Traditional Culture

  I recently attended a funeral as most of you know. It's something we find ourselves doing more frequently as we grow older. We will keep doing that until we attend our last one, ours. I'm hoping I have a good excuse not to go, but don't think I get to choose. But anyway, I attended this funeral service and some of the ritual was different. That is not to imply there was anything wrong about it, whatever brings comfort to the grieving can't be wrong, just that it was different. And those differences were minor indeed. At the graveside service everyone was instructed to dress casually. Blue jeans and tee shirts were in abundance. I dressed down a bit, what I would call informal, but certainly not casual. A slight distinction perhaps noticed only by myself. Each of us have a different sense of sensibility in various situations. And in that we find ritual and tradition.

 As a general rule I stand on tradition. It is the way I was raised and ingrained into my person. When the national anthem is played, I stand and look for the flag. Always. I remove my hat in church. When I pray I bow my head and close my eyes. There will be no waving my hands in the air, no shouting out praises, no talking in tongues when I attend services. I wouldn't be comfortable with any of that. I open the door for the ladies whenever the opportunity presents itself. I do say maam and sir. Please and thank you roll off my tongue without thought, a reflex reaction. I offer my hand for a handshake when meeting people. I'm not likely to go through any ritual handshaking or hugging! No, a firm handshake while looking you straight in the eyes is what I was taught, and is my ritual.

 I do think that is what bothers us most as we age, the changing of tradition and ritual. Never before has there been so much of that change in America. I believe in my sixty five plus years I have seen a number of changes. 

 Disrespectful is the term most often cited when these changes are noticed. Take the dress at funerals as an example. That tradition has certainly changed. Suits and ties, black dresses, with a hat and veil are not seen as often as they used to. Church services have certainly changed, indeed the message the church teaches has even changed somewhat. Many preach what I call a more " convenient " faith these days. What is now taught as perfectly fine and acceptable isn't what I was told. I find it difficult to rectify past teachings with the new. Was the Reverend wrong back then? That's the big question regarding all of that isn't it? The Reverend was preaching the word of God, has that word changed? Or is it that we have changed, becoming a bit more, shall we say flexible, in the interpretation of the word? That applies to our everyday traditions and rituals as well. We are certainly living in a less formal time, in my estimation. I say that because formality dictates a certain level of decorum and respect for the feelings of others. I don't see that nearly as much. Sarcasm and wit were the weapons of the past, today it's an all out assault! Just listen to our politicians if you have any doubt about that. And yes it is coming from both sides of the aisle. Offense and defense! The gloves are off and the contest is ungentlemanly. 

 Disrespectful or incivility? I say incivility because people sure aren't acting very civilized. Looking up the definition of civilized I read this; ( 1) civilized: polite and well mannered  (2) at an advanced stage of social and cultural development. And then I wondered if that is the answer, the second definition that is. Cultural development. America is certainly full of different cultures these days. Yes, it has traditionally been known as the great melting pot and for good reason. There was a day the object was to become an American, to become a part of the American culture, adopting American traditions and rituals. That certainly isn't the narrative I hear these days. All I hear about is inclusiveness, without having to include America in that process. Cultural development? Looks more like the dismantling of a culture to me. A culture that has been developing for 243 years. 

 Are we to now abandon that culture altogether? The foundation of that culture is the Constitution of the United States of America. First we outlined the reasons, the declaration of Independence for removing ourselves from the culture of British rule. Then winning our freedom from that oppressive government we formed our own Republic. A Republic that was always inclusive. Yes, yes, it has been modified through those things we call amendments. Changes were required and incorporated into our constitution. Thing is, the culture of our nation has remained pretty much the same. We pray to God for guidance, and rely on our government to " establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain this Constitution. " That is what the preamble says. That is the American culture. One Nation, Under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. All, in this context means, ALL Americans. And all are welcome to become Americans. It's a cultural thing. Understand that and you will understand the situation we are facing today. Will the American culture endure? Aristotle wrote: " All Republics decline into democracies and democracies into despotism. "   Remember that when you hear all this talk of " our democracy " remember we have a Republic, " if we can but keep it " in the words of Ben Franklin. A despot rules with absolute authority! Should we allow our Republic to decline into a democracy, the first step being abolishing the electoral college, we are taking a step closer to fulfilling the prediction of Aristotle. I don't claim to be as smart as he was but I'm smart enough to understand what he said, and history has proven him correct on more than one occasion. Don't let this be another.