Wednesday, January 25, 2012

"We live in...

... a culture where our marketers and entertainment media compulsively mislead us about the sustainability of youth; the indignity of old age; the avoidance of suffering; the denial of death; the nature of real beauty; the impermanence of every human love; the oppressiveness of children and family; the silliness of virtue; and the cynicism of religious faith. It’s a culture of fantasy, selfishness, sexual confusion and illness that we’ve brought upon ourselves. And we’ve done it by misusing the freedom that other -- and greater -- generations than our own worked for, bled for and bequeathed to our safe-keeping.

What have we done with that freedom? In whose service do we use it now?"

Read more on this here.

4 comments:

Manny said...

This was a wonderful blog Joanna. I agree. The only qualification I would make is that the marketeers and entertainers are just following the culture. The culture itself is the root of the problem.

Elizabeth said...

Well if that doesn't get Catholic pulses racing in Philadelphia, I can't think what will.

I don't know how old you are Manny,I grew up in the 1940's and fifties,before there was much TV, and I think that culture has followed entertainment. Now they have become incestuous and they feed one another...
marketeers?...just say "No"

TL said...

What a wonderful speech. I wonder what we can do to support Catholics in America who must now fight against the contraception/sterilization mandate? (= the fact that Catholic hospitals will be obliged to provide contraceptives and sterilisation procedures)?

johnf said...

A fantastic speech with a quotable quote that memorably sticks in my mind

"Evil talks about tolerance only when it’s weak. When it gains the upper hand, its vanity always requires the destruction of the good and the innocent, because the example of good and innocent lives is an ongoing witness against it. So it always has been. So it always will be."

Thank you for drawing this to our attention.