[pastor's wife]

One common thought in fundy circles seemed to be that things were always getting worse.

However, there are some things that I feel are better, even within my lifetime:

1.  More TV choices (cable, Netflix, etc.)  - though fundies wouldn't see that as good

2.  My phone!  I LOVE having the internet at my fingertips, being able to connect with people, using it for directions.  It's SO convenient.

3.  The internet - so much information!  I love all the music I can access too!

4.  Geocaching - this didn't use to exist and I think it's fun.

5.  Painting and hiding rocks - I think it's sweet.  It's probably just a quick fad, but it's still a way to spread kindness.

6.  Little Free Libraries - What an awesome idea!  I love visiting these.

I'm sure there are many other things you could cite, but these are a few things that I enjoy.

[myotch]

All the entertainment and conveniences contribute to moral decay, laziness, and an abdication of personal responsibility. Amen?

Also, it’s a set-up for the antiChrist. I don’t know how. But it is.

[SpurgeonGeneral]

Yeah, that wasn't just a "fundy" thing, that was a big thing (and still is) in the conservative, holiness movement. Even to this day my mom laments how immoral and corrupt the world is and that the church is being tainted.

I remind her that the first century church had to be told (by the Apostle Paul) things such as that the guy in their congregation who was bedding his mom-n-law was actually doing a bad thing and that when they celebrated the Eucharist, they shouldn't show up early and eat all the food and get drunk.

[WalrusWrangler]

In my circles they would always use it as proof that the rapture is going to happen soon. They'd say that things are worse now than ever before, but I was like, really? Things are worse now than a hundred years ago when the whole world was at war? Things are worse now than when slavery was legal? Things are worse now than when the Black Death killed half of Eurasia? Things are worse than when having an English Bible could get you burned at the stake? Than when Christians were routinely thrown to the lions?

I think they could only look as far back as the 1950s, and even then with warped glasses. Some things are worse now than fifty years ago, or ten years ago, or a year ago. So many more things are better, though. When someone asks me which era I'd like to live in, I always say now. Because now is pretty great.

[James33]

(11-14-2017, 08:18 PM)pastor Wrote: 2.  My phone!  I LOVE having the internet at my fingertips, being able to connect with people, using it for directions.  It's SO convenient.

I think this got worse though.

[co_heir]

It's not so much that things have gotten worse, but more that we know more of what goes on in the world, due to the quickness news spreads.

[Josh]

The fact that I don't have to worry about being sent to jail for being gay, despite the fact that more than a few Christians still think that (e.g. Roy Moore, who thinks that death to teh homersecksuals is totes fine), is progress I can believe in.