A friend of mine forwarded this article to my attention and I found it good commentary with regards to all the doomsayers comparing the US to the fall of the Roman Empire. Each has to come to his or her own conclusion!
Reading the Culture: Are we Rome?
By Jim Denison
The Baptist Standard
Published: April 08, 2010
Is America destined to go the way of the Roman Empire? As China and India ascend economically while we fight two wars and struggle with economic recession, more and more “declinists” are predicting our demise. Cullen Murphy’s Are We Rome? The Fall of an Empire and the Fate of America (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2007) is a fascinating study of comparisons between the Roman Empire and our nation.
Here are similarities as noted by Murphy:
• Both built the most powerful military in their world, by far. America invests as much in military expenditures as the next 15 nations combined.
• The Roman road system, stretching some 53,000 miles, was about the length of the United States’ interstate highway system.
• The Roman Empire and its Mediterranean Sea would fit neatly inside America’s lower 48 states.
Of course, dissimilarities are conspicuous as well:
• Rome never left the Iron Age; America has evolved from industry to information and biotech.
• Slaves made up half of the empire, while America rejected slavery.
• Rome had no middle class; the middle class is America’s core fact.
• Rome never was remotely as democratic as America.
So, are we Rome? Here are three factors our country would do well to consider.
• The first concern is “military overstretch,” building armed forces that are too large to be affordable and too small to do all they are asked to do. Manpower shortages forced the Romans to accept into their armies the very barbarians who sacked their empire. Privatizing our military—and prisons and other government functions—may threaten accountability and oversight, whether in ancient Rome or today.
• A second factor is a tendency I call “global myopia.” Myopia is a defect of the eye in which the person sees near objects clearly but far away objects appear blurred. Nearly every Roman military defeat resulted from underestimating its opponent. Nine years after 9-11, most Americans still ask, “Why do they hate us?”
• A third factor often is called the “curse of empire”: Large systems are inherently unstable, endangering their survival in an unpredictable world. Few thought that arming the Taliban against the Soviet Union would contribute to today’s War on Terror.
On the other hand, America’s commitment to reinvention distinguishes us from Rome and is cause for optimism. The empire valued stability; we prize entrepreneurship. Our angst over China, India and other competitors is our great motivator.
To me, the greatest lesson to learn from comparing Rome and America is spiritual. They embraced a transactional religion—sacrifice to the gods so they will bless your crops and family; sacrifice to Caesar to avoid the wrath of the empire. Our culture has a similar spirituality—go to church on Sunday so God will bless you on Monday.
Christianity is not a transactional religion but a transformational relationship: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Who will encounter the life-changing grace of Jesus this week in you?
Jim Denison is president of the Center for Informed Faith (www.informedfaith.com) and theologian-in-residence with the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
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2 comments:
The Decline In The Average Standard OF Living In The US Is Probably Inevitable
The similarities and differences between the causes for the rises and declines of civilizations and empires will continue to be subjects of debate until we learn how to be objective. The telling and retelling of stories is colored by those telling the stories.
Those overly influenced by their religious or scientific understandings will reach different conclusions about events, meanings, and reality.
It is generally agreed that the decline of the Roman Empire began at different times in different parts of the Empire. Much can be learned about this topic on the Internet.
The wealth of our nation in the years ahead will be based on our human resources rather than on our natural resources. Unfortunately, too small a fraction of our human resources are being developed by our public education systems. Unfortunately, too many of our K-12 public schools are run inefficiently by the less intelligent and more retrogressive members of our society. Too many educators appear to be more interested in their paychecks than they are in educating our young. Too many of our young and their parents seem to be more interested in being entertained than being challenged to use their minds. Perhaps the evolution of the human mind has reached a climax for many Unfortunately, the effort and time needed to master much of the complex knowledge and skills needed in the modern world have increased.
Creating unneeded and unsustainable jobs at the taxpayers expense may prevent economic collapse but it is unlikely to prevent economic decline. It is unlikely that developments in our science and technology will make it possible to sustain an unlimited human population with an ever-increasing standard of living. Only by adapting our lives to modern technology and adapting modern technology to our lives can the rate of decline be decreased.
Good article. Sounds like PISD under the current leadership.
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