OPINION:
When a culture feeds its inhabitants a series of lies that demean and downplay the value of life, it’s only natural for chaos to ensue — for those consuming these mistruths to be individually and collectively let astray.
And, tragically, American society has too often actively diminished human life. It starts in the bowels of public school classrooms, where children are systematically taught that the origins of human life and the universe are somehow accidental or emerged by some bizarre chance.
Often well-motivated by an obsessive effort to serve pluralist ideals, this notion sends a message that people aren’t created with purpose or divine meaning.
Then you have the abortion debate, which reduces the unborn to “clumps of cells” unworthy of the heartbeat given to them by the Creator.
These issues only scratch the surface, as doctor-assisted suicide, an obsession with the self and other political and cultural headwinds feed the hyper-devaluation of life. The impact of these ideals is often ignored or glossed over.
But the recent bombing attack on the American Reproductive Center, a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California, overtly exposes the costs of an anti-life mantra — the real, palpable consequences of selling lies and perpetuating mistruths.
While we can’t know for sure every motivation that led to 25-year-old suspect Guy Edward Bartkus’ actions, the decision to bomb a fertility clinic is the sort of anti-life horror that falls exactly in line with the aforementioned themes we have foisted upon our young people.
Such attacks are the natural progression and outgrowth of many of the perspectives we’ve come to herald. When we teach a society that everything should center on the self, that there’s no accountability to God, and that selfish whims should trump human life, we can only expect the trash we’ve put in to come right back out.
Though we must reserve some judgment until a fuller picture of the suspect’s motivations comes to full light, his actions should, at the least, cause us to question as a culture how we’re managing and approaching the life issue.
Let’s briefly look at what Bartkus apparently believed. In the wake of the car bombing, numerous outlets, including The Washington Times, reported that the suspect — who is said to have sadistically attempted to livestream the attack — thought it was wrong to bring people into the world against their will, with the New York Post writing he had “fanatical pro-death beliefs.”
And the NewsNation description was even more hair-raising, with the outlet claiming Bartkus’ “pro-mortalist” perspective is one predicated on the idea that it’s better to perish than “continue existing and that it’s wrong to bring new sentient life into the world.”
Tracy Walder, a former federal agent and contributor to NewsNation, said that view would see killing humanity as a humane way to “prevent human suffering.”
“He believes that he is doing the humane thing,” she said of the suspect.
In other recent eras, it would be hard to see how a young man’s viewpoints on life could become so entangled with insanity, disconnectedness and evil, yet these indicators in many ways describe facets of the contemporary dysfunctional society many have helped cultivate.
According to The Los Angeles Times, authorities are reviewing a manifesto that has no name attached but is believed to potentially be tied to the bombing. That document apparently outlined the plan for a fertility clinic attack and made the case for a “war against pro-lifers.”
As part of that battle, the manifesto loathed those bringing life into the world and embarked on an end goal of “sterilizing this planet of the disease of life.” The individual behind it also expressed frustration over his own existence.
More specifically, the manifesto touted all sorts of other ideologies, including no use of animals, something called “negative utilitarianism,” which was described as a quest to minimize suffering rather than pursue pleasure — and, of course, “pro-mortalism,” which The Los Angeles Times affirmed is a “fringe” philosophy that claims it is “best for sentient beings to die as soon as possible to prevent future suffering.”
It’s easy to dismiss these ideologies as crazy and radical because they certainly fit those bills. But the reality is, such beliefs are the natural outgrowth of obsessive secularism and the rejection of the divine.
If nothing was created with purpose, why does anything matter? If it’s most convenient and expedient to kill an unborn baby, and that ideal is elevated above the cherishment and love for life, why does any life matter at all? These questions could go on and on.
It’s possible Bartkus, assuming the allegations against him are true, was simply mentally and spiritually unwell, or that the impetus behind his attack was somehow disconnected from our cultural conundrum. Regardless, this is still an important moment — a time of reflection.
The right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness is key as is the defense of life. For too long, we’ve allowed our culture to be mired in unfortunate ideologies and movements, all of which have resulted in apathy — and in this case, a potential total disregard — for life.
We must use this horror to, at the least, reflect on where we are, how we got here, and the next best steps to correct our course.
• Billy Hallowell is a digital TV host and interviewer for Faithwire and CBN News and the co-host of CBN’s “Quick Start Podcast.” Mr. Hallowell is the author of four books.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.