Who Has Murdered The Most: Atheists Or Christians ?
by Jack Hectormann
It isn't arguable. The “Murder, Torture, and Enslavement” award
goes to the Atheists and their atheistic ideology. Atheists have been
prolific, proficient and accomplished Murderers, Torturers, and
Enslavers and the historical records prove it true. Christians have also Murdered, Tortured and Enslaved but never
remotely approaching the scope/scale of the Atheists.
Christians have murdered and tortured a (relatively) few “witches”
and heritics in the name of religious purity in centuries past, but
never in the tens of millions. There was no god(s), God, or religion whatsoever connected with
Mao and his regime when some 30 to 40 million people were
murdered. Comrade Stalin too, and his regime, was without any
piety when he murdered between 20 and 60 million people in his
purges. God, god(s) and religion had no part in any of this: Communist China……………………35 million murdered
Germany (total 20th century)……..21 million murdered
Soviet Union (total 20th century)…62 million murdered
Stalinist Purges (1930-1938)……..20-60 million murdered
Cambodia (1975-1979)……………1-2 million murdered Atheists and their atheistic ideology have murdered well
over 100,000,000 people in the 20th century, and they
did it all without reference to any god or religion. (They were trying to “fix the world” or make the world
“better” according to their vision based on a non-religious
foundation, and they were willing to murder tens of millions
of human beings in order to achieve their non-religious
vision of a better world.”) __Source: David Wallechinsky, The People's Almanac
Presents The Twentieth Century ( New York: Little, Brown,
and Company, 1995);
and “Statistics Of Democide,” By Rudy J. Rummel, as cited
in The Economist magazine.
Quoted by Julian L. Simon and Stephen Moore in It's Getting
Better All The Time: Greatest Trends Of The Last 100 Years,
page 16 Does this suggest that the Atheists that haunt threads on
the web, and their fellows Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris,
and Christopher Hitchens, etc are in the camp of Mao,
Pol Pot, and Stalin and bear equal quilt for the Murder,
Torture and Enslavement of whole peoples ? Of course
not, not any more than present day Christians bear guilt
for the crimes of Christians in past centuries. Individual Atheists are no more guilty for the crimes committed
in the past from their camp, than are Christians guilty for the
crimes committed in the past from our camp. And if murder
in the tens of thousands is to be attached to Christians for
the actions of past Christians, then the logic is compelling:
Murders in the tens of millions is to be attached to Atheists
for the actions of their fellow Atheists in the 20th century. The historical record demonstrates that the crimes against, murders of, torture of, and enslavement of peoples by Christians pale in comparison to the murders, torture, and enslavement of peoples by the Atheists and non-Christian world. The Roman Empire, the Aztecs, the Egyptian Empire, indeed all the ancient non-Christian nations and empires were characterized by brutal wars and the brutal subjugation of conquered peoples It is estimated there were some 4,000,000 slaves in the South in 1861 but the vast majority were never murdered or tortured. Then too, Bill Clinton went to Africa and apologized for slavery. He apologized to the descendants of the African chiefs that sold their own people to the white slavers, but I never heard they apologized to him for the business practices of their fathers.
