Been thinking again.
I received a political phone call a few days ago. The woman asked me if I thought “they” were on the right track. I replied that I thought that since we have ditched the idea of God as the “one nation under” whom we are united, I wasn’t sure there was a “right track”.
On the one hand, we have undisciplined capitalism, in which people of power are able to reduce a segment of the population to near slave status to make a fortune for themselves. They look upon their employees as a means to an end of their choice, usually to make money.
On the other hand, we have idealistic people who follow the hypothesis that to combat the inequities of capitalism you make everyone equal, everyone the same.
In either case, you have the powerful controlling the working classes – one for personal gain and the other “for their own good”.
Jesus came to set men free.
We are in real danger of losing it all.
The freedom of mankind is encouraged by good education, aiming at wisdom, and in what used to be called liberal arts.
Politics has invaded the liberal arts field and has polarized and proselytized students according to the aims of the institution, disallowing controversy about difficult issues. Both ends of the current political-economics spectrum try to control media and education to facilitate their respective ends. The aim of the authors of the First Amendment, to allow free speech in order to discover truth in the public square, is thwarted.
Religion suffers. By religion, I mean the belief in the authority of an all-powerful God, the existence of whom threatens the unregulated use of worldly power.
The result is civil chaos.
Godless children are killing themselves for lack of hope. Sometimes they are killing others first – lack of hope plus anger, anger aimed at nothing in particular – hopelessness, injustice, confusion and personal tragedies they are unequipped to confront. Asserting their own power in the small venue allowed them, they strike out.
Other angry young people will likely be diverted, as has happened in recent history, into some godless ideal: young Communists, young Nazis, young fascists marching to a bright future. They refuse to recognize the failures of the past, believing against reason that they can do it better. When it doesn’t happen for them, what have they to fall back on?
Where socialism has triumphed, powerful individuals managed to “eke out” a much more luxurious lifestyle than the socially managed populace. And those economies stagnated because entrepreneurial enterprises were not rewarded enough to begin. Sharing less and less, everyone but the powerful suffer.
You might say that powerful industrialists who ignore justice are a threat of some kind and need to be eliminated. When God was part of the equation, however, the greed of many was curbed by a desire for real justice, and communities flourished under the system of capitalism. Powerful men made history, but a growing middle class emerged making a great nation.
Well, human nature will out where there is not God.
The lure of power is tremendous. A person I respect once said, “It seems to me that some people don’t think they have any power at all unless they can tell somebody else what to do.” That kind of power invites abuse of the worst kind.
I have heard that there are centers now for “re-education” in Canada to bring about more “correct” speech from individuals who are outspoken in defending freedom. “Re-education,” a phrase out of the past designating brain-washing. Ironically, the motivation for some of those who persecute Christians is to promote freedom. I have yet to understand the logic in that.
Christ rejected the whole concept of power over the lives of others. He even refused to use His measureless power to save himself from the machinations of powerful people. He said, “Pray for your persecutors.” He said, “Follow Me.” His Resurrection proved the saneness of teaching.
This thing that has started “even here” can only be stopped by prayer. Mary has said this more than once. Pray seriously for the powerful. Their danger to themselves is far greater than their danger to you or to me. We have a hope for eternal life.
And stand up for Truth wherever you can.
