The Message of Today's Graduation Addresses
A commentary by Rex Sexton
Graduation time is here once again! High schools and colleges are honoring students who have worked and studied to receive a diploma or degree. But what messages are these graduates hearing? What themes are drummed into their ears as they move to the next level of life?
"Look inside yourself for answers!" "Question authority!" "Seek your own values!" "Live life as you want to live it!"
I have been attending graduations for almost as long as I can remember. Not only for my own three children who are now graduating from college, but as a pastor I try to attend the graduation ceremonies of youth in the congregations I serve. About twenty years ago I began to notice a marked change in the messages given by graduation keynote speakers.
In previous years young graduates were almost always admonished to stand by the principles of honesty, integrity, selflessness, diligence and service as they made their way into the world. Biblical principles were alluded to and speakers often quoted the great wisdom of the founders of our nation or its greatest leaders such as Lincoln, Jefferson or Washington.
Not any more!
If you attend a graduation at a school near you this year it is likely that you will hear a message about how great the self is. Following the mantra of the times, you will hear graduates bathed in flattery about the goodness in each one of us and how they must always trust their feelings and instincts.
A line that I hear regularly is: "Find your own values and then live by them." Does this really make sense? The graduate is told to set himself up as the ultimate authority, to choose and set his own guidelines for life. But what if he is tempted to break these values? The answer is simple. Since he is the lawgiver, he just changes the values to fit whatever he wants to do!
The message that this often repeated graduation theme sends is that everyone is his own ultimate authority. To understand where this message is taking us just look at the current trends in Western society. Prisons are overflowing, 30% of all babies born in the U.S. are born out of wedlock, illegal drug use is an ever growing social cancer and corruption at all levels of business and government is in the news as never before. Also as a result of marriage and the traditional family being maligned and denigrated, millions of people are living sad and lonely lives.
What messages should our young graduates hear as they begin life as responsible adults? They should be reminded of how precious liberty is and how it is only kept through diligence. A few heart-stirring quotes from Nathan Hale, Thomas Paine, Ben Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan and other honored forefathers would do.
Next they would benefit from being reminded that there is a Creator and that He is the legitimate lawgiver. The principle of Proverbs 3:5Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
See All... could be read. It advises, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not to your own understanding" followed by verse 7, "Do not be wise in your own eyes." Perhaps some additional biblical principles could be thrown in such as "Your reward will be according to your works" (Mathew 16:27) and "What a man sows he shall also reap" (Galatians 6:7Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
See All...).
Due to the political climate in Western society today, it is likely that few graduates this year will hear the kind of messages that they truly need for success in life. If you have graduates in your family why not take the time to give them some valuable information for their future? Give each of them a Bible! Ask them to treasure it and read it regularly, to become acquainted with the teachings of their Creator. He has given us laws to live by and principles to guide our lives.
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