Respect, dignity and love are foundation stones of our Catholic faith. They go hand-in-hand with each other, meaning practiced together they strengthen our relationship with God by following His will for us. And there is no one on this earth that we want to please more than our Creator, who gave us this miraculous gift of life.
Pondering that gift, we may realize that He broke the mold after creating each one of us so special because He desires to spend all eternity with each of His cherished Creation. But He gave us free will to make our own choice to want to be with Him. We must rise up out of the “pit of temptation and sin,” which always stands in our path, to choose Him and not the world. So if this is what we know in our hearts that we have always wanted, then how have we turned away from God in such great numbers?
If we honestly look back over the last 50-60 years, we will find the answers to what has changed in our society. The common thread through those decades has been the gradual loss of respect for the dignity of other people. Dignity is our inherent value and worth as human beings, which is our natural right to receive people’s respect as God’s creations. And therein lies one of the problems – countless numbers of people have turned their back on God, and many of them no longer see the good in others. We don’t value human life like we once did!
This change didn’t happen overnight in this country, but began with the decay of morality in our nation. We can point to the “hippie generation” back in the 1960s for triggering this moral decline. It caused mostly young people to decide that their pleasure was more important than maintaining any moral character among themselves, which caused them to lose respect for one another’s bodies and regard them as “pieces of meat” with little value. So what are the causes for our moral decline since then? There are many . . .
Here is a list of some of the causes:
· Families stopped praying together and going to church.
· Children reared without supervision, and with parents having no clue about their friends, activities and what they are learning in school.
· Pornography so rampant in society today, desensitizes us to the value of human life; so prevalent among our children now.
· Killing of God’s children by abortion without any conscience for ending human life.
· Medically-assisted suicide and euthanasia provided by doctors.
· Loss of respect for women in general, easy targets for abuse and human trafficking.
· Trained to enjoy death and violence through video games, music and movies.
· TV shows with “anything goes” programming.
· Loss of respect for opinions other than their own, prevalent in politics, the media, Hollywood, universities, and radical groups.
· Broken families without a parent.
· Divorce mentality: If it doesn’t work, I’ll get a divorce and marry someone else.
· Premeditated killings, without remorse, in cities and schools.
· Road rage actions including shootings.
· Self-love as depicted in the unholy trinity (me, myself and I).
· Violence on passenger planes.
· Atlantic magazine article: Young people becoming depressed and suicidal because of uses of social media, personal devices and on-screen time.
· LGBT agenda and Woke ideology infiltrating our schools to indoctrinate our children.
· Cell phones becoming people’s god.
We would be kidding ourselves if we didn’t view this lack of respect for others as a cultural issue demanding our immediate attention to correct before it becomes progressively worse, but we can’t make changes alone. We need Heavenly help to overcome the seduction of the world by evil causing our loss of respect for the dignity of others.
This orchestrated, manipulation plan of Satan began decades ago, and we hear the devil’s own words that he spoke to his demons that Sr. Josepha Menendez heard, which are listed in her book “The Way of Divine Love”:
“Insinuate yourselves by inducing carelessness in them … but keep in the background, so that you are not found out … by degrees they will become callous, and you will be able to incline them to evil. Tempt these others to ambition, to self-interest, to acquiring wealth without working, whether it be lawful or not. Excite some to sensuality and love of pleasure. Let vice blind them … As to the remainder … get in through the heart … you know the inclinations of their hearts … make them love … love passionately … work thoroughly … take no rest … have no pity; the world must go to damnation … and these souls must not be allowed to escape me … Let them cram themselves with food! It will make it all the easier for us … Let them get on with their banqueting. Love of pleasure is the door through which you will reach them. …”
Now we know the reason people in this nation have been on a downward spiral in turning their backs on God, indulging themselves, and losing respect for one another. But there is still hope for us because we are His creations, and He has never given up on us. He knows every time we have turned from Him to things that deceive us and leave us empty. He is ready to renew His covenant with us, to forgive us and take us back to Himself every time we choose to return to Him. So don’t be afraid to take that step to reconcile with our merciful God, and return to His loving embrace and the true love, joy and peace that only He can give us.
What advice can we give for taking that step?
· PRAY (from the heart where our love for God emerges); encourage our family to pray.
· Seek God’s forgiveness for any past actions that offended Him.[Confession for Catholics]
· We can’t find God on our own; we have to go to church.
· Find a spiritual director to help direct our life if needed.
· Seek a prayer partner that shares our spiritual goals.
· Show love and patience to everyone we encounter (family, friend and stranger).
· Realize God is in control of our life; trust that His plan for us is the best one.