A great Eastern philosopher named Confucius once made a profound quote on what would today be called moral relativism: “When words lose their meaning, people lose their lives.” Despite this concept being stated over 2,500 years ago, the saying has not lost any implication or significance when compared with modern-day Western society. The failure of the Western world and Christianity to recognize the threat of moral relativism has caused immense social conflict.

To begin, “Moral relativism is the position that moral or ethical propositions do not reflect objective and/or universal moral truths, but instead make claims relative to social, cultural, historical or personal circumstances.” In short, this simply states that each opinion, no matter how conflicting, is equally valid. Since each person is molded into having their opinion by what or who is around them, no real truths can exist. This is what occurs when I say to someone “Truth exists,” and they respond in such a manner as “That is just your opinion.”

The existence of moral relativism and the sway it has in the thought of common man has led him to part from traditional social values that would otherwise be taken for granted. In my opinion, Confucius’ quote is almost more relevant now than at any other point in history. Many current issues are a result of moral relativism. For example, the current discussion on abortion can be traced to this concept and with it a failure to define one simple word: “human.” Anti-abortionists define the mass of tissue living within a mother as human, while pro-abortionists say that it is not. Recall the scenario where I say to someone “Truth exists,” and they reply “That is just your opinion.” The argument over abortion today is essentially the side of those against it, who declare that truth exists, and those for it, who insist that it is a matter of opinion.

The common argument used by those who are against abortion is to say that it is wrong to kill an unborn human, simply because it always has been. Societies and even God have always said that it is wrong to kill people, so naturally it is wrong to kill unborn ones. This argument is based on a belief in a set right and wrong. Contrastingly, the argument most commonly used by pro-abortionists is that the thing existing inside of a mother is, in fact, not a people at all. Often they will admit that even if it were human, it would be ok to abort it because it is merely a part of the woman’s body and she should decide what she will do with it. This is the position of relativism. The woman gets to define what she does with the fetus because in relativism, she lives by her own standards.

Pertaining to the abortion debate, Confucius’ meaning is quite literally true. In taking the side of pro-choice supporters, and therefore that of objective truth, abortion has cost millions of lives. Modern estimates put the number of unborn babies aborted since legalization in 1973 at 57,762,169.

I believe that our society has lost its moral compass. The debate over truth has only created more confusion than can becontained. In all of history, relativism has never been a major societal issue until now. Why? Our society as a whole has decided to turn from the ultimate source of objective truth, the One God. Western society has changed from one that took a belief in God for granted to one that disdains it. In doing so, it created moral relativism. Relativism is no more than a tool by which man can make himself his own god. If there is no objective truth, then naturally each man can speak for himself in justifying his actions.

The Bible speaks to this in 2 Corinthians. It reads,

“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4, ESV)

As Christians, it is our responsibility to be an example to and pray for those who have fallen into the trap of relativism.

I believe that Christianity has the ability to bring light and reason to those under the influence of relativism, but it has failed to do so. Often, when Christians are faced with conflict that cannot be solved by simply inviting people to church, they pull back into the Christian bubble and disengage from the world. This is the worst possible thing that we can do. I encourage Christians to research arguments for and against topics such as relativism so that they can properly give a defense for the faith.

Sources:

1 “Quotable Quote.” Goodreads. Goodreads Inc., 2015. Web. 13 Aug. 2015. <http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/955817-where-words...

2 “Moral Relativism.” The Basics of Philosophy. 2008. Web. 13 Aug. 2015. <http://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_moral_relat...>.

3 “Reported Annual Abortions.” National Right to Life News. Web. 13 Aug. 2015. <http://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/news/wpcontent/uploads/2012/01/statsre .jpg>

4 “2 Corinthians 4.” Bible Gateway. Crossway Bibles. Web. 13 Aug. 2015. <https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2 C...>.