Morally speaking, modern America is adrift in a sea of ambiguous relativism. Part of the reason for this is that there is a lack of moral leadership among the most visible leaders in the nation. Taking it one step farther, this in turn is because few of our leaders are deeply convicted that the Bible contains the fundamental guidelines for living the moral life. Our President, for example, is frequently seen carrying a Bible into and out of church on Sunday’s, yet he seems not to believe what it says about adultery, fornication or homosexuality. Without the Bible to guide them, our leaders are left either with some form of humanism, or pagan religion – neither of which provides a reliable basis for making moral decisions.

Since it fell out of fashion to defer to Scripture, other pseudo-authorities have been invoked to provide us with moral guidelines. Psychiatrists, psychologists, politicians, liberal Supreme Court judges, militant feminists, and college professors of questionable moral credentials, to name a few. None of these base their moral pontifications mainly on Scripture. Most base them on self-interest or flawed epistemological bases. It is far easier these days to obtain a psychological explanation for what used to be called sin, than it is to find a moral one.

So upon whom must our children rely for moral guidance?

One might naturally respond, "What about parents? Aren’t they supposed to teach their children right from wrong?" Yes, they are supposed to do that. But where are they? They’re at work. Today’s economic realities demand that both parents – assuming there are two – work. Furthermore, they are required to work long hours in highly stressful, painfully competitive, environments. If and when they do get home, there’s not much left of them for the children. The amount of time the average father spends with his children each day can be measured in fractions of an hour.

Today’s children are raised by day care centers, schools, nannies, baby sitters and foster homes. Some are raised in Juvenile Hall, others are raised be neighborhood peer groups. Parents don’t rear children any more, so they can’t be expected to teach them morality.

Well what about schoolteachers? They used to be moral authorities didn’t they? Some still are -- but they are a dwindling minority. Today, the curricula in schools is often based on moral relativism, i.e. children having "two mommies" or "two daddies." Sex education classes teach mechanics, not morality. Some teach children how to "discover" their homosexuality. The kind of moral education – i.e. "values clarification" – the schools are teaching is not Biblically based. It is humanistic and relativistic. At the practical level, it does not provide children with a conscience. It does not instill in them the fear of God. Rather, it turns them into moral pragmatists.

What, for example, do young people today receive in the way of moral guidance that will help offset the kind of raw creative sewage being spewed out by Hollywood these days – i.e. "South Park" and "American Pie"? Hollywood, and the television industry are filled with smart, creative, totally hip, and completely amoral young writers, producers and directors who are utterly irresponsible about the kind of drivel they pump into our kid’s minds and senses. They’d rather outrage than moralize. Shock value takes precedence over moral values any day. Moralizing is "sappy." That’s what the "Christian Right" wants us to do. Nobody would go to see a film that actually advocates, teaches and models moral behavior.

So it comes down to money. People won’t pay for moral lessons. They won’t go to movies where the lead characters are motivated by Christian or Orthodox Jewish moral values. They pay to see sin in action, so sin is what they get.

Many parents these days despair of teaching their children morality and ethics. The tide of contrary sewage is more like a massive toxic tidal wave that washes relentlessly back and forth across the American landscape. Immoral and amoral modeling are omnipresent. It’s in politics, it’s in every level of entertainment and it‘s pervasive in literature, comics, video games, and higher education.

Even if parents could or would spend time with their children, there’s no way they can offset the deleterious influences of the prevailing culture with its peer pressure. Every parent knows that there is a time in each child’s life when peer approval comes to mean far more than parental approval. What peers approve of is what’s fun (partying), what feels good (sex, drugs, partying), what’s hip (tattoos, body piercings, dressing a certain way), and what gets you what you want (sex, partying, drugs, peer approval). What parents approve of is what doesn’t feel good (i.e. discipline, homework, delaying gratification, exercising moral restraint), what’s not hip (doing things with the family, preparing for the future), and what prevents you from getting what you want (sex, junk food, drugs, partying).

Parents today are left with only two weapons, both of which can be ineffective if not used, or not used properly. They are teaching and modeling. To teach our children and grandchildren morality, we have to capitalize on increasingly rare teachable moments. A principle is found in Deuteronomy 6: "In the future, when your son asks you…tell him" (Deuteronomy 6:20-21). Moses explained to the people of Israel that God’s commandments (mitzva’ot) "…are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on our children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up" (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).

The commandments of God that apply universally to all of us ought to be topics of daily conversation in the normal course of life. This is how we can teach them to our children.

Even more important is modeling exemplary behavior. Those of us who are parents and grandparents must live what we want our children to live. A child who sees his father commit adultery will be less likely to hold out for fidelity when he, as an adult, is tempted. With children, it’s often "monkey see, monkey do." Parents who say, "Don’t do as I do, do as I say" are copping out. The child will be more inclined to do what he sees you do, especially if it’s what he wants to do. Like it or not, we parents provide moral precedents for our children.

In every circumstance, godly people must adhere like glue to the divine standard. Wherever we go, we are walking advertisements for, or against, Biblical morality and ethics. If we can be compromised, anyone can. Each of us contributes to the total culture by lighting our personal moral candle. There’s not much else we can do except pray fervently for the moral recovery of America.