All That Is Solid Melts Into Air

Socrates' student, Plato, had already witnessed the instability of morality within his Athenian hometown. At the dawn of modernity, Durkheim prophesized the incompatibility of modernity with morality, the nature of the two contradicting one another. He had the insight to see that in the long run, modernity would undermine morality. Today, Jon Snow plays Moses on Channel 4, while 40 000 people in the UK play God and vote the New Ten Commandments. In an ever increasing atomised, individualised and fragmented society, we have squeezed out the possibility for too much social solidarity to arise and mend people together in brotherhood. Consequently, we've lost the tools and the language to guide us. In the shared lack of desire to put our faith in an external source of authority, we have decided to lean on our own personal morality instead. An oxymoron gaining increasing cultural currency. The top 20 Commandments to choose from were "upbeat, positive, and lacking the fire and brimstone of the ancient 'thou shalt nots'."

Be honest.
Don't kill.
Look after the vulnerable.
Repsect your mother and father.
Enjoy life.
Nothing in excess.
Be true to your own God.
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Be true to yourself.
Protect your family.
Try your best at all times.
Look after your health.
Don't commit adultery.
Live within your means.
Appreciate what you have.
Never be violent.
Protect the environment.
Protect and nurture children.
Take responsibility for your own actions.
Don't steal.

Pick and choose; compile your own morality.

In our post-modern era, there is no absolute truth. We like to see all sides of the argument as to why moral issues arise. We couldn't possibly content ourselves with the fact that there's a standard we've fallen short of. A rigid moral code is no longer accepted, and definitely unfashionable. It was to be expected; we need room for the grey in between the black and white.

Over 3 000 years ago, when the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. Moses chiselled away at the stones and left a legacy that some deem irrelevant today. Take your eyes off Mount Sinai, switch your imagination off; let the television speak. See what the British voted from their sofas in their lounge, beguiled by the screen. Applaud the final winners:

Treat others as you would have them treat you.

Take responsibility for your own actions.

Do not kill.

Be honest.

Do not steal.

Protect and nurture children.

Protect the environment.

Look after the vulnerable.

Never be violent.

Protect your family.

Even though seven of the original ten were dropped, it's interesting to see that that these New Ten Commandments are still very much anchored in the Christian ethic - only God has been taken out of the picture. It makes things easier to have no external constraint nudging you to stay on the straight and narrow.

"All that is solid melts into air ... all that is holy is profaned"