A thought on disillusionment

I find in myself a growing frustration, perhaps disillusionment, with much that exists in our culture especially from those corners that claim to have the answers for all that is wrong with our society and world (whether they be liberal or conservative, religious or atheist). I see this especially in my impatience with both liberal and conservative Christians and their attitudes toward sexuality. In how I have conducted my life in the area of sexuality one could certainly label me conservative: Neither I nor my wife had sex withe each other or anyone else before we were married. While I believe that was a good, even the best thing to do, I do not think having sex before one is married is the worst thing you can do. Also, while I have argued for a long time that it is possible to see homosexuality as a valid sexual expression within the Christian system, I have only done so in terms of insisting that sexual sin is sexual sin whether one is homosexual or heterosexual: namely I have only argued for the possibility that there might be an appropriate permanent commitment which includes sex between two people of the same sex. That is to some extent marriage and all that Christians have taught that entails remained in my thinking the standard. I am becoming less and less convinced that other "liberal" Christians actually care about defending homosexuality upon an traditional foundation. This I simply can't fathom.

Then there is our political situation in this country and all I can really see in this current fight over Iraq is two groups of power hungry people fighting over how best to lie to their constituents, so as to remain in power. Democrats aren't going to save us any more than Republicans. It seems to me that the American electorate have very short memories, and keep expecting politicians to change, and to change things. I think it is about time we let go of our idealism and just elect people to get things done in the realm of governing and to govern fair, not save us from corruption or wars or what ever, or find all the solutions for all the problems. I am beginning to think that really has nothing to do with governing. Though, I have to admit I am at a loss as to what the act of Governing is or should be.

All I know is that after following politics since the election of Regan in 1980 that politicians are always making quite extravagant nearly religious claims about what they will do if elected, and once in office they either do not do what they say or even do the opposite. Also a particular party will have power over time and then like has happened recently corruption is exposed and the party out of power exploits these discoveries of corruption. So that the electorate is perhaps rightly fed up with the party in power, except that the electorate seems to forget that the party currently out of power was voted out of power because 10 to 15 years prior corruption was being exposed in their ranks. No one seems to wonder at this pattern, no one seems to care, no one really remembers or cares to remember. Instead they fall for the rhetoric of the politicians who in 10 to 15 years will once again be in the center of corruption and scandal.

I don't believe that the left has all the answers. I don't think "liberalism" in its current form is the answer, nor do I think conservatism is the what is wrong with this country. Nor do I believe the reverse. What I have observed in this country in the last 27 or so years and from what I have studied of the history of this country that no political movement or philosophy actually can account for human economic and social realities. But in the end it seems most people don't want to be told there aren't foolproof answers to the problems of the world, no most want to be told that some politician or political party will save them from their problems and from a scary world.

At times I weary of all the noise of all competing secular Messianic claims that fly about, I am tire of the religious who want more the immediacy of an ecstatic experience than the trudging faithfulness of a tradition. We don't seem to want to struggle with what has been given but to escape and to have our ears tickled by the promise of an easy salvation.