Culture Challenge of the Week: Two Minutes of Fame

When a diminutive Florida "preacher" threatened to burn a copy of the Koran on the anniversary of 9-11 it had an international impact for one reason: the media fell into his hands as they lavished attention on the little man looking his two minutes of fame.

While he ended up calling off his absurd stunt, fame-seekers in Tennessee, Kansas, and Wyoming, quickly scrambled to the waiting spotlight by making similar threats. In the process, they - and the media that was so eager to give them the spotlight - threatened the lives of military and intelligence personnel and fanned the flames of hatred both here and abroad. For what? Instant celebrity? To increase ratings?

It's ironic that these high profile cases of bad example threatened to eclipse the legacy of selflessness, courage and perseverance given by the quiet heroes of 9-11 nearly a decade ago. In the days and months following that tragic day, America was inspired by the bravery of firefighters, the self-sacrifice of exhausted medical and rescue workers, and the generosity of ordinary Americans driven to ease the suffering of fellow citizens. They labored, and they gave, unmotivated by press attention or personal gain. And their goodness inspired others to become better people. The negative lessons of the past weekend are many: the "power" of the media; the craving for instant celebrity; the idiocy of making "stars" out of idiots. But the positive lesson of the power of personal example is one which must not be lost.

The heroes of 9/11 and the glory-seeking villans of the past week illustrate how our daily choices will have an impact on others. As the book of Proverbs reminds us, "One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor, but the way of the wicked leads them astray." (Prov. 12:26, ESV).

Mindful of the stark contrast between the media-hungry Koran-burners and the quiet, persevering heroes of 9-11, what should we teach our children about the power of example? Three things come to mind.

First, a good example doesn't need a spotlight to be influential. Our celebrity culture makes it easy for our children to assume that they need fame if they want to achieve something good. We need to remind them that doing good does not require a celebrity platform. It starts in our own circles of influence, in our daily decisions.

Second, our example is most powerful when it's consistent over time. It's not hard to search our own memory banks for the consistent witnesses who inspired us to be better. I remember glimpsing my own father, on his knees by his bed, praying for his patients-an image so profound it continues to inspire me to practice my own faith to this very day.

Finally, as parents we need to remember that being a good example starts with us. While friends and the media have a tremendous impact on our teens, guess who they name as the most powerful influence in their lives? You. A recent study found that one of the strongest predictors whether a young adult will participate in volunteer work or charitable giving is whether their parents did. I can't think of a better way to honor the legacy of those who perished in 9-11 than by claiming the power of good over evil. It begins in the hearts of each one of us, and spreads by the power of a good example.

So, if I understand the author corectly:

We must all turn the other cheek as Christianity is insulted, and Christians are slaughtered by Muslims - this shows them how brave we are.

We must never desecrate the Koran, no matter how many Christians they maim and kill, no matter how many innocents they murder - this shows them how devout we are.

We must never question them, make fun of them - for they are surely going to be our masters in a few years; and we want them to like us.

Over my dead body.

Heh heh heh ...

I'm reminded of a VERY old Bugs Bunny cartoon that I vaguely remember ...

I forget how a character on horseback (Yosemite Sam?) is chasing after a bad guy, and Bugs yells "Over here!" and directs the rider to an alley or samething.

The scene changes and we see Bugs yelling, "Over here!" and the rider is directed to a canyon (or something)

What I'm reminded of by this Koran announcement is the last scene is Bugs yelling "Over there!" pointing to the Grand Canyon and our witless rider charges and leaps out and down.

Bugs smirks.

Priceless.

This is not what she said. Did you even read the last sentence in the last paragraph

I can't think of a better way to honor the legacy of those who perished in 9-11 than by claiming the power of good over evil. It begins in the hearts of each one of us, and spreads by the power of a good example.

The way to honor victims of 9-11 is not to allow the slow invasion and victory by Muslims within our country.

There is no “radical version” of Islam.

Mohammed chopped the head off 600-800 infidels personally. His followers intend to do no less.

When you speak to an errant child, you do not lecture them on morality. You speak to them in a language they understand. If you do anything else, the child will look at you as if you are the idiot.

Muslims are not very smart, look at how they treat each other; and look at how they treat non-Muslims. They do not comprehend that ‘turning the other cheek’ is anything other than cowardice. They view ‘tolerance’ as ‘submission’; hence when a little nobody threatens to burn the Koran, they riot. They need to ‘teach us a lesson, as we are no longer being submissive and therefore need correction’.

Personally, I tried to BBQ a Pork Shoulder with the Koran; but the paper stuck to the Pork and I had to pick the paper off the meat.

Where you seem to think that you can appease tyranny; I’m all for nuking them into extinction. Humanity is not an endangered species; and talk about a re-newable resource! They want to declare war on civilization; I have no problem with wholesale slaughter of every last Muslim on the planet.

We didn’t declare war, we aren’t the one’s murdering innnocents, we aren’t the one’s creating hardships and enslaving others - we are the one’s being attacked; and the author wants to hide behind the ‘power of good over evil’ clause. Did the Jews of the Old Testament act this way when confronted with evil?

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