Why Civilizations Fail 5

There is a HUGE book called "A Study of History" in twelve volumes and written by Sir Arnold Toynbee in 1987. In the fifth volume subtitled "The Disintegrations of Civilizations" he gives us six different reasons why civilizations throughout history have collapsed. Edmund Burke said "Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it." And so let us take a look at the six reasons civilization fails.

Reason Number 1: Cultural Suicide

Reason Number 2: Truancy or Escapism

Reason Number 3: A Sense of Promiscuity

Reason Number 4: A Sense of Drift

Reason Number 5: Abandon

Abandon can also be called "lawlessness" but I like the word abandon better. How else can you describe the sudden abandon of law and any kind of moral code?

We see this in the hopelessness of terrorism (after all, that is what terrorism is: you live a life of hopeless abandon where law and rules must be upended in order to make some kind of statement or belief in some kind of magical change in society). Bombing civilians and even using children as "suicide" bombers against their wishes and ANY KIND of moral law.

But abandon rears its ugly head in milder ways in our everyday lives and our people hoodwink their way through life: petty thefts from hotel rooms, small intentional inaccuracies on taxes, lying, cheating and stealing. Every civilization Toynbee studied had some such abandon before they self-destructed. Every civilization realizes too late that it is the little holes in the dike that precipitate the eventual collapse of the entire structure.

Ancient Israel, as recorded in the Bible, shows this free fall. Daniel wrote: "We have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. WE have not obeyed ... we have turned away, refusing to obey you. Therefore disaster has come upon us!" (Daniel 9:5-13) Over and over again, when Israel disregarded the law or abuse it they fell, again and again, until they no longer were rescued by God.

I must confess that I feel a sense of abandon and hopelessness within my house. I have been fighting with a bank for FOUR YEARS about an issue of lost payments and bank inaccuracies after they went bankrupt and tried to foreclose on me. Why pay them? Why work on my house when they could take it from me at any time? Why not just live in it until they kick me out? If you would have told me 10 years ago that I would not be making house payments because I didn't trust the bank I would have laughed at you. Yet I abandon.

Where are you? Do you feel that sense of abandon? I know the only answer is to understand that the world is NOT in our control but it is in God's and we must trust his interests are in OUR BEST interests no matter how dark it seems now.  

Why Civilizations Fail 4

There is a HUGE book called “A Study of History” in twelve volumes and written by Sir Arnold Toynbee in 1987. In the fifth volume subtitled “The Disintegrations of Civilizations” he gives us six different reasons why civilizations throughout history have collapsed. Edmund Burke said “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.” And so let us take a look at the six reasons civilization fails.

Reason Number 1: Cultural Suicide

Reason Number 2: Truancy or Escapism

Reason Number 3: A Sense of Promiscuity

Reason Number 4: A Sense of Drift

This is an interesting reason for the fall of civilizations. Toynbee means by “a sense of drift” the feeling that people will have where NOTHING they do can make a difference. Fate or sheer momentum will determine everything, nothing YOU can do can change anything. Effort no longer matters because no one could ever have enough effort to change anything. It becomes a fatalism of the masses, coupled with helplessness and powerlessness: a fatal mix. And so the civilization falls.

This is intimately tied to the previous reasons for the failure of a civilization. When the souls of men and women lived their lives in an age of social disintegration it is a natural consequence to find people who believe their choices and decisions don’t matter and cannot change anything.

The connecting factor is a sense of tolerance where anything is allowed and tolerated; the unintended consequence of tolerance is an inability to stand up and say anything is right or wrong. When you cannot stand up for anything, you no longer believe you can change anything and so … drift and powerlessness.

Do you see this in our civilization? I hear this in the political area every election season: “It doesn’t matter, they are all the same” or “my vote won’t change anything”.  Why do you think only one person in ten votes in most elections? How much is tolerance preached in our world today?

Understand, according to history, tolerance (essentially polytheism) leads to anything goes attitude which leads to the inability to stand up for right or wrong which leads to a sense of powerlessness and fatalism which is a “sense of drift” which leads to the fall of a civilization. Where are we on this list?

Why Civilizations Fail 3

There is a HUGE book called “A Study of History” in twelve volumes and written by Sir Arnold Toynbee in 1987. In the fifth volume subtitled “The Disintegrations of Civilizations” he gives us six different reasons why civilizations throughout history have collapsed. Edmund Burke said “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.” And so let us take a look at the six reasons civilization fails.

