You Have No Right To Be Sad
You have no right to be sad.
Modern culture thinks of emotions as dictators. It assumes there is nothing we can do to control emotions, but must live under their cloud until one dictator dies down and another, hopefully more benevolent one arises.
Living in that culture, members of GenZ and Gen Alpha grew up with a sense that hiding our true emotional state is regressive. We learned that putting on a face while shoving down your true emotions is ingenuine; a betrayal of your true self. Much better to whip out a camera and post as your tears run.
This view of emotions is simply immature.
While this emotionalism is certainly more prevalent on the left, young conservatives can be tempted to fall into its grasp in less public ways.
Historically, and certainly in the Christian tradition, emotions are something to be observed with curiosity, but ultimately ruled through self-control. For the sake of ourselves and our country, conservatives need to reclaim the American tradition of happiness.
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The pursuit of happiness is at the core of American identity.
Dennis Prager, longtime conservative radio host, is famous for arguing, “We have a moral obligation to be, or at least to act, happy.”
When the Founding Fathers crafted the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson and his assistants drew heavily from the writings of English philosopher John Locke. In his Second Treatise on Government, Locke argued that all men have a right to their life, liberty, and possessions.
In the Declaration, Jefferson chose to substitute the property element with “the pursuit of happiness” in order to both broaden the goals of humanity beyond material ambition as well as to sidestep enshrining slavery in the founding documents.
The pursuit of happiness is an intrinsic value within the American lifestyle.
So how do we achieve happiness?
The first Psalm written by King David instructs us, “How happy is the one who does not
walk in the advice of the wicked or stand in the pathway with sinners or sit in the company of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.”
By delighting in God’s word, walking in his ways, and submitting our emotions to be conformed into the image of his son, we can be truly happy.
And how was God’s law summarized?
Love God and love your neighbors.
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Even when we face difficult circumstances, Biblical author James commands us to, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.”
This world is broken by sin and death. Of course there will be dark seasons, but the overarching theme of our lives as conservatives and as Christians should be happiness.
We owe it to our nation. We owe it to ourselves.
This simple act of defiance in the face of a discontented and perpetually distraught society is an act of war that creates the kind of culture we want to live in. Happiness begets happiness, and it starts with you.
Smile at your weird neighbor when he walks past your house with the dog. Thank your teachers before you leave their classroom. Laugh at your dad’s corny joke. Encourage your sibling when they tell you about their day.
By creating a habitat of happiness in your sphere of influence, you are working toward a more conservative, more Christian America.