New and Old

Most people are so used to modernism having infected every aspect of our lives that if they truly saw it for what it is, they would be shocked. Modernism is so much a part of our American society that I could write hundreds of posts just pointing it out. If you are one of those who thinks that modernism is only present in the minds of pagans, then I am sorry to burst your bubble, but that is wrong.

G.K. Chesterton once said that the 20th century was the first time in the history of the world where people were proud of being modern. Let that sink in a bit. This means that there was a time (like the vast majority of world history) when people saw something that was modern as being suspect: it was too new to be trusted.

Chesterton also pointed out that modernism is, "bragging about the mere fact that today is not yesterday". Now try to let that one sink in even further. To claim that it is always good to progress to newer and newer things is like saying that immaturity is always better than maturity. If we just change the terms, it makes it more clear. Why people cannot see this is precisely because they have been immersed in modernist thinking.

Yes, some things are better when they are new than when they are old, but other things are better when they are old than when they are new. Who would claim a grape seed is "better" than a grape? Or that unfermented grape juice is better than a well aged wine? Anyone who believes this is clearly confused. Most of us are aware that it is not always so that either old or new is always better, yet to prove this to a modernist is almost impossible.

As St. Pius X once wrote: God teaches us His truths so that we can learn to detest the maxims of the world. It is time for us to do some "detesting" of the way that the world thinks and make a serious effort to think like our Lord Jesus Christ.