Meltdown at Madame Tussauds

1
Meltdown at Madame Tussauds

• Meltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- the queen is
  losing facemeltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- a
  national disgraceit's the middle of the night at
  the London shrinecould have been the janitor,
  could have been divinesomeone said the
  thermostat never did worknow we've got the
  temperature going berserk

I thought I heard a ghost say'had my hands in my
pockets on the Judgment Daynobody told me
there's fire in the holehad the world by the
tail but I lost my soul
Meltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- the queen is
losing facemeltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- a
national disgracecelebrities, statesmen,
history's elitethey're dripping in the hallways,
they're stating to secretethey're pouring out
the pores, they're shrinking on the spotsomeone
take a photograph-- get 'em while they're hot
Meltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- a rock roll
hotelmeltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- they're
blending very wellElvis and the Beatles have
seen a better daybetter off to burn out than to
melt awayDylan my be fillin' the puddle they
designedIs it going to take a miracle to make up
his mind?
Meltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- athletes on the
floormeltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- they're
running out the doorbad boy McEnroe couldn't
keep his coolnow he's with the rest of 'em
wading in the pool"Howard Hughes--- Billionaire"
says the written guidepity that his assets have
all been liquefied
Meltdown at Madame Tusdaud's-- the president
looks alarmedmeltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- a
general's been disarmedfeverish at Fleet
Street--- the story of the year'Get The
Facts--- House of Wax Photo Souvenir''Shameful'
says the Times, 'Maybe Done by Vandals'panic on
Wall Street-- put your stock in candles
2
Meltdown at Madame Tussauds

• 'Celebrity status only got in the wayhad my
  hands in my pocket on the Judgment Dayyou can't
  take it with you-- there's fire in the holehad
  the world by the tail but I lost my soul'

Meltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- the queen is
losing facemeltdown at Madame Tussaud's-- a
national disgracedown in the dungeon-- the
Chamber of Horrorslook at all the criminals
soften to the coresthey're mixing with the heads
of state floating down the lanegood, bad, there
they go down the same drain
3
Ethics

• Introduction to Ethics (8-1-1)

I. From where do moral values come?
II. How are moral values known?
III. Are moral values absolute or relative?
IV. What is the highest good?
A. Hedonism
B. Pragmatism/utilitarianism
C. Legalism
D. Situation ethics
E. Cultural relativism
4
Ethics

• Dilemma of Humanistic Ethics

5
The New Absolutes
6
The New Absolutes

• We are absolutists, despite any rhetoric to the
  contrary.
• These new absolutes are not simply slight
  modifications of the old truths.
• These new absolutes are worldviews in collision.

7
The Rule of Relativism

• Whats true for you may not be true for me.
• Makes truth person-dependent.
• No culture is better or worse than another.
• Known as cultural relativism. No cultural
  code has special status.
• There are no objective morals, just differing
  opinions.
• The belief that truth/error, right/wrong are
  determined by the individual.

8
Moral relativism cartoon
9
The Rule of Relativism

• Other expressions of relativism
• Just go with the flow.
• If it feels good, do it.
• Anything goes.
• One persons art is another persons
  pornography.
• Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
• Whatever.

10
One exampleof the loss ofbiblical absolutes
11
Loss of Absolutes

• Americans are making up their own rules, their
  own laws.
• Only 13 of us believe in all Ten Commandments.
• Only 40 believe in five of the Ten Commandments.

12
Loss of Absolutes

• We choose which laws of God we believe in.
• There is absolutely no moral consensus in this
  country as there was in the 1950s, when all our
  institutions commanded more respect.

13
Adopting New Absolutes

• Instead of abandoning absolutes, we are adopting
  new ones.
• A true relativist would not be upset when facing
  opposite views.
• They really dont have a live-and-let-live
  attitude.

14
Betrayal of Behavior

• We find many examples of moral outrage.
• We also find examples of hypocrisy
• Tolerance
• Pluralism
• Multiculturalism

15
Examples of Hypocrisy

• Tolerance - Those who scream for tolerance often
  restrict others through political correctness.
• Pluralism - In the name of pluralism, secularists
  are determined to push religion out of the public
  arena.
• Multiculturalism - Multiculturalists commend
  other cultures but condemn the West for its
  cultural practices.

16
Human Rights Language

• People use human rights language to support
  their views
• Must be grounded in the kinds of being that we
  are.
• Must differ from civil rights which are granted
  by government.
• Must apply to all human beings.
• Must apply to all times and all places

17
Worlds in Collision

• People cheat on their taxes, steal from their
  employers, live promiscuously, sell drugs.
• But they are not genuine relativists.
• They complain when someone steals from them,
  cheats on them, or destroys their kids with drugs.

