Welcome to the Big Picture Podcast.  Once again it’s time to hang out with the Late ‘Boomer as he continues to mop up the societal mess left by his generation, the Baby Boomers. Today’s thoughts on the Baby Boomer legacy are in reaction to an article I came across a while back, which was actually one of the things that started the wheels turning in the Late ‘Boomers head and eventually led to this segment. The article was written by my very favorite thinker on society, author and talk show host Dennis Prager. Dennis is an Early ‘Boomer (1948), and he makes no secret on his show, or anywhere else, the contempt he has for his generation. A few years ago he posted a parody article at Townhall.com (also on his web site at dennisprager.com) entitled “Baby Boomers Owe America’s Young People an Apology”. I’m not big on cultural/political apologies, and neither is Dennis, but in the hyper-sensitive world we live in, where apologizing for past sins is demanded to appease every victim group imaginable, his parodic points are well taken; and most notably these two, and I’m now quoting from the article:

“Our generation came up with two truly foolish slogans that also ended up robbing you (America’s young people, my parentheses) of childhood.

One was, “Never trust anyone over 30.” Our infantile attitude toward adult authority has inflicted great harm on you. Because of it, many baby boomers decided not to become adults, and this has had disastrous consequences in your lives

The other slogan whose awful consequences we baby boomers bequeathed to you was, “Make love, not war”.

We made you anti-war and almost completely sexualized your lives.”

Dennis also offers apologies for making our children weak by ensuring that they avoided pain, another one for ruining their education by politicizing schools and colleges, and another for the drug culture that’s been unleashed on them by the Baby Boomers, and a special apology is offered to young women for the farce of modern feminism.

Again, I’m no fan of these types of apologies, but if I were, I’d add one for robbing our children of their hope for a bright future through hysterical environmental extremism, and another for the mass murder of their siblings through abortion. Then I’d sum it all up with a big “I’m SORRY” for our biggest offense against our children, which is the abandoning our responsibility to bring them up in the training and admonition of the God of their grandparents, simply because someone told us that He was “dead”, and we believed them.

Again, you can read Dennis Prager’s article at dennisprager.com. This is the Late ‘Boomer, thanks for hangin’ out.

 

In closing, it’s time for the Great Cloud Of Witnesses, the segment of our podcast where we meet and hear the stories of those who have given, and some who are still giving, their lives by faith in the promises of God, and of whom the world was and is not worthy (if you don’t know that reference, please check out Hebrews chapter 11 & 12 in your Bible). For today’s witness I want to visit one last time, at least for a little while, the life and stories of Richard Wurmbrand of Romania, whose life was so relevant to the times of the ‘boomers. If you remember from our previous stories of Richard and Sabina, his wife, they endured years of horrific torture and imprisonment by the Romanian Communist government for their ministry and witness for Christ before finally being exiled to the United States. This story picks up after the fall of the Iron Curtain, and it goes like this.

In 1991, the Communist government put on a new face.  They feared being overrun by their citizens who hated their activities.  They begged Romanian pastors to preach – even in public places.  However, they mandated that the pastors preach a specific message:  Love for One’s Enemies, so that the people would forgive them.

The government felt that they could manipulate the Christian message for their own gain.  The Christians gladly took up the call and began preaching openly.  Although they knew that the government’s motive was for its own self-preservation.

But some thought, “Why should we teach the oppressed to love their oppressors?”  They thought this message of forgiveness would strengthen the hand of the government.

It was into this atmosphere that Pastor Richard Wurmbrand returned after 25 years of living in exile.

He was invited to preach on Romanian television, where he stressed the message of “Love Your Enemies”.

The Church was convicted by his words:  Love, just because it is love, exposes itself to all risks, even the risk of being misused by the wicked.  In order to win all, we must not give up teaching love for one’s enemies.  Even though, for a time, God haters profit at our expense.  We believe that the Word is God; and in the end, His Word will change the hearts of even those who hate God.

And once again, we see Pastor Wurmbrand’s great faith, and why he has joined the great cloud of witnesses, of whom the world is not worthy.