Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. (Luke 23:34)

In 1948, General Omar Bradley observed in an Armistice Day address:

We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount…The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.

How true!

Today, we have replaced truths with opinions, character for influence, and kindness for efficiency. Consider the plight of those with disabilities.

In 2018, Iceland boasted it had eradicated Down syndrome. They did it by a “search and destroy” approach to prenatal testing. England now claims that nearly 90% of its babies conceived and diagnosed as potentially having Down syndrome are aborted.

For all of our scientific progress, we failed to mature ethically.

Jesus observed,

Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold. (Matthew 24:12)

Technology to “search and destroy” those deemed burdensome to a productive society is enough to send a chill down anyone’s spine. As society steps further from God and embraces self-gratification, it is easy to feel the temperature drop.

Perhaps we are missing something.

Jesus spoke those words while teaching his disciples. It was a warning to them and to us that as wickedness abounds, our own sacrificial love for others very well may chill. We lose the drive to give, help, and sacrifice. We tell ourselves that we might never do prenatal search and destroy. Still, ask yourself what you have done to support those with disabilities and troubled pregnancies and support caregivers.

Yes, wickedness was freezing out the heathen a long time ago. What is it doing for us today?

People get absorbed into societal values by assimilation. We hear things long enough, and we start to believe them. People remind us that we have our own worries, and we stop caring for others.

Christ prayed for and died for the forgiveness of his own people, who “did not know what they were doing.” You can well imagine the eye-opening experience for those people when they met the risen Savior.

Let us not repeat their mistake. We must recognize the dangers and our own vulnerabilities. Be an active force of kindness, love, and charity. After all, we have the perfect example to imitate.