The New Progressive Tolerance

Is it just me, or does it seem tolerance has been redefined to be very judgmental of those who are not considered "progressive?"  I've known many church ladies that cannot hold a candle to the judgmental comments coming forth from those who claim to be "tolerant."  "Open-mindedness" seems to be very selective in what is considered open minded, and any disagreement with said "open-mindedness" is labeled some sort of phobia or hate speech.  I saw some meme this week in social media addressing the old adage "you can't judge a book by it's cover" in new terms slamming the religious while applauding the tattooed.  Suffice it to say, we all make decisions that do not always meet with approval, and often many of us actually have regrets about our own decisions, therefore; try to warn others . . .

I can honestly say, the most judgmental person I have ever met has tattoos, smokes, drinks, and even touts a career in the adult entertainment industry.  There's just something mind boggling about listening to a woman with a raspy smoker's voice, beer in one hand and cigarette in the other, sporting visible tattoos; while she analyzes and labels everyone who isn't aligned with her own self-assured standard.  Once, as I listened to her drone on, I formed the mental image of Dana Carvey's "church lady" and this woman discussing world events, sexuality, and religion, head to head or toe to toe, as the case may be.  It's as if she is the antithesis of the church lady, just as devout in her own perspective.  This individual is also filter-free with an abundant vocabulary, so she truly inspired my mental image of a parody.  Although I give this example, there are several individuals who judge by a standard other than Scripture or religious, but the religious seem to frequently be the target of their judgment.

There are of course, others in society who receive judgment, as well.  We've all heard someone who judges a single welfare mom while taking advantage of their employer, or scamming disability . . .  I'm not applauding welfare, since it has become an albatross on this society, as there is now no shame in collecting the benefits for which others have worked.  There used to be a term called situational ethics, that was not perceived to be a good thing.  It's been years since I've heard that term, but it seems to now be the status quo in our society.

When right and wrong is determined simply by which end of the stick one seems to be holding, social mores have already slipped away.   When those who hold themselves up to no accountability, stand in judgment of others, society has given way to what is Scripturally referred to as a seared conscience.  In a world of digital definitions, and Googling experts, the times they are truly changing and there will be no real record of the change . . . as the standard continues to decline in the name of progressive tolerance.  Interestingly it is in the book of Judges we can find the precise definition of what our society calls "progressive."

. . . every man did that which was right in his own eyes.  History of Holy Scripture