Kentucky Secularists Open Date Skirmish in Culture War

On April 10, the Year of Our Lord 2006, the Kentucky State Board of Education decided that text books used in that state would display the "BCE" (Before the Common Era) and CE (Common Era) year designations alongside the traditional BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno Domini – in the Year of Our Lord). According to an AP story (see http://www.courier- journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060411/NEWS0104/60411065) published on the following day, the original proposal was to replace the traditional abbreviations with the politically correct versions. Presumably the board feared a public backlash in Kentucky, a Bible Belt state, and backed away from that more radical step.

The movement to replace the traditional Christ-centered date terminology with secular euphemisms is part of the wider culture war being waged in America and the western countries in general. Everywhere we look we see "Happy Holidays" substituted for "Merry Christmas," "spring break" for "Easter vacation," etc. Even the Easter Bunny, as little as he has to do with celebrating the resurrection of Jesus, is banned from some institutions for fear that seeing a bunny might make someone think of that offensive word "Easter."

What all of this has in common is the systematic removal from accepted speech of anything that reminds the hearer of the Christian origins and foundation of western civilization. The consistent excuse is to avoid offending non-Christian minorities. It's just too bad if we offend even more people among the Christian majority.

Isn't it strange that we continue to have holidays (read "holy days") at the times when Christmas and Easter are celebrated, but we just don't dare call those holidays by their right names? That we tolerate public prayer as long as God isn't mentioned? That we continue to center our date system around the incarnation of Jesus Christ (2006 AD is the same as 2006 CE), but we try to hide the connection?

How is it that the political correctness sourpusses can push around a majority the way they do? One problem is that Christians are generally nice people who are open to arguments about not offending others. Christians need to remember that Jesus said "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to 'set a man against his father…' "

What He was saying, of course, is that the Christian message would be controversial, and that Christians should not roll over when their beliefs are challenged. In the present culture war, Christians should be reminding everyone of the value of our Christian foundation. Instead most of us seem all too ready to allow that foundation to be denied, devalued or obscured with euphemisms.

The most discouraging part of the Kentucky story is the reaction of several Christians who approved of the BCE and CE change. Here are a couple of them quoted in an April 18 article on the WorldNetDaily web site (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49786): "Anissa Willis, a Lexington, Ky., parent, told the Louisville Courier-Journal using C.E. and B.C.E is 'more in keeping with academia.' 'That seems appropriate to me, and it's also much more universally recognized, said Willis, an Episcopal priest.' "

If I were to use these terms or allow my children to be taught to use them, I would feel that I was dangerously close to "denying Christ." Jesus had this to say about that: "But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven."

Of course, Christians in Kentucky should work to replace their erring school board members. More generally, American Christians should react to pressure to hide the influence of Christ by making our commitment more open and obvious.

When the "happy holidays" craze became common, my family's reaction was to start wishing people a "blessed Christmas" where before we had said "merry Christmas." Maybe it's time now to append BC or AD to every date; even better, just say "Before Christ" or "in the Year of our Lord" whenever we provide a date.

The culture war isn't simply going to go away. Assaults on public affirmation of faith will only get more brazen as the secularists taste victory. Whatever we do, Christians should not let the war be lost by default.