EXPLORING CANAAN - Sex and the City

Sex and the City:

The concept of morality in secular society

New York City has unleashed a new safe-sex campaign in time for Valentine's Day. Apparently they have a wish for their citizens. The slogan of the new brand of condoms, complete with their own packaging and TV commercials, is "Get Some".

The campaign was launched in order to make New York City as "safe place to have sex". Street teams of city health department workers are being distributed throughout the city today (Thursday) to hand out condoms and promotional literature to commuters. Yves Behar, founder of the San Fransico company that designed the condom packaging, stated that "the brand's design...convey openness and acceptability." The television ads feature a mix of hip-hop and jazz music showing scenes of various couples (both heterosexual and homosexual) enjoying life in various venues of the city. The repeated statement "I want to get some", along with the promotion of NYC's own brand of condom, is a not-so-subtle reference to making love.

It is essential for Christians to recognize the that the concept of a 'secular government', as popularly conceived, is a myth. The word 'secular' is defined as being non-religious, but this does not mean it is morally neutral. That is the great myth. Those advocating for secularism are not simultaneously advocating moral neutrality. Yet in popular thought secular government is portrayed simply as the government refusing to advocate one religion over the other. In actuality, secularism, by definition, is a system of morals which excludes the influence of theist-based religious thought. In other words, morals are fine as long as one does not arrive at them through a religious point of view.

Tellingly, the "Humanist Manifesto II, written in 1973, strongly advocated for a moral system within society. The Manifesto declares, "We affirm that moral values derive their source from human experience. Ethics is autonomous and situational, needing no theological or ideological sanction. Ethics stems from human need and interest" [1]. In this system of secular humanism, religion is allowed to play no role in a society's construction of moral values. Morals are not the commands of God, nor are they even the dictates of the laws of nature. Rather, morals are derived from what humans feel they need and want.

The document goes on to say that "Human life has meaning because we create and develop our futures. Happiness and the creative realization of human needs and desires, individually and in shared enjoyment, are continuous themes of humanism [1]. Is it surprising then, that under this system of thought, the officials in New York City would launch an advertising campaign that encourages its populace to "get some"? In such a system, human life only has meaning because they go out an engage in sexual behavior (among other things) which brings them a sense of pleasure and meets a perceived need.

The issue is not about preventing pregnancies or disease. I do not deny there is a large element of motivation for preventing or reducing these consequences. The greater question is which moral system will society use to accomplish their goal of prevention? Historically religion has been the moral system used by society to instill a sense of morality among the population. Yet our contemporary society refuses to consider these systems when engaging in discussions of ethics. In fact, secular society actively opposes even hearing the voice of religion. In 1980 the Humanist Manifesto was updated and expanded. A new document was issued called A Secular Humanist Declaration. Regarding the role of religion, the authors of the declaration state, "We do not think it is moral to baptize infants, to confirm adolesants, or to impose a religious creed on young people before they are able to consent". Later in the paragraph the Declaration affirms, "...these young minds should not be indoctrinated in a faith before they are mature enough to evaluate the merits for themselves" [2]. It is important to note the implications of this both in society and in the family. Not only is it "immoral" for society to teach religious-based morals to children, it is equally immoral for parents to do. Yet secular governmental bodies, such as New York City, do not think it equally wrong to indoctrinate young children with television ads promoting wanton sexuality. The issue is not about choice. If choice of moral systems was truly the motivation than an equal hearing for religion would be given. Secular humanism is crystal clear: they are for choice as long as we choose their system.

In a secular humanistic society the morals of secularism trump all other systems. Like fascist Germany, all other voices are silenced. When it becomes impossible to silence the opposition, the dissenting views are labeled as 'immoral' and 'evil'. In a secular government Christianity is the enemy that will not be tolerated.

Since Valentine's Day 2007 the city of New York has distributed over 36 million condoms.

[1] Humanist Manifesto II (Prometheus Books, 1973). p 17.
[2] A Secular Humanist Declaration (Prometheus Books, 1980) . p 17.