LP XXXIV--Morals and Culture

Each of us brings to his personal stage a glorious blend of personality, worldview, DNA, education, and cultural immediacy. Growing up in a family that rejected the hot fire and verbal dysentery of swearing, I continue to avoid and will always avoid the highly charged, offensive vocabulary of curse words. Not that I am totally innocent of such activity, but at the same time I do prefer a loftier language expression in general. Furthermore, I work in an environment that frowns on such delivery, resulting in a form of contractarianism that is consistent with my own inclinations.

But it is not simply language that I reference but instead a type of sense of our own concept of moral reasoning in our world that may or may not be entirely justified nor explained by our interpretation of our spiritual worldview. We may simply be products of a misdirected social contract that is both amusing and ironically comfortable. This is not to say that we practice a false morality, but it is to say that when another country practices a different form of such, it does not mean we are right and they are wrong. Instead, it could simply be different social norms.

Yet I am dropped into a world, a culture, a frame that has no such social contract of cursing avoidance nor reticence about displaying affection or discussing relationships openly. Bear in mind that I feel well established with my own moral code of conduct and am not reshaped by a new environment. Perhaps this will provide a level of comfort from friends knowing that I remain who I am and have no need to alter my social contract to fit into a new, but temporary environment. But it is worthy to give it thought and to recognize the differences, giving us pause and insight into our own cultural preferences and the reason behind our chosen moral restraints.

London is full of smokers. I consider this a moral problem as much as anything due to the scriptural admonishing to make our bodies a temple of the Holy Spirit. But there are two things to consider in this issue: 1) Most of us may not smoke, but are we truly kind to our bodies as we pour trans-fats and preservatives into them? and 2) Aside from the excessive rubbish that affects the environment, the suspicious problems of secondary smoke in the atmosphere, and the compounding medical problems, does smoking outside really hurt more than one person? I do not like the smoking I see, but I also do not believe it affects me in any way.

While restraint of demonstrative behavior is the expected social contract theory in London, at the same time there is an element of comfort in public displays of affection and expressions of disgust or displeasure. These events are not intended as shocking incidences to rile those unfortunate souls nearby but are a normal part of the culture. This does not mean all are involved in such activity, but it does mean that when it happens, it is within the social expectations of the culture. Rather than being offended when the young lady talking to her friend near me on the tube began swearing about some incident that recently occurred, I, instead, became curious as to her comfort level with such language. She did not raise her voice nor exclaim loudly her displeasure but she did swear quietly and comfortably about the situation.

Am I desensitized to such language and displays? Possibly. But at the same time, I have learned not to be over reactive to these things and instead to seek the good wherever I go. I wish people would not smoke, I wish they would not swear, I wish they would reserve their affection for private moments, but I am not offended nor do I really care what they do. Their actions are not about me and do not really affect me one way or another. I personally choose more restraint in my behavior but another person's lack thereof does not necessarily require any response on my part. I do not question their spirituality for I have learned that a spiritual life, a life devoted to Christ, is not necessarily a life devoid of harsh language expressions or a lack of affection. Some may say at this point that a Christian life is demonstrated by peace and restraint and a truly spiritual person acts according to this prescription, but I may counter that there are many ways to live the Christian life and individual moral issues pale in comparison with the problems of pain, suffering, and violence. But that is all another subject for another day.

The morals and the culture of London tend to avoid violence, harshness, rudeness, or subversiveness while at the same time being comfortable with other non-invasive behaviors. It makes for a different world from my own, and while I do not embrace it, I also do not need to reject it nor dispute its culture. Different, yes. Wrong, no. Again, before readers write me off as a relativist, I am not proposing a paradigm shift in moral thinking and in fact, I do embrace and choose to live within the contractarianism of my world. There are certain immovable moral absolutes as dictated through scripture that do not change. But there are also human behaviors that are not necessarily pagan nor hopeless expressions of hell bound demons. They are simply behaviors, albeit harsh ones according to our worldview.

Keep in mind that I am not attempting to shake up our world but rather to be sensitive at least to an extent to the cultural contractarianism that takes place around the world. Behaviors that seem abhorrent to us may or may not be problematic outside of our normal cultural framework. In the case of London, the general politeness (sometimes indifference however) of the people is comforting and refining. If I have to listen to the occasional foul language delivered rather casually and see the frequent kiss of two people in love, then I can accept that as a cultural norm and not any kind of an anomaly. It all makes for a fascinating world and I continue to learn new things everyday. As I have mentioned earlier, the anonymity of the individual and the legal protection of all people is a double-edged sword resulting in a type of apathetic and nonchalant acceptance of individual behavior.

The law dictates that we are protected and all have individual rights. The social contract theory designates an unwritten law of action that is a little different from my normal world. It is wise to recognize it, accept it for now, avoid it when possible, and be secure in my own comfort level of actions, knowing soon I will return to my Texas social contract world.