Traditional American Values

There is a saying among conservatives today that we need to “return to our traditional American values.” These “traditional American values,” do they include 200 years of slavery and 100 years of racism against black people, Hispanic people, Chinese people, Japanese people, and Irish people? These are all part of our "tradition." Our tradition includes 100 years of drunkenness and 14 years of probation. Assuming a 10% alcoholic percentage, the per-capita drinking in 1790 was 60 gallons of alcoholic beverages a year, or five gallons a month. The many temperance societies that sprang up in the 19th century were founded because the nation was drunk. This was our American tradition.

Apparently we do not like our traditional American values, because we keep changing them. They now include same sex marriage, sex outside of marriage, abortion, and divorce. These were not part of our values 100 years ago.

Here are a few biblical values: “God defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow and the alien, giving him food and clothing, and you are to love those who are aliens.” We are also to love God, our neighbors, our brothers, our wives, and our enemies.

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22).

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