I’ve been interested in leftism’s relationship with Christianity for some time, especially the consequences of feminism and how it destroys families. This post by Boxer^[1] led to a discussion on the philosophy that drives feminism’s destructive promotion of promiscuity, abortion, divorce and single-motherhood.

Unfortunately the discussion derailed on the question of what, exactly, is meant by leftism, a term often used for left-wing politics. The reason for this is plain: the term is nebulously defined and popularly used in many different ways. To address this I’ll quote Professor Bruce G. Charlton, who has made this crystal clear^[2]:

“Leftism is built-upon Positivist^[3] assumptions;
therefore to be a Leftist is to be Positivist;
therefore to be Leftist is to be anti-religious;
therefore Leftists are anti-Christian”

This is not a political stance. Nearly everyone, be they Republican, Democrat, Socialist, or Libertarian, is fundamentally leftist: secular and utilitarian. While some political parties are more explicitly anti-Christian, the difference is only quantitative, not qualitative. Even those leftist individuals that strive to be spiritual fail because leftism is inherently anti-Christian. This can be seen in the corruption of modern Christianity itself.

Understanding what drives modern leftist thought is the first step required to break the binary political thinking that frames and obscures societal issues. The defining characteristics of leftism are moral inversion, abstraction over the personal, and destruction.

Moral Inversion

Put simply, moral inversion is calling moral evil good and moral good evil. When morality is inverted, good is suppressed and evil is praised. Positivism’s denial of objective source of morality frequently pits it against the moral claims of Christianity. Moral inversion often takes the form of strong moral statements that take positions diametrically opposed to Christianity.

One example of this is no-fault divorce and the destruction of the family.

Abstraction over Personal

Positivism fails because truth cannot come from abstraction^[4]. Math and science produces abstractions, models, and simplifications. They are approximations of truth, often really useful approximations, but ultimately are false because they are not true.

Metaphysically, if the ultimate reality^[5] (the ‘true’) is not math or science, what is it? Beings. Creators. Life. Purpose. Beings are required for creativity and creation. Without a being, these have no meaning. There is no truth (in art, for example) without a being. Beings are essential to truth. Thus, the opposite of abstraction is not concrete, it is the personal. The most essential examples of this are (1) God; and (2) the joining of a man and a woman.

Feminism, a branch of leftism, must necessarily be untrue because it denies this ultimate reality.

Destruction

If creation is a truth of ultimate reality, then both moral inversion and abstraction stand in opposition. The result is destruction of good. This can be seen generally (in overall worse outcomes) or overtly (e.g. Alfie Evans; promotion of abortion).

Summary

Leftism has its roots in positivism. It is fundamentally anti-Christian and pervades modern thought. Its tools are moral inversion, abstraction over the personal, and destruction. It is, in the language of Christianity, sin and leads to death. The only viable solution to feminism’s destructive potential is to embrace Christianity.

Footnotes

^[1] Boxer, “If She Only Had A Dad.”(Archived PDF)

^[2] Bruce Charlton, “All Lefists are ultimately anti-Christian, by their Positivist assumptions.” (Archive PDF)

^[3] Bruce Charlton, “Positivism (which rules modernity) is death-by-definition.” (Archive PDF).

^[4] Bruce Charlton, “The opposite of Abstract is… Personal (*not* ‘concrete’).” (Archive PDF)

^[5] Bruce Charlton, “Not Process but Provenance – (and Polarity is an abstraction of creative-being).” (Archive PDF)