A look around at our society can be very discouraging. That which is vile is everywhere. It is on magazine stands, bumper stickers, T-shirts and television. What is done in the name of free speech is horrifying, and I'm pretty sure, not what the Founding Fathers intended when the Bill of Rights was written.
A couple of years ago, when a construction project was going on where I work, I followed a pickup truck out of the parking lot and down the street. At eye level and unavoidable on the back of the pickup was a bumper sticker with a revolting message. It was offensive to me, but all I could think of was, "What if I had a child in the car, and the child asked me what that meant?"
Later when I returned to the parking lot, I noticed the pickup truck parked near the construction site. I assumed it belonged to one of the workers. I walked over and discovered that the driver had left the window open. I wrote a note and placed it on his seat. "Have you thought about the fact that a child might see your bumper sticker?"
The next time I saw the pickup, there was a clean rectangular spot on the back where the bumper sticker had been. I don't know whether the driver himself had listened to his conscience, or whether he complained to fellow-workers about the note and a supervisor overheard it and told him to remove the sticker. No matter...it was gone, and fortunately without confrontation.
What does it mean to honor what is vile? I think we "honor" that which we allow to have a place in our lives, that which we allow to seem "normal," that on which we spend time and money. It could be a television show we watch, a movie we go to, a magazine we buy, or a story that we listen to that we know we should avoid.
Apparently this has been the case for thousands of years. David, who wrote Psalm 12, lived a long, long time ago. The basic nature of man has not changed. We humans are not becoming more noble and upright.
When we give place to what is vile, we should not be surprised that the wicked strut about freely. We are indicating that we are willing to play by their rules. Their conduct becomes the norm. They are free of censure.
We should not allow them this.
Yes, we have to allow for free speech, but we don't have to approve of what others say. We have free speech too. We can stand against the filth in this world. We are allowed to express our opinions. We should not accept the accusation that we are intolerant. There is way too much at stake here. If we are afraid to speak up, we should not be surprised at the overwhelming tide of wickedness that flaunts itself.
