The Great Divide (between red and blue)

My son with his new
Uncle Si blanket

C

hristmas is over and we now have one week until the New Year. This is the week when many of us think back on the year—and on prior years—and try to make adjustments that will improve our lives going forward. Usually these adjustments are considered very personal New Year’s Resolutions. But the past few weeks have brought clarity to my mind about how far our nation has fallen from the great God-honoring nation it was when it was first founded.

I had a discussion with a good friend for whom I have the greatest respect about the Duck Dynasty/Phil Robertson flap. This friend sees things from a much more liberal point of view, but does not walk in lock-step with the Democrats. I see things from a Christian viewpoint with a strong conservative/libertarian bent. So our conversation was interesting and fun.

My family obviously falls in the
Duck Dynasty and not
Pajama Boy camp

Through the course of that conversation, I began to recognize that much of the difference between those who support Phil Robertson (typically traditional conservatives) and those who oppose him (typically liberals) is simply a difference in what we find laudable and what we find reprehensible. It has very little to do with who Phil Robertson is and it has very little to do with federal protected rights, such as freedom of speech. It is much more about the propensity of conservatives to respect those who are strongly religious and to find behavior that violates biblical commandments reprehensible contrasted with the propensity of liberals to find anti-biblical behavior to be a laudable exercise of personal freedom and to be abhorred with anyone who seeks to limit their own passions according to scriptural mandate.

I found myself at a loss for words when trying to address this apparent divide, but then I read the following blogpost, which I am reproducing in its entirety here to encourage you to read it. But please visit the original site if you get the chance.

Why We’re Raising ‘Duck Dynasty’ Boys,
and Not ‘Pajama Boys’

By Trevor Thomas

After Phil Robertson told the truth to GQ Magazine (though in a rather colorful way) about homosexuality, liberals went into their predictable hypocritical hyperventilation. While slamming Robertson’s (and essentially the Bible’s) views on homosexuality and sin (which are shared by tens of millions of Americans), liberals completely ignored (read: had absolutely no problem with) what were by far the most offensive things in the GQ interview.

Authored by Drew Magary, the column is replete with dripping sarcasm along with plenty of vulgar and foul language. In the very first paragraph, referring to Mr. Robertson’s large crossbow, Magary says “It looks like you could shoot through a god-mn mountain with it.” Of course, if one doesn't believe what the Bible says anyway, what harm is there in swearing with God’s name?

Just two sentences later, Magary writes, “The bow is cocked and loaded, just in case a deer stumbles in front of us and we need to do a redneck drive-by on the poor b-stard...” The f-bomb is dropped more than once, along with several other foul words and crude references. Seemingly, none of this bothers the left. No, they are offended by Scripture quotations that contradict their liberal worldview.

As Matt Lewis of the Daily Caller points out, such a worldview much prefers “Pajama Boy” to the boys of “Duck Dynasty.” As Lewis noted in his column, “There is a huge schism between red state America and blue state America, and these two stories seem to symbolize the yawning chasm.” However wide this chasm, as a father of four, three of whom are boys (ages 5, 9, and 11), one thing is clear to me: I’m raising “Duck Dynasty” boys, not “Pajama” boys.

Now, my boys love their cozy pajamas and hot chocolate, but they are also learning to shoot (guns and bows), hunt, and fish. Last Christmas I gave my two older boys junior compound bows. This year they have fished for and caught crappie and trout. My two older boys also won a "Turkey Shoot" with BB guns -- the prize being a frozen turkey -- at a local fall festival this year. Below is a recent photo of our boys with our only daughter Caroline, which my wife proudly posted on Facebook along with the caption shown.

“You may come calling boys, but you must meet my brothers first.”

Don’t worry, libs, along with our children’s outdoor exploits, our home has an extensive library of hundreds of books. My wife, who is in charge of homeschooling our four children, has made sure of that. Each of our three older children, including our daughter, also takes karate and piano classes. So along with learning how to clean a trout, this year Caleb, Jesse, and Caroline learned to play a “Mozart Themed” Sleigh-ride.

I have an undergraduate degree in physics and two graduate degrees in mathematics education. I have taught mathematics in public and private schools for 20 years. My wife has an undergraduate degree in sociology, graduated summa cum laude, and was valedictorian of her college class. She has also recently authored a book. Our children will receive one of the best K-12 educations of any child in the country.

I’m not nearly the outdoorsman that the Robertsons are, and my wife can’t stand camouflage, but whether my children prefer sipping hot chocolate (like Uncle Si, I prefer sweet tea) or shooting a gun, most importantly, our children are being taught from a Christian worldview.

Yes, that means that among other things, they are learning that, along with adultery, fornication, and bestiality, homosexual behavior is sin. They are also learning that they are created in the image and likeness of God, and that all human life, from the moment of conception, is especially precious. And they are learning that in the world today, both abortion and homosexuality are uniquely heinous.

Why the focus on these two particular issues? Because the greatest lie ever told is that there is no God. The second greatest lie ever told is that the devil does not exist. The third greatest lie ever told is that your sin (and mine) is not really sin, and this is exactly what is happening with homosexuality and abortion.

For decades in the U.S. there has been a movement spearheaded by many well-funded organizations devoted to preaching the value and legitimacy of abortion, homosexuality, and a redefining of marriage. In other words, tens of millions of Americans have been preached the lie that homosexual behavior and killing a child in the womb are not sin. My children are learning the truth in these grave matters.

As Joel Belz of World Magazine noted several years ago, it is time for conservative Christians to “stop apologizing” for the attention we give the issues of homosexuality and abortion. Like Phil Robertson, it is time for more Christian celebrities to take on these issues. Time and again we see homosexuality portrayed in music, movies, and television as nothing but normal, acceptable behavior.

There is virtually nothing in the secular media that portrays the other side of homosexuality and similar issues. Such absence impacts our culture. There is no doubt that public opinion on homosexuality and same-sex marriage has been swayed toward a more liberal view of these matters in no small part due to the media campaign that favors them.

If we stay silent, what happens? Television networks will pull the Phil Robertsons (and the Craig Jameses) from the air. Of course, supposedly networks such as Fox and A&E have the "right" to make such decisions, but photographers, bakers, and florists with Christian views on homosexuality and marriage don’t. Such small businesses are sued and even held liable by our courts for refusing services to same-sex couples.

Even worse, once the homosexual agenda (which, we must not forget, includes those who are "transgendered") has the full force of the law behind it, public schools will teach that homosexual behavior and same-sex marriage are good and right. In school systems like Los Angeles, it’s already happening. Likewise, schools (certainly public, probably private as well) will be forced to accommodate “transgendered” children. [Link 1 Boston Globe | Link 2 Fox News | Link 3 - Christian Newswire]

What’s more, state constitutions that have amendments defining marriage as a union of one man and one woman are proving to be not enough to stop the homosexual agenda from progressing on the marriage front. Just days ago, a federal judge ruled Utah's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. Like almost all of the 28 other states with similar bans, in 2004 the citizens of Utah passed the ban by an overwhelming 66% to 34% majority.

If America wants to stop this madness where good is called evil and evil is called good, we must change our culture. This fight begins with our families. Liberals know this. This is why almost exclusively the "culture wars" being fought in the U.S. are an attack on the family. In other words, if we want to change our culture, we better start raising our kids with a worldview like that of the cast of "Duck Dynasty" instead of the worldview that govern "Pajama Boy" and his big sister, Julia.