Now Jerry believes in Memorial Day

“If you’ve got nothing worth dying for,

you’ve got nothing worth living for.” 

                                Martin Luther King Jr.

 
Seinfeld was honestly called “a show about nothing.” That’s because the very popular show portrayed a nihilistic moral point of view.
  Just in case you don’t know, nihilism is the belief that life is meaningless. The name comes from the Latin word nihil, which means nothing. It became popular in the 1800s. Various thinkers questioned the church and faith that had been taken for granted for centuries. With faith being questioned, objective morals and absolutes were called into question. Nihilism attempted to make sense of what comes after this shift. It presents a dark, new way of looking at the world.
  So, nihilism, which means nothingness, means a commitment to no meaning. It means there is no truth, no morals, no transcending absolutes. Ultimately, it means that there is nothing of eternal consequence.
  It’s one of the reasons why Jerry Seinfeld is not known for vast narratives of some kind of literary force or for making films with significant moral messages. He’s known for stand-up and situation comedy contexts in which he takes something as simple as a cookie or a hangnail and turns it into something of massive interest. But it’s not. It’s all rather narcissistic and doesn’t make any claim to universal meaning.
  Until October 7^th and the attack by Hamas on Israel, nihilism was Jerry Seinfeld’s worldview. His change and his becoming very outspoken in support for Israel precipitated the walkout of about 30 graduates at the recent Duke University graduation ceremony to protest his speaking.  
  While the media made it a “big” story, in a crowd of 7,000 that were present for the ceremony, it’s essentially a non-story. Those who walked out made up about .04% of those present. A typical church service has a much larger percentage of those walking each week to go to the restroom. A little perspective goes a long way.
  What is very significant is that Jerry Seinfeld, in the face evil, can’t maintain a nihilistic worldview. Evil matters. Morality and absolutes matter. October 7^th was an act of war against civilians. Hamas will only be satisfied with the extermination of all Jews, both in and outside of Israel.  
  Many today hold to some form of nihilism. Yet, if our country had believed in nihilism, we would have no Memorial Day. If nothing matters, then why send young men and women to fight for something and potentially pay the ultimate sacrifice. Not all wars are against evil, many are power or land grabs. Because America was founded on a Judeo-Christian ethic, the basis of many of our wars had a moral cause. They fit into what’s known as Just War Theory, the Christian worldview that over the past two millennia has been the basis for the laws of armed conflict. Since America has been involved in over 100 wars since our founding, let me touch on a few that fit into Just War Theory.
  The American Revolution. Prior to going to war, the colonists begged London to not provoke “the calamities civil war.” There was no talk of independence. By 1775 Colonists had seen a steady erosion of their liberties, to the point that a citizen might have British troops quartered in his home against his will; be shipped off to England or Canada for an alleged crime without facing a trial by jury of his peers; and have his business strangled by nearly a decade’s worth of spiraling taxes. Additionally, the colonies were under naval blockade with New York and Boston under martial law. Justice is a cardinal virtue within a divinely ordained moral order of right and wrong. The choices for our forefathers seemed to only be liberty or further tyranny.
  The Civil War. The war between the United States and the Confederate States began on April 12, 1861, at Fort Sumter. The immediate cause was Constitutional principle: the U.S. government refused to recognize the southern states’ right to secede from the Union. Though that was the start of the war, Constitutional principles were not the foundational cause. History is clear that the South went to war to defend slavery and the denial of other human beings, Imago Dei. Slaves were considered subhuman.  
  World War II. Although it was the most destructive period to life, liberty, and property the world has ever seen, World War II was a moral war. Hitler, Nazism, genocide – all constitute a moral war. The great failure of the United States and other governments prior to declaring war, was to turn away Jewish refugees and to not enter into the conflict sooner.
  The Vietnam War. The tyranny of communism in Russia led to systematic purges, executions and famines that resulted in the deaths of millions. Containment became the official U.S. policy for combatting Communism. The United States sought to halt the progression of Communism around the world. However, the methods of fighting and the justification for going to war in Vietnam conflict with principles of Just War theory in several places. The bottom line is that while the Vietnam Conflict had a moral purpose, it was not conducted in an entirely ethical manner. All of us, leaders included, are contaminated by our sinful depravity and make wrong and unjust decisions.
  What’s the bottom line? Those in our military obey the orders of our leaders of when to go to war. Though we’ve made our mistakes as a nation, rather than going to war as we see in Ukraine for land and power, America has sought to have moral reasons like bringing human freedom and dignity to those who would not have it without our military intervention.
  Memorial Day reminds us that there is something to care about and we must care about what is righteous as our God cares about what is just and righteous. While we have our problems, the only perfect government is God’s, we can proudly salute our flag and honor our fallen heroes. We know that they sacrificed to protect our freedom and to seek to bring that same freedom to others. It’s why I for one am proud to be an American!

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