Letter to the editor: Individualism and morality

The late 20th and 21st centuries ushered in a host of concepts that have radically changed how many view their relationships with God and others. Individualism, and its offspring relativism, dominated a cultural change that caused fractures in our dependencies, community life, families, religious institutions and public affairs. The bonds that united us in the 20th century have been broken, resulting in a morality crisis in our country.

We have set aside the moral standards/commands to love, provided by God, to satisfy our egos. We have become the gods and masters of our lives. We want to create our own destiny.

Many believe that faith alone, or God’s mercy, will guarantee us a spot in heaven. Faith apart from works is not alive when it is deprived of hope and love. God is merciful, but he is also just. At the end of our lives, there is no need for faith or hope. Only love will remain through eternity. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God.

Relativism claims that there is no absolute truth and that we should not judge one’s distinctions between what’s right and what’s wrong. This denial of absolute truth is an attempt to give us a moral permit to refute the possibility of sin. Perhaps its aim is to protect the feeling of guilt. Guilt can be healthy if it leads to necessary repentance and reconciliation. Jesus says that he is “the way, the truth and the life.”

Edward M. Thimons

Harrison