Language as a WMD

Read in these pages and many other fine blogs regarding the nature of the spiritual battle in which we are engaged.  It is a battle in which the act of non serviam by satan and his angels which precipitated their fall, from which Original Sin and our own concupiscence are directly descended, interacts and engages with the redemptive act of Calvary and the outpouring of supernatural grace at Pentecost. This engagement is happening in every soul 24/7/365, and the ultimate outcome will be the permanent residency of each of these souls in one of two places.
Now think about the majority of the world we live in.  What percentage of people even know this battle is raging, and that they are a part of it whether they like it or not?  Low percentage, right?  Think about the demonic irony of it.  We’ve arrived at a point in history where the sum of all human knowledge is available instantaneously to anyone with a computer.  But instead they choose porn. And boy, will that be the topic of an epic future post.  But for those of us “in the know”, if we truly believe what we believe, and we know that care for souls is more important than anything else we could possibly be spending our time on, isn’t it foundational to the cause to firstly get people to WAKE THE HELL UP?
Now let’s talk about shock and awe, and let’s apply the logic of shock and awe to the only weapon we have at our disposal in the blogosphere:  Language.
In the supernatural realm we have other weapons, prayer and the sacraments foremost among them.  But in the daily battle for hearts and minds in the natural world, we have only language, and when it comes to language, the human intellect craves clarity, specificity, black and white.  This is achievable to a greater or lesser degree depending on the topic.  Some concepts do have an intrinsic irreducible complexity that require the dreaded tool of nuance to be employed.  It’s a tool best kept in the shed unless it’s really needed, because it is also the tool most abused by modernists, who aim to undermine truth by injecting nuance into areas where none exists.
But let’s get back to shock and awe, and the real topic of this post, which is words that shock and offend the oh so offendable enlightened western society, a society locked in a whore’s embrace with all that is filthy, except when it might gain an advantage by feigning Victorian prim.
You see, most of our English “curse” words aren’t curse words at all. They are words that offend Man, not God.  They don’t break the Second Commandment.  And as is so often the case when dealing with sinful things, the converse is also true; the words which do offend God do not offend Man.  Here’s a general rule of thumb:  If you CAN say it on TV, then watch out (i.e. JC, GD, JMJ, etc).  If you CAN’T say it on TV, then you’re probably okay.  It’s like so many other things; the more the culture deems something acceptable, the more you should beware.  I should also point out, this doesn’t hold true across languages.  Ask a Francophone.  But in English, we have an advantage, and we should use it.
Early in my conversion, I swore off allthebadwords.  I was oh so pious, and this was part of the piety, and this had to be the way.  This went on for years, until a good priest explained to me my error.  Actually he not so much explained it as he demolished it.
He demolished it to the point of me realizing that honoring these non-curse words with the same or more ‘esteem’ as the real offenses was actually a sinful act in itself.  Elevating man-made structures to the level of God.  A violation of not the Second Commandment but the First. Oh shit.
Is it starting to sink in now?
Your duty is to evangelise.  How did polite society receive Jesus?  They thought he was offensive, embarrassing, blasphemous.  Yet all the while, he spoke nothing but the truth.  Your duty is to be a seeker and saver of souls.  Wake people up. By all means. Use the tools.  Hagan lio.  One of the best examples I’ve ever seen is HERE
I got in trouble with some readers with my post yesterday on the last days of Mother Angelica.  I called her a BAMF, as a term of endearment.  People thought it was over the line.  I took down the “MF” so as to not distract from the rest of the post.  But seriously.  You’re offended by THAT?  You think Mother is offended by that?  R E A L L Y………. because I think Mother was rather busy her entire life waking people up, by all means, and is now rather busy with her Bridegroom, focusing on things like 50 million slaughtered babies and whatnot.  But that’s just me.
I certainly don’t regret typing what I did, but maybe it would have been better had this post come before that one.

4 thoughts on “Language as a WMD”

  1. I disagree with your swearing. And if it’s on tv, it’s ok ? Most of tv is crap. And my word crap is better than your name for it. Will it be ok to say f*** when it’s on tv ? First step is to say friggin. And the world gets crappier

    1. Daisy, follow the logic as it is laid out. Does BS have anything whatsoever to do with the Second Commandment? Now ask yourself the same question about your damnits. You’re on shaky ground with that one.

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