friends at the time He needed them the most. When He died on the Cross, the thousands that heard Him preach were gone or were now mocking Him. He felt the cruel sting of the lash. He felt the weight of the tree as it bore down upon His shoulders. The earthly ministry of Christ was no vacation. It was life in all of its vivid colors.
How do we live in the world? There's an easy answer. Live as Jesus Christ lived. Actually following the way of Christ, now that's the hard part.
We have been blessed with more information than all ages past. Some of that information is actually knowledge. Use it! No one has an excuse for not being able to find the Teachings of Christ and His Saints. While technology can be a gateway to sin, it can also be a tool for holiness. There are apps where you can find the Holy Bible, the Roman Missal, and the spiritual writings of holy men and women who lived this life and walked this road before us.
In this life, we must have one foot in Earth and the other in Heaven. Mental prayer is a great way to connect to God while remaining an active part of the world. Simple prayers, the Our Father and the Hail Mary, can counteract the distractions of the world by turning our eyes to God. "Say the Holy Rosary. Blessed be that monotony of Hail Mary's that purifies the monotony of sins!" Speaking of the saints, St. Josemaria Escriva is an excellent model of faith for this day and age. His "Way" is both accessible and profound. It is a truly life changing work.
With every breath you take, whisper "Jesus my Savior." How hard will it be for you to fall into sin when you have Christ's name on your lips every second of the day?
Yes, life can be hard. But it can also be great. Remember that Jesus has already won the war and do not despair. Death has already been conquered. We must now find the strength by God to live out our lives as Jesus would. Through us, Jesus can walk the earth once more. That is the will of God. That is how to live in the world.
Deus Vult!
Beautifully said.
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