Reason Number 1: Cultural Suicide

Reason Number 2: Truancy or Escapism

Reason Number 3: A Sense of Promiscuity

Toynbee doesn’t consider promiscuity in JUST the sexual connotation but describes it as “a state of mind that indiscriminately accepts anything and everything in order to find meaning and perhaps stave off impending doom.” It is an “uncritical tolerance and unfocused embrace of the melting pot in religion, literature, art, manners and culture.”

In ancient cultures Babylon is probably the best example of this. They believed that the gods communicated their plans to humans by signs in natural phenomenon like entrails of sacrificed animals and “tea leaves”. Hepatoscopy, in which the livers of sacrificed animals were studied and compared with inscribed “model” livers of clay was a common profession. Diviners of every kind were documented and accepted. Lecanomancy, the spreading of oil on water and belomancy, the shaking of a quiver of arrows and then dropping them to see which direction the first arrow fell, and many others types of signs and portents. Ezekiel talked about how bad it was in the Bible. (Ez. 21:21)

The kings would employ scores of these diviners and magicians. Not just for war but hunting and even choosing a wife and checking her for her child-bearing ability. It came to the point where ALL the decisions were impacted by signs and portents and those who could read them … MORE than the kings choice and decision.

While we are not as impacted by signs and portents (even though there is a lot of that around) we are impacted by the tolerance and unfocused embrace of multi-culturalism and religious nebulosity. When we embrace and believe in anything and everything we essentially embrace nothing. What we are left with is a primordial chaotic goo that is ripe for the latest shaman to manipulate, promising wealth and happiness if you just follow this or that formula.

Again, the US and Western culture is fitting easily into the signs of a culture in demise. 

There is no limiting God’s grace to come and redeem this Western Mankind, but history is not on our side. It will have to be God who pulls us back from the brink.

Why Civilizations Fail 2

There is a HUGE book called “A Study of History” in twelve volumes and written by Sir Arnold Toynbee in 1987. In the fifth volume subtitled “The Disintegrations of Civilizations” he gives us six different reasons why civilizations throughout history have collapsed. Edmund Burke said “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.” And so let us take a look at the six reasons civilization fails.

Reason Number 1: Cultural Suicide

Reason Number 2: Truancy or Escapism

According to Toynbee another reason for the downfall of civilizations throughout history has been a mental running away from society’s problems by retreating into a world of distraction and entertainment.

Pompeii is a classic illustration. This fun-loving, vacation city of the Romans was given to the distractions of wealth and materialism, sensuality and pleasure seeking, as seen by the lavish homes, and frescoes that decorated them. Even many of the household items found were overly sexual in nature. Warning earthquakes were written about before the volcano destroyed them.

There is a lot of literature from the Chinese dynasties that show they escaped in a different way. They became distracted by esoteric philosophies and mental gymnastics to such a degree that they neglected their physical selves. More importantly they thought their armies could fight mental battles but found their minds could not stop the arrows of enemies at their gates. Despite what many of today’s movies tell us.

This, again, sounds almost too familiar. Walk down any street or walk the halls of any high school or mall and you will find the distractions evident. Smart phones, 60 second videos, and reality shows are the escape. Why work hard and study when all you have to do is get something caught on video or do something funny with your cat and you will capture a million views and advertising money.

I find the urge to escape in my introvertedness and in my pursuit of religious studies and writing.  The hard stuff is dealing with the real issues of life, love, and service. The easy distractions of life are available everywhere. It must be constantly fought against because there are many enemies at our gates ready to take what blessings we have and turn them against us.

Think about your life. Are you spending most of your time in the hard stuff of life or in the distractions of life?

Why Civilizations Fail 1

There is a HUGE book called “A Study of History” in twelve volumes and written by Sir Arnold Toynbee in 1987. In the fifth volume subtitled “The Disintegrations of Civilizations” he gives us six different reasons why civilizations throughout history have collapsed. Edmund Burke said “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.” And so let us take a look at the six reasons civilization fails.

Reason Number 1: Cultural Suicide

According to Toynbee, societies in disintegration are seldom simply overrun by another invading civilization. Rather, they commit a kind of cultural suicide, suffering what he calls a “schism of the soul” in which the “soul” of the society turns upon itself and brings on self-destruction.

The Roman Coliseum stands as one of the most sobering examples of this schism of the soul. In this great arena, gladiatorial contests, mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions and re-enactments of famous battles took place. Here, for the sake of entertainment the leisure hours of the Roman citizens were twittered away. They not only watched but cheered on the slaughter and death of man and animal. Violence became entertainment.

