A few years ago I read the dystopian novel, Children of Men, by P.D. James published in 1992. The topical bible describes the phrase, children of men, as:
a biblical phrase that appears in various contexts throughout the Scriptures, often used to denote humanity in general. It emphasizes the human condition, distinguishing mankind from the divine and highlighting the relationship between God and His creation.
So we are immediately thrust into the moral and theological aspects of the story by its title.
The novel's plot describes the earth where no child has been born, no woman become pregnant, for almost twenty years. The year is 2021 and the "omega" year when the last baby was born is 1995. It's a chilling story as the masses act without hope. There is no future for unhappy mankind without children. The growing population of elderly become a particular burden. As nursing facilities become overcrowded and available only to the rich, the elderly are dispatched via a semi-religious "Quietus ceremony," i.e., mass drowning.
The state is increasingly despotic. They require men and women to submit to frequent physical fertility exams looking for a couple to become the new Adam and Eve.
This next item should hit the Yikes!-it's-here button. With no children many (especially women) treat their pets, puppies and kittens, as offspring pushing them around in baby buggies and even having elaborate christening ceremonies. Some women become obsessed with nurturing lifelike dolls.
Fiction right? Well...maybe not. The picture below shows a woman who has bought eight life-like dolls and takes them everywhere with her, to parks and restaurants, etc. They are her children. She even "breast fed" them. And she is not alone. [Source] Creepy right? It's one thing to give an Alzheimers patient a doll, quite another for a competent person to treat dolls as if they are real children. I'm a doll collector but I have no trouble distinguishing my dolls from my grandchildren.
What spurred me to write this post was an article in the Epoch Times, Toxic Inheritance: Why Harmful Chemicals are Even More of a Problem than We Thought. A new field of science studying the epigenetic inheritance of disease indicates that we may see the situation depicted in James' fictional novel. As the Epoch Times article alleges:
Widespread exposure to those [endocrine-disrupting] chemicals is among the believed causes of the catastrophic decline in fertility that's taking place across the Western world. By 2050, according to one expert in reproductive health, the median man could have a sperm count of zero: One half of all men will have none, and the other half will have so few, they might as well have none.
Before you despair, remember that this gloom and doom scenario leaves out God. In view of the number of large families at our SSPX chapel, I think He may have a different plan in mind. At the same time, the attack on the family and the clear evidence that we are in a demographic winter paint a grim scenario for the future.
I'm not recommending the movie despite beginning this article with the trailer. While I haven't seen it, reading a description indicates that the film took a detour into the migration/refugee mantra. I get a little tired of those who distort an author's message to advance their own agenda. Just be true to the novel, man! I may watch the movie; I may not; but James certainly took a prophetic journey into the near future.
In sum, one article doesn't tell the whole story. I'll be interested to do more research on epigenetic inheritance and what it may portend for my descendants. In the meantime, on this feast of the Annunciation, I will celebrate the Incarnation of our Savior Who came to save us from sin. God, not man, opens and closes the womb. Let us put our trust in Him for the salvation of the world.
Our Lady, whose fiat gave us Jesus Christ, pray for us.
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