Special

           Your ears will hear a word behind you, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right or to the left. (Isaiah 30:21)

          Sociological studies quoted by Prof. Rodney Stark have shown repeatedly that there are things we can do, choices that we can make that lead to a stronger person, a stronger family, and a stronger society. When you point these things out to others, they are likely to quickly say that “not everyone can live that way.” And they’re correct. There are reasons why some people cannot live according to any given way. There are far more reasons why people will not live according to any given way. But regardless of whether it is actually that they cannot, or just that they claim they cannot because they will not, we seem to have developed a policy that requires that we not only accept that they cannot, but that we celebrate their alternative as being better than (or at worst equal to) the things and choices that make people, families, and societies stronger. In other words, we seem to be of the mind that we must actively contribute to and celebrate what makes people, family, and society weaker so that no one feels excluded except the person who is doing what makes the person, the family, or the society stronger.

          If you look up the types of privilege, one item in the list is marriage privilege. Studies show that being traditionally married can have huge benefits for the persons involved (not just husband and wife, but children – and beyond that to other family members and society.) Yet instead of supporting marriage, there are organizations that actively reject marriage as a norm or even as a recommendation – because doing so aids them in the acquisition of political power. Privilege that is available is to be rejected in favor of  - what is the opposite of privilege? According to the www.powerthesaurus – the opposite of privilege is disadvantage, deprivation, burden, prohibition, disentitlement, detriment, hardship, injustice, disqualification, demerit, handicap, servitude, difficulty, liability, shortcoming, deficiency, impediment, and hoist with one’s own petard.

Some would say that rejecting privilege is showing humility, and they’re very proud of how humble they are. However, the result of rejecting “the way” in favor of blazing a trail for themselves, or in an effort to prove how inclusive one is, is to choose failure because you are “special” and expect everyone to applaud. Have you read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, and Edmund’s problem with wanting to feel special?