Pompeii is famous for its erotic frescoes and it seemed the people of Pompeii worried for little in this resort community. They were engrossed in, and addicted to, sensual living and entertainment that they didn’t even head the warnings of doom heading their way in the form of an active volcano.

Will history repeat itself?

I can easily see, as I am sure can you, the parallels to the United States as we commit our own cultural suicide. There really is no military that can come close to overtaking us. We have been defeating ourselves from within, our greatest enemy is ourselves. We vote more for American Idol than we do for our Presidential elections. We are more concerned about the backside of a pseudo-famous woman than we are about the meaning of democracy. We spend more time staring at our smart phones and computer screens than we do actively serving, working, and building a better community. Major cities are becoming ghost towns and many more are going bankrupt physically and morally.

But I don’t think it is too late. I believe we can stop the momentum. I am just afraid that it is going to take an even BIGGER catastrophe than 9/11 to get us back in focus.

Think of what you do with your life. Are you helping our nation move on into cultural suicide or are you working hard to prevent it? 

Life in the New Year

I heard this somewhere and I think it is perfect for the beginning of a New Year: Life is not a series of problems to be solved but a series of mysteries to be unraveled!

As you look to this new coming year what do you see? Do you see problems ahead or do you see mysteries that are going to be revealed to you?

Obviously I am going to try to convince you that seeing the mysteries of life is the better option. All of us know people who only see problems. When they look to the future there is nothing but gloom and doom, more depression, more moping because all that is ahead is one problem after another.

I want to scream from the hilltops that you HAVE TO look at life as a mystery! I have a good friend who says to me (after his latest problem pops up) “I can’t wait to see what God has planned now because things sure aren’t going the way I want them to…” What a great attitude toward problem and setbacks! When a problem pops up can you say: “Whoa, God must be working on something in my life!” I pray that you can and will this year.

My overall theme for this year in my personal and professional life is “Get busy with God!” That means I must get busy loving people, I must get busy serving people, I must get busy learning more about my God and Savior, I must get busy showing my faith and my life as a GIFT from God, and I must look at my problems as a mystery that God is slowly revealing to me about myself and my life.

Some believe they can just sit back and let life happen to them. I don’t believe that is possible. In the immortal words of Stephen King through the mouth of Andy Dufraine in Shawshank Redemption “it all comes down to a choice really: get busy livin’ or get busy dyin’” THAT is our choice. We don’t have the choice of staying right where we are. You must get busy living or you WILL be getting busy dying. Your choice this New Year.

Never let this be on your tombstone: “He/She had potential.”

I pray this is on your tombstone: “He/She really LIVED!”

Get busy this new year and unravel all those mysteries!

Christmas Games

My best Christmas memories really have nothing to do with opening presents. I think most people, if they really think about it, would agree.

We spend thousands of dollars on gifts every year. We give people who cannot afford those thousands of dollars, thousands of dollars’ worth of gifts. Black Friday and Christmas sales fill our airwaves and newspapers; all of this to get us to spend thousands more. But what did all that money buy us?

We love to receive but we love more to give, which is part of the image of God in us. But that feeling has been lost in the expectation of gifts. When you EXPECT to receive something, is it truly a gift when given to you? Somewhere, somehow Christmas has switched from a time of “giving” to a time of fulfilling an “obligation”.

My best Christmas memories are of the family getting together and having fun. Usually this had nothing to do with the gifts, they were incidental. My best Christmas memories are from my mom buying the latest board game as a “family gift” and all of us sitting down around the table and playing it for hours. We played it WITH each other, we laughed, we competed, we learned, and we loved it. The rest of the gifts were nice, useful like socks and underwear but the best gift with the game and family time.

As my kids grew up there were many times we could not afford gifts. We would shop garage sales and thrift stores for gifts and sometimes we would simply make them. I would shop with the kids and give them ten $1 bills that they were to spend at the dollar store and buy gifts for their siblings, parents and grandparents with that. Sometimes we got an erasure and a pencil and thought it was the BEST THING EVER!

A few words of advice for this Christmas:

Spend more time than you spend money.

Buy gifts that will encourage family time (Board games, Dance and sing video games, etc.) and not pull away from family (headphones, etc.).

Make a BIG meal, meaning one that lasts a long time and not just a lot of food.

Christmas is a time to remember Christ coming on this earth but it was never a big holiday until the last hundred years. (Easter was the BIG one!) So give in a way that God gives: love, time, family, and sacrifice. Don’t give in the way the world gives: money, obligation, and expectation.

Have a Merry Christmas.