A Spirit of Joy Marks New Counter Culture

Back in 1969 Theodore Roszak, a California history professor, published The Making of a Counter Culture. The Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement and the increasing pace of change spawned by technology had created a new dimension within American society not born on Wall Street, Main Street or Madison Avenue. It was all around, rising up from many places in many ways, sporting long hair and dashikis, tie-dye tees and bell bottoms. Roszak’s book attempted to describe the complex cross currents that comprised this counter culture.
Common believe has it that the children of the 60s were eventually folded in among the denizens of Wall Street, Main Street and Madison Avenue, more involved in making a living and raising families than changing the world. Dreams were overtaken by realities. Life goes on.
But as God promised through Isaiah, a remnant remained on which to rebuild a world of justice and compassion such as God had intended in the creation. If you are a Christian, this is your inheritance, this is the obligation of being born again, not of the flesh but of the spirit.
While Roszak’s book described a landscape of groups and influences, today’s counter culture takes its meaning from two shared convictions: Living “in the spirit” is a real possibility here on earth, not some obscure reward for good boys and girls to collect when they die; and that the institutions of our materialistic society are opposed to those who would inhabit the kingdom of heaven now, not later.
And don’t be naive; our prevailing culture is powerful and alluring. Ask Christian parents who have tried to raise their children as what Jesus called “children of light.” It is hard enough for us as adults to stand up to our sorry culture; how can we expect our children to survive against a market place and media designed to swallow them whole?
Jesus said the children of this world are often more shrewd than the children of light. While they offer the mostly false promise of cheap thrills and flashy possessions, we counter with an unappetizing campaign of “just say no.” For all its excesses the counter culture of the 60s knew one thing: there’s a joyful exuberance in being spiritual. Instead of saying no to pleasure, our mantra should be say yes to joy. Say yes to the kingdom of joy and say it now.