Removing the organ and demanding the function seems crazy, right?
Of course, it is.
It is because a specific organ is there to perform a particular type of function.
Hearts move blood. Lungs regulate oxygen. And brains control.
But what do we do?
We throw things aside with no thought about the unintended consequences.
- We vilify masculinity and are puzzled by weakness.
- We destroy the family and can’t figure out what happened to the community.
- We allow unethical behavior and are surprised at fraud.
- We praise gluttony and wonder why our health is not better.
- We reject God and wonder why few can see ethics.
My goodness.
Did Lewis write this yesterday?
And all the time—such is the tragic-comedy of our situation—we continue to clamour for those very qualities we are rendering impossible. You can hardly open a periodical without coming across the statement that what our civilization needs is more ‘drive’, or dynamism, or self-sacrifice, or ‘creativity’. In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.
-C.S. Lewis, The Abolition Of Man (Amazon)