18
The TenNew Absolutes
19
1. Freedom from Religion

• Old Religion is the backbone of American
  culture, providing the moral and spiritual light
  needed for public and private life.
• New Religion is the bane of public life, so for
  the public good it should be banned from the
  public square.

20
Christianity and Culture

• Christianity went from being a minority to
  becoming a monopoly to a majority back to a
  minority.
• Gravedigger hypothesis
• Christianity (Protestant Reformation) led to the
  rise of the modern world.
• Now the modern world is digging the grave of
  Christianity.

21
2. Death

• Old Human life from conception to natural death
  is sacred and worthy of protection.
• New Human life, which begins and ends when
  certain individuals or groups decide it does, is
  valuable as long as it is wanted.

22
Sanctity of Life

• Christianity taught the sanctity of human life.
• Now our world judges your value on the basis of
  your quality of life.
• Abortion, infanticide, and euthanasia.

23
Killing a newborn baby, whether able-bodied or
not, I think, is never equivalent to killing a
being who wants to go on living Killing a
defective infant is not morally equivalent to
killing a person. Sometimes it is not wrong at
all.     - Peter Singer, Professor of Ethics in
the Center for Human Values at Princeton
University
24
3. Marriage

• Old The institution of marriage is God-ordained
  and occurs between a man and a woman until death
  severs the bond.
• New Marriage is a human contract made between
  any two people, and either party can terminate it
  for any reason.

25
Death of Marriage

• Two leading causes for the decline of marriage
  rates in the world
• Divorce (no-fault divorce)
• Cohabitation (living together)

26
4. Family

• Old The normative family is a married father
  and mother who raise one or more children.
• New Family is any grouping of two or more
  people with or without children.

27
The New Family

• Change from the nuclear family to a different
  type of family structure.
• Social changes in the 21st century family
• Dual income
• Smaller families
• Non-traditional families
• Additional change same-sex marriage.

28
5. Sexual Relations

• Old Sexual intercourse should be reserved for
  marriage.
• New Sexual intercourse is permissible
  regardless of marital status.

29
New Sexual Rules

• Premarital sex
• Extramarital sex
• Cohabitation
• Homosexuality

30
6. Sexual Deviance

• Old Same-sex and bi-sexual intercourse are
  immoral.
• New All forms and combinations of sexual
  activity are moral as long as they occur between
  consenting adults.

31
7. Women

• Old Women should be protected and nurtured but
  not granted social equality.
• New Women are oppressed by men and must
  liberate themselves by controlling their own
  bodies and therefore their destinies.

32
8. Racial Relations

• Old All white people are created equal and
  should be treated with dignity and respect.
• New All human beings are created equal and
  should be treated with dignity and respect, but
  people of color should receive preferential
  treatment.

33
9. History

• Old Western civilization and its heritage
  should be studied and valued above others.
• New Non-Western societies and other oppressed
  peoples and their heritage should be studied and
  valued above Western civilization.

34
10. Politically Correct

• Old Different perspectives should be heard and
  tolerated, but only the true and right ones
  should prevail.
• New Only those viewpoints deemed politically
  correct should be tolerated and encouraged to
  prevail.

35
What Can We Do?

• Reality is on our side
• Recognize sloganeering
• Point out the hypocrisy

36
sunset
37
Ethics

• 8-2-2

38
Ethics

• Justification of the Use of Force and Terror by
  Marxists

• Morality is ever-changing as society is
  ever-changing so no absolute morality is
  possible.

• Religious morality is dismissed as a bourgeoisie
  (middle-class) conspiracy to oppress the working
  man.

• Hatred of and even violence against the
  bourgeoisie is justified in the name of the
  class-struggle.

• Anything done in the name of the class-struggle
  is moral.

39
Ethics

• Ethics cartoon

40
Ethics

• Chart Ethical Systems 8-5-1

41
Ethics

• Experimenting with the Ten Commandments

1. How are ethics and evolution linked by Secular
Humanists?
2. Why must the secular worldviews reject ethical
absolutes?
3. What dangers exist when the Secular Humanists
assume themselves to be the only appropriate
authority on ethics?
42
Ethics

• Christian Ethics
• Based on the character of God

First Implication Evil is only good perverted.

• Everything God created is good evil is only an
  ugly parody of the good.

• Evil is not the opposite of good any more than
  cold is the opposite of heat.

• The origin of evil the rebellion.

43
Ethics

• Christian Ethics
• Based on the character of God

Second Implication Moral values can be known
both by intuition and by revelation.

• First Level Morality is inscribed on the
  conscience, but imperfectly (Romans 214-15
  Proverbs 1412).

• Second Level Morality is revealed more fully in
  Scripture (Deuteronomy 2929).

• Third Level Morality is revealed consummately
  in Christ (John 114-18).

44
Ethics

• True/False Quiz 9-3-1

45
Ethics

• Matching Biblical Ethics 9-4-1