The Gospel of Selfishness

We now know who the anti-Christ is, or at least the leading advocate for values that are antithetical to Christ’s teachings about brotherhood, compassion and caring for others. What could be called the Gospel of Selfishness has been espoused by many contemporary public figures, from Alan Greenspan to Rush Limbaugh and, lately, Glenn Beck, among others. However, their inspiration and mentor was the Russian émigré novelist (and pop philosopher) Ayn Rand, whose warped romantic visions continue to inspire the dark legions of modern-day libertarians. She wrote the gospel. Here is just a sample of her perverse thinking -- the defiant courtroom speech of her character Howard Roark during his trial for blowing up some buildings he had designed and that the owner altered without his approval:

“Nothing is given to man on earth…He can survive…by the independent work of his own mind or as a parasite fed by the minds of others….The basic need of the creator is independence…To the creator, all relations with men are secondary…. the creator is the man who stands alone….All that proceeds from man’s independent ego is good. All that which proceeds from man’s dependence upon men is evil…The egotist in the absolute sense is not the man who sacrifices for others…he does not exist for any other man – and asks no other man to exist for him….The first right on earth is the right of the ego. Man’s first duty is to himself…His moral law is to do what he wishes, provided his wish does not depend primarily upon other men….The only good which men can do to one another and the only statement of their proper relationship is – hands off! ….Civilization is a progress toward a society of privacy…Civilization is the process of setting man free from men.”

And all good conservatives said, “Amen.”