Babel, All Over Again!

Babel is the story of a nation that sought to glorify themselves, rather than God. They were so proud of their achievements that they began to believe they were gods, and had no need of the God they used to worship. They ended in failure as a nation, confusion, and dispersion throughout the world. They were no longer “one” people, one nation, under God. Their language was confused so that they could no longer communicate with one another. They all spoke a different language. (Gen. 11)

Today, in America, we seem to be experiencing the same fate as Babel. We are no longer one people, one nation under God. We have come to believe that we are God, and the God we used to worship is merely, a figment of our ego and imagination that we must overcome. Our language has become fragmented and confused, merely babel, making no sense. We can no longer communicate with each other; no longer relate to each other as brothers and sisters. Our words are gibberish and out of context. Not only has our language been confused, but our perception has been confused. We have become blinded by our pride and have lost our identity as the persons we were created to be.

Personality disorders and other mental illnesses have reached epidemic proportions. These disorders affect every family and every person to some degree. We have lost out integrity as human persons; our wholeness of body, mind, and soul. We have become splintered and schizophrenic. Our body, mind, and soul no longer work together in harmony and unity. Perhaps, it never did.

Some people see themselves as a skinny person in a fat body, or a fat person in a skinny body. Some people see themselves as a man in a woman’s body, or a woman in a man’s body. Some people see themselves as a man and a woman in one body that is either male or female. Some people see themselves as women in a woman’s body or men in a man’s body, but they hate their body. They are never happy in their body, or grateful for the life they have been given. They spend their lives trying to change their bodies, and keep their bodies from aging. Others hate their persona, their temperaments, characteristics, and unique gifts and talents. They always want to be someone else, or to be what others want them to be. Still, others see themselves as perfect; more beautiful, wise, charming, talented and gifted than everyone else. They magnify all the positive qualities in themselves and deny anything negative.

We are becoming a people without love; love for God, others, and ourselves. We are a nation that has been overcome by pride, greed, envy, gluttony, laziness, anger, hatred, lust, jealousy, indifference, apathy, violence, decadence, selfishness, division, factions, tyranny, narcissism, individualism, rationalism, relativism, egoism, and unbridled restlessness. What is even worse, we are in denial of our insanity, our mental and emotional disorders, and our selfishness and sin. Instead, we have normalized them and call them “human nature,” and even demand our right to act them out. We have converted our free will into “civil rights,” without any consideration for the will of God, or the common good of humanity. We have become a nation that is divided and fragmented, and no longer able to communicate or be in relationship with others. Is the fate of Babel our fate, as well?

Who will save us from our self-destruction? We need a new Pentecost. We need to repent and be baptized in the Holy Spirit by Jesus. Pray for a new Pentecost in our times.