On Virtue

It is very important to me that I ‘be on record’ about some things. I, for example, echo the words of the ancient apostle Paul to the Romans: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth…for therein is the righteousness of God revealed…” (Romans 1:16-17).

In like manner I am not ashamed of and want to be on record about the notion of ‘virtue.’ I am not speaking of virtue simply as ‘chastity,’ although chastity is an important virtue, but the larger concept of virtue that goes beyond the narrow focus on such matters as illegitimacy, abortion, and homosexuality. In my Church we are enjoined to “let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly.” We agree with the apostle Paul that “if there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.”

Consequently, I subscribe to what some call Victorian values, even though they are now denigrated as being terribly old-fashioned, or, as author Gertrude Himmelfarb described, as “time-bound and place-bound, gender-bound, race-bound, class-bound, culture-bound and whatever other flaws are now commonly assigned to the past in general and to the Victorian period in particular.” The fact is, Victorian virtues, which which actually pre-dated the Victorian era, are cross-cultural, cross-generational and foundational to the political philosophy and documents that support the strength and longevity of our nation.

Therefore, I propose for discussion on the national agenda the notion of a moral reformation movement, a retrenchment and rededication to the classical Christian virtues of family, faith, hope, and charity, as well as the Aristotelian virtues of wisdom, justice, temperance and courage, and the inalienable eternal virtues of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to provide foundational support for the political stirrings germinating in our society today.

In making this proposal I hope the individuals and families and social institutions that open this dialogue do not allow it to degenerate and get derailed or subverted into a focus on modern ‘values’ as a degraded substitute for the more substantial and foundational principles. Values, properly thought of, are a superstructure that are built upon a foundation of virtue.

To be clear, I am not proposing a revisitation of the 1960’s and ‘70’s. The transition of ‘virtues’ into ‘values’ in those decades with the consequent transmutation of morals into relative sin-supporting behaviors was nothing less than a rebellion and social revolution. ‘Values,’ in modern, or at least of the ‘New Left’ mentality of the 60’s and 70’s , brought with it the assumptions that all moral ideas and ideals are subjective and relative, that they are mere customs and conventions—that any belief, opinion, attitude, feeling, habit, convention or preference of any individual or group, at any time, for any reason is as good or has as much value as anything else. ‘Tolerance,’ being nonjudgmental, being ‘politically correct,’ being ‘value-free,’ was enthroned as the highest value. And that is where we find ourselves; and that is the crux of the problem—that ‘tolerance’ validates every deviance, therefore deviance no longer exists. I have a big problem with ‘tolerance’ of the intolerable.

In conjunction with our attempting to fix the economy, the middle-east, the border and drug problem with Mexico, our disintegrating families or any of the other multitudinous issues of our time should we not examine our own mind and heart relative to the virtues we subscribe to and live by, or live without, and how they line up with the wisdom of the ages? Shall we not then start to undo the distortions?

Let’s get back on track.