Not for Applause, but for the Echo

In the mid-19th century, the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard issued a warning that now seems eerily prescient. He foresaw the rise of what he called “the present age”—an age not of passion, but of reflection and conformity. In such an age, he wrote, individuals would stop thinking for themselves. Instead, like children being sent off to a party, they would be told: “Look and see what the others are doing—and do likewise.”

When it comes to the deepest questions of life—Who am I? What am I called to do?—”Do what the others are doing” is a dangerous answer. Kierkegaard’s diagnosis still rings true. Ours is an age shaped by trends and crowds, by social pressure and digital noise. And as followers of Christ, we are called to resist that pull.

We must resist the temptation to conform. We must resist the lie that we are puppets on a string, or robots to be programmed. We are not here to mimic the crowd—we are here to…