Today, the third Sunday in Lent, we read from Luke chapter 13:

     There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
     He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.

     [Luke 13:1-9]

     It’s certainly not one of the more upbeat passages in the Gospels. It’s laden with the feeling of doom. We get the sense that the owner is displeased with the fig tree. More, he intends that something be done about it: Why allow this barren tree to exhaust the soil? Other, more fruitful plants could be planted in its place. But the gardener asks that it be spared a year more, and the owner assents.

     The parable could be read several ways: as an urgent call to repentance; as a warning to those who fail to heed God’s decrees; or as a reminder to us that we are not here merely to amuse ourselves. All are applicable, but the third of the three is much in my thoughts today. It hearkens back to Genesis: to God’s command to the life he had created to “be fruitful and multiply:”

     And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. [Genesis 1:23]

     I wrote of this in fiction as well. From the novelette “Farm Girl:”

     “So what do you think of New York so far?”
     She scowled. “Not much. You don’t use what you’ve got. God gave us the land to grow something. To give life.” She took up her cup of soda and emptied it in a single long draught. “You folks don’t seem to realize that. Unless your neighbors are different from…what I’ve seen so far.”

     And later in the same novelette:

     “God gave women wombs for the same reason He gave us the land: to grow something. To make life.”

     Unless you’ve been in a coma for a few decades, you’re probably aware that we First Worlders haven’t been doing much of that.

     I could go on a long rant from here, but there’s no need. The contra-natal trends in the Western nations are quite clear, as are some of their more conspicuous consequences. But as I’ve written on other occasions, it’s hard to persuade present-moment-oriented people to reproduce. Telling them that the future needs their children is especially futile. Anyway, for many of us, the moment is past.

     Some Gentle Readers have “more future ahead of them” than the rest. To those younger readers: Don’t imagine that the “birth dearth” will have no impact upon you personally. The unfruitful decades will change many things – socially, economically, and politically – for those who will live on. It would be wise to make your major decisions with that in mind.

     Do you prefer society, or to be relatively isolated? The former will be harder to arrange than the latter.
     What occupation do you have in mind? What will the steady diminution of our numbers do to its profitability?
     Diminished population is also likely to mean diminished production. The law of supply and demand tells us that the prices of goods will rise. Some goods may vanish, as those who know how to make them die off.
     Current conditions continuing, I wouldn’t count on immigration to keep things as they are. Most of those arriving today don’t come with a big work ethic or an impressive array of skills. Also, they aren’t exactly in accord with American law and social norms.
     Whatever your political preferences, be aware that some segments of America’s population are reproducing faster than others. Have you thought about what that will mean for political trends, at both the neighborhood and the national levels?

     No, I’m not trying to depress you. But one of the reasons for being fruitful and multiplying is to perpetuate and improve what we have achieved. If you’re proud of America and its achievements, that is.

     As the years have passed, I’ve become ever more convinced that our departure from Christian faith lies at the root of many of our problems. Consider the social norms it promulgates: the emphasis on work, on family, and on community. Work, in our nation today, is coming close to being a dirty word. It’s natural to want more for less, but it’s unnatural and irrational to expect it to be given to us by some invisible benefactor. At least, not long-term.

     The present-moment-oriented don’t think about marrying and forming a family, or what takes to make a family healthy and prosperous. Neither do they think much about becoming active in their communities: meeting and getting to know their neighbors, learning about what’s going on among them, looking for ways in which they can help out. Present-moment satisfactions and mobility are what matter to them. The word “rootless” comes to mind, especially in view of the weak state of existing family bonds.

     The post-Christian future is looking thin: fewer people, fewer and smaller families, smaller economies, and less fellowship. All that is in progress as we speak. Which is why that barren fig tree, and what the Owner is likely to do with it, is so much on my mind.

     May God bless and keep you all.