Nearly three decades ago, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, thus paving the way for the normalization of what had long been viewed as a sexual perversion. Today, those who look askance at "gay" behavior are viewed as bigots and "homophobes" by most so-called "enlightened" people.

Many churches, once the main bastion of sexual morality in our culture, are now performing or otherwise blessing gay marriages, and welcoming gays and lesbians into their clergies. Scripture is of course being reinterpreted to accommodate within the Body of Christ what was once labeled "deviant" behavior.

Now we are seeing the incremental unfolding of another campaign – this one to redefine and normalize pedophilia – sex between adults and children. History appears to be repeating itself. This time the American Psychological Association (APA) is leading the charge. In the July 1988 issue of its Psychological Bulletin, the APA published a methodologically flawed report entitled, "Meta-Analytic Examination of Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Using College Samples." Three professors, whose sexual orientation is not known, submitted the report.

In the report, the three make an attempt to define "child sexual abuse" down to "adult-child sex" or "adolescent-child sex." This is based on the author’s conclusion that child sexual abuse does not necessarily produce long term negative effects.

This report, as did the earlier report by the Psychiatric association on homosexuality, has created a flap heard round the nation. Just about everyone but pedophiles and the APA is upset about it. Demands to withdraw the report were initially met with obstinacy on the part of those in the APA responsible for releasing it. Finally, on June 9, the APA did an abrupt about face and fired off an apology to House Majority Whip, Tom DeLay. In an expression of understatement, it called the report "inflammatory." The APA vowed to be "more careful" in screening the articles it runs in its journal in the future.

Of course we haven’t heard the last of it. Other reports drawing similar conclusions will undoubtedly be issued by various professional organizations – only next time they’ll take better care to create the appearance of valid research.

Meantime, over in once Great Britain, the age of consent continues to be lowered. It’s now down to 16 with further drops expected to follow. In other words, what’s illegal and "child abuse" in the US, is now legal if its "consensual" in Britain.

It is often said, "you can’t legislate morality." On one level that’s true. The presence of laws against a behavior does not guarantee that those inclined to commit it will cease and desist. On another level, the existence of a law against something sends a signal that our society disapproves of it. Once the psychiatrists had approved homosexual behavior, it wasn’t long before accommodating legislation found its way onto the books.

In an earlier time, it wouldn’t have been a psychiatric association whose opinion would have mattered most on the subject. After all, psychiatrists and psychologists have no special qualifications for defining what is moral and what is not. It would have been those who were most well versed in the Word of God. In our "enlightened" age of deified science and moral relativism, the Bible does not occupy a central place in the discussion. In fact, it -- and the Christian viewpoint generally -- has been marginalized almost into oblivion – much to the delight of those who wish to pursue Biblically illicit behavior.

It is characteristic of human nature to first perform a behavior, then later rationalize and justify it. In the case of the American Psychiatric Association’s earlier pontification about homosexuality, a "scientific" rationale was all that was required to open the floodgates. As mentioned earlier, accommodating theologies followed suit. The same pattern will undoubtedly follow with pedophilia.

In our chauvinistically scientific culture, science takes precedence over God. Consequently, as with the people of ancient times, God "gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting" (Romans 1:28). Because we are free moral agents, God gives us what we choose for ourselves. Of course there are consequences, and we are more than welcome to pay them.

As our culture becomes incrementally less Christian, and more pagan, or more scientifically humanistic, Biblically based morality gives way to moral relativism. In such a culture, virtually any behavior, sooner or later, can be rationalized – and that is the real danger. Once God and his Bible are successfully discounted as moral authorities, any abuse can, and will be justified. The value of human life will be incrementally downgraded. Anyone, of any age or gender, can become a sex object for any kind of sexual predator. Pedophilia, homosexuality, perhaps even bestiality, will be "normalized." It is not beyond imagination that human sacrifice will again makes its horrific appearance. Abortion will become even more common, and infanticide and euthanasia will also find societal blessing. Eventually, governments will begin "thinning" the human population in order to maintain desirable demographics. Certain classes of people will be slated for slaughter, should they be deemed expendable.

Once a culture begins to pull away from God, it takes very little time to descend into the worst cesspools of evil imaginable. As the value of human life is ratcheted downward, every person becomes some other person’s object or target. Our Western nations are headed in precisely that direction. Governments, often advised by cold-blooded amoral scientists, are seeking ways to bring society under total domination at every level of life.

Of course if you’ve read this far, you may have concluded that I’m delusional, paranoid or just plain nuts. I believe that I am none of the above. Think about it. If you remove from the world the divine standard of behavior about anything, what do you have left? -- nothing but humanism or paganism. Under humanism, the only standard for sexual activity is consensuality.

Paganism, unlike Judaism and some forms of Protestant Christianity, is seldom democratic. Most often, it is authoritarian and autocratic. Once inside the cult, one is at the mercy of those who run it. Under such circumstances, anything goes.

The moral direction of our culture is anything but upward. Given the slippery slope principle, and gravity, it’s unlikely we’ll end up on higher ground.