You’ve heard civilization defined as old men planting trees in whose shade they’ll never recline. I submit another definition:
Chances are you’ve come across that quote somewhere. it’s attributed to George Mallory, the legendary English alpinist who took part in the first British–and possibly the first successful–attempt to summit Mount Everest.
Not only was Mallory willing to brave such a challenge simply because it beckoned, he was willing to accept the possibility of death regardless of success or failure.
That possibility sadly came to pass.
Short video on the 1999 discovery of Mallory’s body 75 years after his death. WARNING: Contains imagery some may find disturbing.
Why do I cite the grand achievements and lonely death of George Mallory as a mark of civilization?
Here was a man from a culture whose mastery of science and the arts enabled him to answer the call of adventure from a world away. It was a culture informed by a spirit so enduring that even seventy-five years after his death, Mallory received a Christian burial from men much like himself.
Civilization is what gives men the confidence to explore the ends of the earth in the sure hope that their posterity will remember their names and honor their deeds for years to come.
Christianity gave Western civilization not only faith in Christ, but faith in itself.
We will not weather the current crisis without it.
Nor can the Pop Cult and the Death Cult make up for what we lack.