Seven Radical Changes in Our Generation

“I fear that we shall accept as wisdom what is only knowledge, and accept as progress things that are nothing more than change.” Never has this been more true than today.

The world of today is radically different than it was only 50 years ago. While the world is always changing, it has changed far more in the past 50 years than it normally changes. Indeed – the last time that the world changed this much was probably during the time of the reformation. (As I’ve noted before, the Christian church seems to deal with massive changes every 500 years).

 It’s easy to miss the changes – for the younger generation, like myself, we never experienced the ‘traditional’ world, and so we assume that this level of change is natural. Like the proverbial frog in the saucepan, it’s important to measure the temperature of the water rather than assuming that all is normal.

So, for the sake of perspective, let’s review a few of the major changes that occurred within the lifespan of Americans today.

#1 – The West Embraces Atheism

In 1800, the world population of atheists and agnostics was somewhere around 310,000. Of course, all through human history, people have tried to convinced themselves that there is no God; but by 2013, there were 820 million people in that category. Of course, this didn’t all change in our generation – Russia and China made overt war on religion, prior to the 1950s. What has happened in our generation is that the west no longer clings to belief in God; the second-largest religious group happens to be ‘none’ in practically every western nation. Within a generation, the west bred atheism.

#2 – The Sexual Revolution Changes Everything

Biblical directions about relationships and marriage have never been embraced by all of society, but since the 1960s, those directions went from being viewed as ‘moral’ to ‘optional’ to ‘radical.’ Even if the traditional family was not as common in the past as we imagine, it was still considered the norm and the ideal. No longer is this true. Within a generation, society abandoned the Biblical sexual ethic.

#3 – Society Redefines Roles

The first and second world wars jump-started the process of role redefinition, as women left the home to work in factories and businesses. Yet this wasn’t considered ‘normal’ – it was just a wartime necessity for many families. By 1950, 34% of women were working outside the home. Now, that number is about 60%. What is concerning to me isn’t that some women are working outside the home. What is concerning is that we have abandoned the idea of women as home-makers or ‘keepers of the home.’ Within a generation, the ladies went to work.

#4 – The Ladies Start Shooting

As far as I am aware (and correct me if I am wrong), there has never been a western society that embraced women as part of their combat force. While women have occasionally picked up the musket in times of extraordinary danger, they’ve never been considered the front lines of our country’s defenses. Now, the US military – following the lead of several other, mostly European, countries – allows women in combat roles. Within a generation, women have entered the battlefield.

#5 – The Union Ends

The union of marriage, that is. In the 1870s, the rate of divorce was around 3%; even in the 1930s, it was still under 20%, among a population that expected to marry. Now, it hovers around the 50% rate, even though far fewer people participate in marriage. Today, marriage is considered a take-it-or-leave-it proposition; never before has it been so rare, or so often broken. Within a generation, we lost our commitment to marriage.

#6 – What is Marriage, anyway?

Speaking of marriage, we no longer agree on the definition. 53% of people are convinced that it can include homosexual relationships. Yet as late as the year 2000, 61% of Californians voted in favor of marriage between a man and a woman. In fact, I’m not aware of any time in the history of the western world where homosexual relationships were viewed as marriages, so what’s going on today is really new. (Homosexuality, by the way, hasn’t been in style in the west since the time of Ancient Greece). Within a remarkably short time – within less than a generation – we’ve redefined an institution as old as the world.

#7 – Ending the Beginning

Like nearly every other practice in this list, abortion has been around for centuries, but only in our generation have we embraced it as a society. Since Roe v. Wade in 1973, America has seen 60 million abortions (this pales in comparison to the worldwide total of 1.4 billion since 1980). While it’s easy to point to the Supreme Court as the cause, the problem is really a society that views abortion as acceptable. It’s been about 1500 years since society last embraced abortion (in the Roman Empire). Within a generation, we’ve decided that it’s OK to murder the unborn.

Because we live with these seven changes, it’s easy to assume that they are normal. They aren’t. That’s why I’ve tried to give some historical context with each one. In some cases, we are accepting things that haven’t been accepted since Greek or Roman times – or even earlier.

So how do we respond?

Recognize the Tide

From a spiritual perspective, these societal trends are not isolated changes. They are linked together by a far more insidious reason than secularism. Satan is described in the Bible as ‘the prince of the power of the air’ and ‘the god of this world.’ Satan is held in check by God, but he is always seeking more power; at times, Satan is permitted to wreck more havoc in the world. What we see in these changes is a spiritual reality – God is permitting Satan to deceive, to rule this world as his domain, though not as an unrestricted sovereign. If we chalk all these changes up to demographic oddities, we will miss the big picture.

Use the Secret Weapon

It is impossible to stem the tide from a physical perspective. No organization, group, gifted individual, or even president can stop this headlong societal plunge. Rather than focusing on a short-term political victory, Christians have the ultimate weapon: access to the throne-room of the universe. Yet even in our prayer, don’t focus on combating trends. Let’s pray the way Jesus prayed: asking for laborers to go into the harvest, and for a door to be opened for the Gospel.

Live (Radically)

At least Christians are no longer in danger of blending in with mainstream culture. Yet as society rushes to novelty at the speed of a whitewater river, it’s hard to avoid being carried along. It’s just too easy to blend in. This is called syncretism. I’m not saying that you need to be obnoxious with your opinions; just focus on studying and living out the Biblical worldview. As you do so, your hopeful, refreshing lifestyle will be radically different from the lives of those around you. The changes in our culture are chewing people up and spitting them out. As you live out the biblical example, people can’t help but notice. Through you, they might find the hope that all their ‘progress’ hasn’t provided.