Christian activity heightened remarkably in the West during the 20th century because Christians believed that Christ would imminently return within the century. However, that strict Apocalyptic interpretation 1) has ultimately resulted in a broad but shallow Christian presence in the emerging global community and 2) has cultivated within the Modern Christian—at the impulse level—a short-term orientation for both the physical world and for his own physical existence. Nevertheless, Apocalypse has been integral to the Western psyche. Whether the religious End Times or a non-religious nuclear fallout.
With the implosion of that popular Cold War interpretation of the Last Days, the Modern parent must now actually consider that it is far more likely he will die than be raptured. And with disarmament, the non-Christian must now actually consider that it is far more likely he will die in the suburb than be the collateral damage of a Soviet attack. This poses a serious problem for the Modern Christian who has considered himself to be immune from death and for the non-Christian who lived it up in his younger years beause he saw nothing but death and destruction in the future. Both are not prepared for the kind of future that demands a long-term direction that lasts beyond his individual life.
More pertinent to our discussion is that the Modern parent has no long-term direction for his Post-modern child that lasts beyond the life of his child. Further, though the Modern has been able to sustain his view and hope in the Rapture or world war for the short-term, the political, social, and economic problems of his era have not disappeared, nor have they been suspended for his Post-modern child.
It is my understanding that the Modern parent’s unresolved cultural issues have rapidly morphed into new forms of anxiety and, therefore, customary norms for his child. These anxieties and the methods for coping with them is what distinguishes the Post-modern from the Modern. In other words, the current generation gap is not merely the stereotypical gap between parents and their children as we have been told by both Christian and non-Christian sources. It is a cultural gap accompanied with all of the expected upheaval of a cultural gap, because it is fundamentally about a view of truth.
If the cultural gap were merely generational, then little of the culture would be affected. That is because the influence of a stereotypical generation gap is relegated to the small sphere of the parent-child relationship. However, because the concept of truth has been challenged, its influence envelopes the entire culture—from how one views religion, politics, cows or a can opener. Fill in the blank. It doesn't matter.
The new cultural view is total and has been gaining momentum for two decades to the extent that the Modern world and the Modern parent are rapidly becoming marginalized. What the Modern thinks or says either does not matter at all or it does not matter much anymore. There is no nostalgic “going back” to the way that it used to be. Nostalgia might be a temporarily comforting strategy for dealing with such stress for the short-term, but it is not useful or even constructive for the long-term.
What the Modern parent often does not realize is that his children are psychologically oriented for the long-term and must be paced to deal with the long haul of life. The Post-modern child has no cultural concept of an Apocalypse, so he is not hard-wired into thinking there is anything special enough about his generation that would alleviate the normal pressures of humanity for himself. This child is psychologically oriented for the long haul. That means that he knows he will die (after living a "boring" life) and must deal with it.
In addition, he looks at the social, political and economic problems and is exponentially anxious at the global scope of stress his already very personal, stressful future holds. So he is in revolt against the Modern and everything for which the Modern stands. He despises the Modern for the "efficiency" with which the Modern can compartmentalize his life and indefinitely suspend his own anxiety.
The Modern does not see it this way. He sees the hatred with which he is treated as another proof of the decadence of culture to precede the coming of Christ or end of the world. And he is at fault for glorying in it. I knew a family about fourteen years ago. The parents were into church and did not let much of anything else concern them. One day the mother complained to me that she was nervous her nine-year-old was into boys so early. She then proclaimed "But I'm not even going to worry about it, because Jesus is coming back!" Five years later her little daughter was a slut. And the parents did not think they had anything to do with that outcome.
With the implosion of that popular Cold War interpretation of the Last Days, the Modern parent must now actually consider that it is far more likely he will die than be raptured. And with disarmament, the non-Christian must now actually consider that it is far more likely he will die in the suburb than be the collateral damage of a Soviet attack. This poses a serious problem for the Modern Christian who has considered himself to be immune from death and for the non-Christian who lived it up in his younger years beause he saw nothing but death and destruction in the future. Both are not prepared for the kind of future that demands a long-term direction that lasts beyond his individual life.
More pertinent to our discussion is that the Modern parent has no long-term direction for his Post-modern child that lasts beyond the life of his child. Further, though the Modern has been able to sustain his view and hope in the Rapture or world war for the short-term, the political, social, and economic problems of his era have not disappeared, nor have they been suspended for his Post-modern child.
It is my understanding that the Modern parent’s unresolved cultural issues have rapidly morphed into new forms of anxiety and, therefore, customary norms for his child. These anxieties and the methods for coping with them is what distinguishes the Post-modern from the Modern. In other words, the current generation gap is not merely the stereotypical gap between parents and their children as we have been told by both Christian and non-Christian sources. It is a cultural gap accompanied with all of the expected upheaval of a cultural gap, because it is fundamentally about a view of truth.
If the cultural gap were merely generational, then little of the culture would be affected. That is because the influence of a stereotypical generation gap is relegated to the small sphere of the parent-child relationship. However, because the concept of truth has been challenged, its influence envelopes the entire culture—from how one views religion, politics, cows or a can opener. Fill in the blank. It doesn't matter.
The new cultural view is total and has been gaining momentum for two decades to the extent that the Modern world and the Modern parent are rapidly becoming marginalized. What the Modern thinks or says either does not matter at all or it does not matter much anymore. There is no nostalgic “going back” to the way that it used to be. Nostalgia might be a temporarily comforting strategy for dealing with such stress for the short-term, but it is not useful or even constructive for the long-term.
What the Modern parent often does not realize is that his children are psychologically oriented for the long-term and must be paced to deal with the long haul of life. The Post-modern child has no cultural concept of an Apocalypse, so he is not hard-wired into thinking there is anything special enough about his generation that would alleviate the normal pressures of humanity for himself. This child is psychologically oriented for the long haul. That means that he knows he will die (after living a "boring" life) and must deal with it.
In addition, he looks at the social, political and economic problems and is exponentially anxious at the global scope of stress his already very personal, stressful future holds. So he is in revolt against the Modern and everything for which the Modern stands. He despises the Modern for the "efficiency" with which the Modern can compartmentalize his life and indefinitely suspend his own anxiety.
The Modern does not see it this way. He sees the hatred with which he is treated as another proof of the decadence of culture to precede the coming of Christ or end of the world. And he is at fault for glorying in it. I knew a family about fourteen years ago. The parents were into church and did not let much of anything else concern them. One day the mother complained to me that she was nervous her nine-year-old was into boys so early. She then proclaimed "But I'm not even going to worry about it, because Jesus is coming back!" Five years later her little daughter was a slut. And the parents did not think they had anything to do with that outcome.
