Morality Doesn’t Evolve?

Many Christians seem to need to believe in a moral order that is safe, secure, and definitely doesn’t change over time. It’s as if the very prospect of shifting moral standards is a serious threat to their existence.

Mychal S. Massie, writing for World Net Daily, expresses such sentiments:

I recently heard a gentleman comment, "Morality doesn't evolve, it always has been." One need not be a genius to recognize the truth in that statement; but one must be either blind to shame or totally dishonest to deny its truth.

Actually, one need not be a genius to noticed that moral standards definitely do evolve. A number of moral standards are different today than they were 100 years ago and many more a different than they were 1000 years ago. Personally, I think that that is a good thing. I’m neither blind to shame nor totally dishonest — but I seriously wonder if Mychal Massie is.

Ed Brayton comments on Massie‘s article:

Not only has our morality "evolved" since biblical days, it has evolved for the better. No firmer proof for this statement could be found than looking at what the bible teaches on two subjects, slavery and war. Under a biblical code of ethics, slavery is not only allowed but demanded and was instituted under the direct command of God in the Levitical laws. There is not a single verse in the bible condemning slavery, but many verses endorsing it. Biblical law established two types of slavery - indentured servitude (Israelites bound to a fellow Israelite to pay back a debt) and foreign slavery (non-Israelites who were either bought from a neighboring nation or taken in war). Indentured servants had to be freed after a period of time (either 6 years or during the year of jubilee), but foreign slaves were property that was owned forever and could be handed down from father to son.

Perhaps Mychal Massie isn’t quite enough of a genius to recognize that our moral standards about war and slavery have evolved?

From the beginning of time, homosexuality, while practiced on various levels, was viewed as a degenerate behavior. Today, it is not only openly practiced – it has been given equal provision with the sanctity of marriage. It was once understood that no matter the argument for same, said behavior would lead to the downfall of family and ultimately of society.

This are simply false statements. Not only is there no evidence that homosexuality has been treated as a “degenerate behavior” at all times and in all cultures, but in fact there is abundant evidence that many cultures carved out a niche for homosexuality and allowed it to flourish. I can provide empirical evidence to support what I am saying and I know that Mychal Massie cannot provide any evidence to support what he says.

Society from the beginning held that family was in effect sacred and to be protected. Today, nothing could be further from the truth. The family is under attack at every turn by the very courts, government and agencies that are sworn to protect it.

It is true that the institution of the family has always been protected in various societies (it’s interesting how Massie keeps saying “society” as if there has only ever been one society — sadly, it wouldn’t surprise me to find that he thinks just that). What is being challenged today in the courts is not “the family” but rather a particular conception of “family.” I don’t doubt for a minute that Mychal Massie only regards one form of the family to be appropriate, but societies have differed over this and there is no reason to think that his ideal conception of “the family” is one that must exist for everyone.

Eminently qualified judicial nominees such as Leon Holmes of Arkansas are savaged by the likes of Sens. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., and Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., while freely admitting same is being done because he is a Christian. ... I do not suggest we live with our heads in the sand or in a puritanical society. But I do submit there are many today who remember an America that was once wholesome and ethical.

Here’s where it gets interesting. Are you familiar with Leon Holmes? This is the judge who, along with his wife, Susan, wrote for Arkansas Catholic magazine an article titled, "Gender Neutral Language, Destroying an Essential Element of Our Faith." In this article they state that "the woman is to place herself under the authority of the man" in marriage and "is to subordinate herself to the husband." In 1980 Holmes wrote a letter to a newspaper claiming that rape victims should be denied access to abortions because "conceptions from rape occur with approximately the same frequency as snowfall in Miami."

This is the someone Mychal Massie considers “eminently qualified.” He wasn’t being “savaged” because he is a Christian, he was being savaged because he holds views that are so far outside the mainstream as to render them lunacy (and the Republican Senate confirmed this lunacy to the federal judiciary, 51-46). It’s possible that Massie isn’t able to distinguish between holding these opinions and being a Christian because he doesn’t recognize that morality has evolved in such matters. Then again, maybe he does know what’s really going on but his morality hasn’t evolved in such matters.

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