OPINION: The path to human ruin begins with moral relativism

Lewiston Tribune columnist Russell Gee’s April 10 commentary, titled “Freedom of religion includes freedom from religion,” purports to be understanding of religion.

But consider that in 1649 the Maryland Toleration Act, providing for freedom of worship for all Christians, was passed by the Maryland Assembly.

Our Founding Fathers were consistent and persistent in acknowledging the country’s dependence on God from its beginning and its continued good fortunes. A prayer by President George Washington said: “Almighty God: We make our earnest prayer that thou wilt keep the United States in thy Holy Protection; that thou wilt incline the hearts of the citizens ... to entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another and for their fellow citizens of the United States at large. And finally that thou wilt most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility and pacific temper of mind, which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion without a humble imitation of whose example in these things, we can never hope to be a happy nation. Grant our supplication, we beseech Thee, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.”

In his 1789 inaugural address, Washington also said: “The propitious smiles of heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of right and wrong.”

Wrong living is now considered to be right.

Those who say that America has never been a Christian religious nation founded on Judeo-Christian principles, the generational moral civilizing force, feign ignorance or an actual denial of clear and unambiguous statements like those of Washington and of the other founders.

It extends forward. In his “Man in the Arena” speech, President Theodore Roosevelt said: “There is no more unhealthy being, no man less worthy of respect, than he who either really holds, or feigns to hold, an attitude of sneering disbelief toward all that is good and lofty.”

How fortunate we are to have local writers such as Gee — and others — who each surpass the combined abilities and wisdom of human nature of Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin.

The interchangeable entities of secularism, progressivism, wokeism, humanism, socialism, neo-Marxism, and diversity, equity and inclusion have all produced incivility and divisiveness. They have the common philosophy that individuals are always part of a collective group to be manipulated, instead of a sovereign person with God-given rights as stated in our Declaration of Independence.

They use identity politics, called intersectionality, to label people as the “oppressors” or the “oppressed.” This means wrongs are collective actions, not individual ones, and an entire race composed of individuals living today can be blamed for the past wrongs of their ancestors.

Despite incredible hardship, abolitionist John Stewart Rock (1825-1866) achieved much in his brief life. Denied admission to medical school because he was Black, Rock became a dentist, then a medical doctor and then a lawyer in 1861, becoming the first Black person to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas became Supreme Court justices. Ben Carson became a world-renowned pediatric neurosurgeon. And Thomas Sowell became a world-renowned author and economist. All have or had power combined with authentic Christian empathy. They knew all people are created in the image and likeness of God. Those who curse Horatio Alger’s “pull ourselves up by our bootstraps” concept of advancement wish to denigrate these Black Americans’ accomplishments.

The first right mentioned in the Declaration of Independence is that of life, without which none of the other enumerated rights could have meaning. In my Feb. 4 column, I explained that with the union of the sperm and egg, a new human with unique DNA that is usable for forensic and genealogy purposes is created. The storyline for accepting abortion is that pregnancies by rape and incest are a great percentage of abortions with that unique DNA not being a person. How many of the people thus born have stated they wish they weren’t born or that their offspring had not been born?

Actually, how many people advocating abortion would wish to have been aborted, never having the chance for life? Life for me, but not for thee?

How far has America fallen from that right to life?

For evidence, seek out some recent articles in the Tribune:

April 10 — The headline was “Shouts of ‘Shame! Shame!’ erupt in Arizona House as fight over abortion ban engulfs lawmakers.” Those shouts echoed back to those shouting them. But for sure, they were deaf to the irony, as Washington observed in 1795: “When one side only of a story is heard, and often repeated, the human mind becomes impressed with it, insensibly.”

That is the purpose.

April 13 — The headline read: “Companies: Abortion laws are bad for business.” A story reprinted from The Idaho Statesman of Boise reported: “The dating apps and several other high-profile businesses ... argued that the state’s strict abortion laws are bad for businesses and have already cost Idaho millions in economic loses. ... What is bad for business is also bad for state economies. The study by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research said the U.S. lost an estimated $173 billion annually because of abortion restrictions.”

Left unacknowledged is the fact that dead babies are worth a lot of money — $173,000 — you divided $173 billion annually by 1 million abortions. Does it follow that “My contribution to help the economy is my dead baby.”

April 13 — In the Tribune’s “Today in History” section was an indication of America’s moral decay: “In 1999, right-to-die advocate Dr. Jack Kevorkian was sentenced in Pontiac, Mich., to 10 to 25 years in prison for second-degree murder in the lethal injection of a Lou Gehrig’s disease patient. Kevorkian ended up serving eight years.”

As predicted, the slippery slope to increased acceptance to hastening the normal end of life has become legally allowed in several states, with societal and sometimes family pressure on the sick and/or aged citizens to end their lives. If they don’t go “peacefully,” then, as in Canada, euthanasia will be encouraged — and then mandated

In my most recent column published March 31, I wrote citizens are increasingly recognizing the danger our country and the world is in.

On Oct. 22, 2022, I wrote: “There are only two human genders, despite the wailing of wokesters with all their attempts to normalize abnormal behavior with the goal of destroying the family unit. Destroy it and civilization will not endure.”

Relativism — the concept that there is no absolute right or wrong — allows this abnormal behavior. “Just do your thing” and ignore what history has taught us about controlling the human passions of aggression and sexuality.

What are the chances that we as humans by our own works can survive the tsunami of evil?

Essentially zero.

As 2 Chronicles 7:14 says: “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray, seek my presence, turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, pardon their sins, and will heal their land.”

Eggleston, M.D., is a retired ophthalmologist. His email address is rjegglestonmd@gmail.com.