Back in the early 1960s, the philosopher Hannah Arendt covered the trial of Adolf Eichmann, the notorious Nazi who oversaw the logistics of transporting millions of Jews and other peoples whom the Nazis considered “undesirable” to concentration camps and their deaths.  As Arendt spent time observing and studying the case, she was struck by the fact that Eichmann was “neither perverted nor sadistic.”  He was, in a terrifying sense, “normal.”  This led Arendt to coin the phrase “the banality [or commonness] of evil.”  When we think of the Nazis – particularly the high-level officials – we tend to think of men who were evil incarnate (and for some, that is unequivocally true), but the reality is that many of them were remarkably “normal”; that is to say, if you were having coffee and conversation with them, you may not realize they supported genocide.

Our enemy would like nothing more than for evil to be banal in our lives, to be so common as to be unremarkable.  One of the most successful ways to achieve such a state is by the constant bombardment of what is evil, but in packaging that makes it much more acceptable.  For instance, consider same-sex relationships.  For the entirety of human history save the past few decades, pursuing such relationships was regarded by the whole of society as outside the bounds of normal and right, something that could be seen in both the general and special revelation of God.  In order to change that understanding, the enemy began including homosexuality into various entertainment media – sometimes in a comedic style, sometimes in a dramatic style, but never is a way as to suggest that such a lifestyle was inherently disordered and contrary to God’s design.  On an episode of the very popular sitcom “Seinfeld” that addressed this issue, the main characters all would express their unease or disgust with such a relationship, but would immediately follow up any such expression with, “Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”  Except, according to God’s Word, there is.

Last week, a jury in Texas awarded sole custody to the mother of a 7-year-old boy who, according to the mother, wants to be a girl.  The mother and father are divorced and had shared custody of the boy.  This is one of those situations that should cause us to be heartbroken for all of those who are involved, because the layers of pain are many and deep.  There is also a large discrepancy between what the mother and father say about the desires of this young boy, which is why this was before the court in the first place.  However, even if there were symptoms of gender dysphoria evident in this child, it would not be a sufficient reason to pursue the course of action desired by the mother:  chemical castration and hormone therapy to transition the boy into a facsimile of a girl.  Such a course of action can only be described as child abuse.  The jury didn’t see it that way, which should cause us to take notice of just how far the culture has moved on this issue.  Thankfully, the judge in the case overruled the jury’s decision.  At this point, things are still in the air from a legal standpoint, so please pray for this family.

While we might want to believe that this case is an outlier, it is becoming more and more evident that this is the new “normal,” which, interestingly enough, isn’t all that different than the old “normal.”  The hatred of this world for the Truth has existed since the Fall, when sin corrupted creation.  “Exchanging the truth for a lie” has been the modus operandi of the human race for millennia and will continue to be so until Christ returns.  Even so, God remains firmly upon His throne and He is guiding all of human history to the end He Himself has ordained.  The Church must, as always, be faithful hearers and doers of the Word.  As we are, the contrast with this world system will be all the starker.  Just as the early Church’s witness pointed people to the transforming power of the Gospel, so too will ours…if we are faithful to the end.  Just something to think about…