Foundation of Everything
Part 1 of 3
Getting the Most Out of Life
Contents
Why Life Doesn’t Work Anymore
Western society promises some strange things. Find the right person and then your entire life will perfectly fall into place, and you will be fulfilled and happy. Succeed in your career or other pursuits, and then you will be fulfilled and happy. Buy your dream home, dream car, dream vacation, and dream life, and then you will be fulfilled and happy.
None of these things can ensure happiness. A healthy marriage is a wonderful blessing, but no spouse can insure fulfillment and happiness. Placing that on their shoulders results in an unhealthy marriage every time. A rewarding career or other personal achievements can bring a sense of fulfillment and happiness, but success doesn’t satisfy our deep longings for long, and often it even brings misery. Having a nice home and car is a good thing, but endless studies have shown that once our basic needs are met, more wealth—more things—does nothing to improve our well-being. There is value in all these things; however, exaggerating their value and making any of these pursuits the very purpose of our lives is a mistake.
Western society tells us other strange things too. One moment they tell us we don’t need anyone—that we can do it all by ourselves—that we can determine our own reality. Then the next moment they tell us none of our problems are our fault—that it’s all out of our hands—that it’s someone else’s fault. Indeed, the post-Christian west continually promotes contradictory and self-defeating “truths” while the entire time proclaiming truth doesn’t even exist! Modernism offers nothing but contradiction and confusion.
We know that we need other people. Everyone needs fellowship and support on this journey called life. A close-knit community is imperative for any human being to thrive. We need a community that will help us seek the truth and live it; a community that will challenge us and hold us accountable as we progress.
We know that we don’t really have it all figured out. And we know that to some extent we have blindly followed the dominant voices of modernism—that unavoidable deluge. We need to rediscover truth and beauty again; we need to rediscover our true purpose. We need to understand the true journey is within.
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Seeking an Alternative Worldview
This modern worldview is hopelessly flawed. The system teaches entitlement and scapegoating where it once encouraged virtue and hard work. The system discourages marriage and undermines it through both the media and government policy. The system denigrated masculinity for decades, and now it goes to inconceivable lengths to insist there’s no difference between men and women. Unsurprisingly, all are now confused over what men and women were created to be! All the self-destructive nonsense continues to be lauded as progress—as the pursuit of happiness and wellbeing. However, suicide skyrockets and wellbeing plumets. Modernism exaggerates the problems with all that is good, while it hides or lies about all the problems it has created! They deny God, so that they may play at being gods, redefining human nature according to their own odd whims and rewriting history in real time to support their self-destructive narrative.
Many third-world countries resist the influence of the west. They wisely prefer their ancient cultures over the lack of culture in the west. Most of their cultures, despite their problems, were real cultures and superior to the lack of culture in the west. Most had imperfect yet sound foundations. Unfortunately, the wealthy and powerful west seeks to force itself on the entire world.
The western elites don’t condone an alternative worldview. They are particularly intolerant of the mighty worldview the preceded them, the worldview that indeed built western society and made it far superior to anything mankind had known before. Yes, they hate the Judeo-Christian worldview—especially the Catholic worldview. Their prejudice toward the Judeo-Christian traditions is blind to common sense, history, and truth. The elites spew propaganda against God and his church that make even Stalin’s lies seem tame. They do not play fair because they can’t win on a level playing field. The elites attack with the backing of the government, education system, and the media. Often, the ill-informed believer cowers in shame. In this environment, Christians often attempt to prop up a façade of Christianity over modernism to make their Christian worldview look modern. The powers that be applaud these compromises loudly, but only for a short time. Then they demand more. Half bullied and half brainwashed, the Christian forfeits his own worldview, ever pretending faithfulness. He hands over his inheritance, not really knowing what he’s done.
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Worldviews in Contrast
We will now contrast modernism with the faithful Catholic worldview. While much of the following is also applicable to other Judeo-Christian traditions, we embrace the Roman Catholic Church as the fullest revelation of God and thus the best option to represent our alternate worldview.
Modernism suggests that God does not exist, and he is irrelevant to our personal life even if he does. Catholicism proclaims that God exists, that he knows and loves us, and he wants us to know and love him! Modernism suggests that there is no truth or purpose other than what we choose. Catholicism proclaims that absolute truth exists, that Jesus revealed this truth to us, and that the primary point and purpose of this truth is that we were created to know and love God above all else and others as ourselves. Modernism suggests the state will provide what we need; that we don’t really need community or even family in any meaningful way. Catholicism proclaims that God provides what we need; that community and family are essential, not only to being a human being, but to being raised and nurtured into a child of God. Modernism suggests we have license to do anything we want, no matter how self-destructive, no matter who it indirectly harms. Catholicism suggest true freedom is freedom from vice and addiction, freedom from sin and unhealthy attachments; we are free to do good, free to know and love God. Modernism suggests tolerance is the only grand narrative; that faith and value systems are by definition intolerance. Catholicism proclaims that God provides the grand narrative to make sense of everything; central to this narrative is that our designer knows what’s best for us—he and his ways are what’s best for us.
Modernism can offer no hope, only indulgence. Catholicism offers the ultimate hope, hope in a divine relationship that can be largely realized in this life, if we are willing sacrifice indulgence. Modernism cannot offer true love and denies that it even exists; it instructs us to take what we want and do what’s good for us. Catholicism proclaims that true love exists and is the very essence of God. Catholicism knows that true love sacrifices for the beloved and that this sacrificial love is the point of everything. Modernism struggles to understand beauty, peace, and joy. Catholicism proclaims that all beauty reflects our Creator and points to him, that peace only comes through trusting in him, and that joy comes from knowing him and doing his will. The Catholic worldview offers real hope and the true way to happiness and fulfillment. It has worked for billions of folks for over two thousand years.
Of course, being baptized Catholic and attending Sunday mass doesn’t mean you truly hold the Catholic worldview. Indeed, many Catholics no longer even understand the primary purpose of the Church. They see the faith as a cultural heritage having little impact on their lives. Catholic lite, cafeteria Catholicism, moral therapeutic deism, and similar flavorless modern twists all lack the Catholic worldview of which we speak. We will tackle avoiding these counterfeits and seeking the true Catholic worldview in part two.
To Part 2: Getting The Most Out of Catholicism →
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