To Gain the World, but Lose the Soul

There's an article over at The Week, that tells us we lost, that in the battle for public opinion, Christians have lost the war, but that there might be a silver lining.

As I wrote last year, the culture war is over, and conservatives lost. For Christians, though, there might just be a silver lining.

Now, of course, it's understandable why many of my fellow cultural conservatives mourn the decline of Christian values in the public arena, inasmuch as they had a powerful influence on the rise of western civilization. Historians like Rodney Stark and sociologists like Mary Eberstadt (and many others) have chronicled this phenomenon. It's not simply about "losing power and market share," but mourning the very real downstream effects of secular liberal policies on issues such as defending the unborn.

Heh!  Some seem to think that in defending Christian values, I'm concerned about the culture war.  First, I didn't realize that I was in a war, and second, I take my solace from the Gospel of Mark, which asks us

 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

The pendulum of public opinion swings, and people swing with it.  I don't much care what other people think, I'll continue to try to learn the will of God, and I'm not nearly as certain of His will as I was twenty years ago because He reveals Himself to me in amusing and delightful ways.  I will set my (very metaphorical) sails and go where He takes me.

May the Peace of our Lord be with you all.