Fifteen Ways The World Has Changed

The Day of Rest
Biblical Teaching About Time
— An online book about rest and worship—
By Dr. Al Franzmeier

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Below are fifteen ways life in the United States—and the world—changed in the the twentieth century. It is a brief summary of the first and second chapters of this book. I do not want to suggest that it is all there is to say. The changes are only suggestive and intended to point toward where life has gone and is going. Your comments are welcome.

1. Advances in technology have changed our way of life - Our ability to communicate, share, store and retrieve data is increasing at exponential rates. Computers and the Internet are prime. Every aspect of life is now touched by them. We now have ability to communicate with one another and share data of all sorts and kinds never before known or imagined in all of human history.     
2. Communication technology has changed everything  - Our ability to communicate, share, store and retrieve data is increasing at exponential rates. Computers and the Internet are prime. Every aspect of life is now touched by them. We now have ability to communicate with one another and share data of all sorts and kinds never before known or imagined in all of human history.
   
3. We are empowered and engulfed by information - People who understand how to use and manipulate this information have power. They are able to influence and control others. However, so much information easily engulfs most people. They are left with uncertainty about what to believe and whom to trust.
4. Technological changes have increased the rich-poor gap - The new super-rich are those who provide and control the use of information technology. Examples abound. Meanwhile, those who do not understand the technology are less and less able to thrive or even survive in such a culture. The gap increases between the rich and the poor.
5. Pop-art replaced classical and folk-art - Classical and folk art, including music and graphic arts, are becoming far less significant than the ever-changing scene of pop-art, pop-music, movies and TV.
6. Clothing styles changed - Clothing reflects the emphasis upon novelty and change. People of all ages are influenced by a desire to be a part of the modern scene, to own and to wear what is new, to be accepted by the in-group.
   
7. Novelty is valued, even worshiped - Such an emphasis upon novelty presents a danger of becoming all important. Whatever is first in one’s life is that which is worshiped. Many are the new American Idols.
8. Old people, old ways are no longer trusted - Whereas other cultures, including that of the United States, formerly trusted seniors and the experience they bring, the emphasis now is upon the future. Those of the past with its outmoded thinking and ways must be rejected. Hope, promise and true value rest with young, innovative and experimental men and women who understand the new world. 
9. Traditional norms and principles are rejected - As a consequence of the emphasis upon novelty and experimentation, norms and principles handed down from the past are no longer trusted. New circumstances, new understandings, new discoveries and new ways of communicating require new norms.
10. Sexual and family mores have also changed - Changes in family and sexual mores are prime examples of the changes demanded. The definition of marriage has changed. There is now a strong push toward redefining marriage as a loving relationship between two humans, regardless of sex. Some suggest that the definition of marriage will eventually change even more than that. There are no longer any objective standards by which to decide what is right or wrong in human relationships.
11. Everything is now relative, constantly changing - In matters of right and wrong everything is open now to change, even as the world around us is constantly changing.  The emphasis upon evolution and the survival of the fittest seems to suggest that the weak, sick and feeble who have nothing more to contribute should be terminated, regardless of age.
12. Everything is now subjective; objective standards are gone - Since there are no objective standards like the Ten Commandments, etc. and since evrything is relative, we may argue that what is right for you may not be right for me. As long as you allow me to do what I want, I will not attempt to interfere with you doing what you want.
13. The supernatural origins of the Bible are rejected - Christians who once believed in the Divine authority of the Bible are left with uncertainty. The book once seen as the inspired Word of God is now viewed as a collection of writings by men influenced by the thinking and culture of their time. Little, if anything, can now be declared to be of Divine origin.
14. At the same time human intuition is lifted up as trustworthy - Since scholars have only scattered pieces of past Biblical writings—so it is claimed—they must rely upon educated guesses about what was and what was not given by God. Judgments about theological truths are now subjected to human intuitions.
15. The United States no longer has a master narrative - Since the United States is now a multi-cultural and multi-religious nation, there is no longer one story or one set of myths that unite and guide us. This is to say we have great difficulty looking back at our history in order to define ourselves as we move into the future.

As the 20th century began, advances in science, communication and transportation moved the people of the United States from a rural to an urban culture. We will never be able to return to a simpler way of life, even though many long for it.

So the question remains. Where do we go from here? The preposterous claim of this Blog and of this online book is that the Bible remains the inspired Word of God and the one and only, yes also infallible, guide to the future of life on this planet, of hope for eternity and for daily life. Readers are invited to draw their own conclusions. Watch for the next chapter.

As I said above, your comments are invited.