Dear Readers,
I have a passion for reading dystopian novels. I’m not sure why, perhaps because they offer such a clear warning of where sin takes us. Now that we’re actually experiencing dystopia every day, I realize how prophetic many of those novels were! The left echoes Orwell’s 1984 by constantly rewriting history, word manipulation, destruction of monuments, nonstop surveillance, attack on free speech and thought crime, etc. We’ve long suffered Huxley’s ugly vision of the Brave New World of drug abuse, sexual immorality, destruction of the family, and the elevation of feeling over reason. As the evil bureaucratic deep state continues to crush our freedoms, I’m reminded of C.S. Lewis’ That Hideous Strength where a tiny, but powerful minority runs the world.
Yes, evil lurks over us like it did in all those dystopian communities where evil elitists call the shots and treat the masses as their slaves. It’s interesting to note that the atheists who write those novels always end on a note of despair. Their protagonists succumb to despair and suicide. Christian novelists, on the other hand, end on a note of hope. The bureaucracy is destroyed in Lewis’ novel. Katniss from The Hunger Games, written by Catholic author Suzanne Collins, defeats the Capitol and she and Peeta make a home and build a family. And that is the difference between dystopian novels written by atheists vs. Christian novels depicting a future filled with hope and joy.
“The greatness of our love of God must be tested by the desire we have of suffering for His love.”
St. Philip Neri,
Patron Saint of Rome, Joy,
and
The United States Special Forces
So how should we respond as we live in our own dystopia where good is portrayed as evil and evil as good? I suggest that now is not the time to wring our hands and play creepy songs from the crypt. Not at all! It is, rather, a time to rejoice. “You must be kidding!” you say. No, I respond, I’m not. At Mass recently, Father said that a friend described this as a time when “the haloes are flying low.” Wow! Absolutely! Those blessed to live in times of persecution and evil have a unique opportunity to witness to the truth and be God’s instrument to save many souls from hell. Evil times often wake up the sleepers. Even the near comatose may be shaken out of their lethargy. What a blessing!
Scripture and the saints give us the antidote to poisonous times. “Rejoice in all things!” Rejoice everywhere and every minute to prepare for the work and give those around you curiosity about the source of the “hope within you.” Be ready to tell them! And now, I’m curious. How do you rejoice when you’re scared or tempted to discouragement? What is your prescription?