Shownotes Transcript
Commissioner Johnston explores the popularity of, and the origins of, the cultural wide embrace of relativism. What is it? Where did it come from? Why does it seem so prevalent?
He builds on the exposition of the previous episode which dove into great depth as to the nature of “self evident truths,” natural law, “the laws of nature and of nature’s God.” These principles are essential to grasp and understand if one is to understand the nature of America’s experiment in freedom.
America’s founders, in starting a new nation, realized they could create any form of government they desired, but their greatest desire was to learn from the errors of those who have gone before them. Most importantly, they wanted to ensure that they were going to build a more just government. They needed to be sure they were building on sound and true principles. They asserted that these principles could be observed in nature.
As heirs of the British Renaissance they were fully aware that Western Civilization‘s ideas sprung from this singular notion that man has a spiritual quality and is able to discern spiritual principles as revealed in nature. In other words, despite their many different opinions, the one thing they could agree on is that they all shared a common Creator. Their Creator had given them their rights, and their Creator had shown, in the designed laws of nature, an understanding of justice and equity and truth.
Commissioner Johnston dedicated the last program to those Christians whom he has met, that shy away from thinking about the very obvious fact that God has revealed His principles through His visible creation. Johnston, for their sake, gave extensive biblical references to the fact that God has demonstrated truth to everyone. The real problem is when people bring their own preconceptions and don’t want to seek the truth. But again, this is where Christians themselves should be the best studied and the most committed to be able to explain to others why the God of reality is the God of reality through what He has actually demonstrated, as in Paul’s presentation at Mars Hill in Athens, and his inducement to Timothy to be apt to teach, and explain the truth to those who have been taken captive in the futility of their mind to do the will of the devil.
In this program Johnston builds on the basis of natural law as demonstrating that the truth can be known. But unfortunately, academia has been infiltrated by another view of truth and of how we come to conclusions.
While there are many relativistic philosophers, clearly the most dominant in the academic world is a man by the name of Hegel. Hegel’s …History builds on the idea that there’s a purpose to history, and that man has risen out of the depths of confusion and come up with new ideas on how to govern himself. These ideas may conflict with one another, but even the conflict of these ideas creates even newer ideas - compelling history to move forward and presumably “upward.“
This conflict of ideas, or dialectic, has become the dominant view of most intellectual institutions. It has infiltrated every aspect of modern life. One of the reasons is by viewing history in this way it gives a sense of purpose, an explanation for those whom might otherwise still be asking “What is the meaning of life?“
Hegel gives a spiritual quality to history referring to the spirit of the times the “zeitgeist” as being a fulfillment of man’s purpose and the form of government under which he lives - uniting an individual with this greater, higher purpose.
Many progressives, animated by a spirit of injustice, seek to create and influence history in a Hegelian manner. This was the foundation of national socialism, international socialism, and modern progressivism. The conflict of ideas is an essential and spiritual aspect of the struggle to change and formulate history. For this reason progressives are passionately religious about a belief system regarding the future, but a future that has nothing to do with God. It is a future in which man’s spiritual destiny will be fulfilled and all injustices made right.
This passionate belief system allows the adherent to ‘do whatever it takes’ to bring this preferred future to pass. All of mankind and the destiny of mankind is dependent on this struggle moving forward. And by definition, those who disagree, those who have an older, “old-fashioned idea” about things, are now obstacles. They are impediments to history and to freedom, and to mankind’s fulfillment. If need be, these old world types, should be removed from the path of history.
Sadly, wherever progressive ideas get hold of government, that new form of government is willing to dismiss entire categories of human beings who may be seen as impediments to the brave New World they wish to bring about. And that is when the ‘right to life’ is lost for those ‘disposable obstacles’, those ‘hindering’ human beings.
Objective history has shown this time and again.