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Hard Pressed But Not Crushed by Jack Hectormann "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed", said the Apostle Paul. (2 Cor. 4:8-9) There was great conflict and war-in-principle going on in the great Apostles life. "We are hard pressed on every side, perplexed, persecuted and struck down" is what happens in conflict and war. In a long drawn out war no army ever wins every battle, especially when at bottom it's the World Wide History Wide War Between Evil and Good. Why does God permit His children ~~ His army ~~ to endure set-backs and to lose battles ? Of course, I do not speak for God, I can only answer that question based on what I believe I have learned over the years. Here is my best shot at it: (1) In order to build a real army that will fight hard, steady, and long-term-determined in a real war the army MUST be seasoned in combat and learn war. It MUST be taught warfare. "...These are the nations the Lord left to test all those Israelites who had not had experience in the wars of Canaan (he did this to teach warfare to the descendants of the the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience...") Judges 3:1-2 Note: That's a word for word quote. The parenthesis is part of the Biblical text in the NIV. Here is the King James text: "..Now these are the nations which the Lord left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan; Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof..." "To teach them war" This is true, I believe, for a "civilian army" as well as for a military combat division. Why wouldn't it be ! A large number of well-meaning Conservatives have a very rosy picture of what war really is. Their idea is for the Conservative Army to write a whole slew of articles and books, make thousands of guest appearances on TV, conduct Luxury Sea-going Seminar Cruises to some of the exotic spots on the planet meeting influential people and wealthy donors, establish some Conservative "think tanks" etc and keeping on doing such as that till liberalism is defeated and the country becomes Conservative. Peace at last. Sign me up for that ! That's a piece of cake ! And a man can make a good living, even get rich if he's smart, while doing all that. But it's NOT war.....not even political war ! Doing all that is, moreorless, fun. What do you think of the Drill Instructor in the following scenario ? Let us suppose that there is a special boot camp for a special department of the United States Marines, and that it runs for 4 grueling grinding months. That it is so hard and tough that no higher that 60% of any company has ever graduated. Let us further suppose that there is a major war underway that has been going on for two years, and that all the recruits for this special Marine Force come from the civilian population. Civilians who have known nothing but the soft quiet peaceful life of the civilian their entire lives. Let us further suppose that as soon as they complete the 4 months of training they are sent to the front lines for 6 month combat tours of hard grinding combat. When they return they would have a total of 10 months of hard rigorous experience: 4 months of tough boot camp plus 6 months of hard combat experience. That's 10 months of a truly life and mind changing experience. Now let us suppose there is a Drill Instructor that wishes to eliminate those 10 months of hard tough experience and instead "talk" ,using abstract reasoning, to the incoming recruits in such a way that produces within them the same warrior attitudes, warrior determination and warrior grit and warrior fighting spirit equal to that of the soldiers who actually experienced the 10 months of grueling grinding combat training and experience. He gives them 10 months of "military classes" and "talks" to them incessantly. What kind of U.S. Marine Company do you think he would have after 10 months of just talking to them ? How would you like to go into combat with that company ? It is the view of this writer that the Intensification of this culture war between the forces of evil and the forces of Good started in 2008 and that over the coming years this Intensification will increase gradually in increments. That there will be graduations, temporary stops, and de-graduations, that is ups and downs and temporary stops, but that averaged out there will be a gradual increase of the Intensity of this conflict over the coming years. There are tens of millions of true Christians in America and we're not going anywhere. We're going to be right here in America. It appears to this writer that the Sovereign God has decided to put his army in the field and engage in hard tough political war, and like in all wars there are going to be some causalities and some seasoning, and some "training" and some strong warrior-political determination developed within millions of Conservative Christians...perhaps tens of millions of Conservative Christians. Christendom is in a fight for it's very survival here in the West and that includes America. Only a very few Christians even KNOW that. The rest are sleepy, indifferent, unconcerned, entertained, and mesmerized by their own private lives and by television. But they are about to be recruited for the Christian Conservative Political Army...they just don't know it yet. But they will. (2) The second reason God permits His children ~~ His Army ~~ to endure set-backs and lose battles is perhaps to teach us that we do not fight in our own strength and on our own power. That we have to come to trust and depend upon Him for our victories and fight on with hope and faith in our hearts. Hope and faith in Him for victory, and not hope and faith in our gifts, talents, abilities, and political battle skills. We rarely learn that lesson when we are riding in political victory parades. We seem to learn that lesson best when we suffer set-backs and defeats. Thoughts For Today. "...Have faith in God..." __The Lord Christ ( Mark 11:22) ___________________ "It does not...depend on man's effort, but on God's mercy..." __Romans 9:16 _________________ "Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is Sovereign over the kingdom's of men... your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that Heaven rules..." __Daniel 4:25-26 __________________ "...You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies..." __Psalms 44:4-7 ______________________ God Bless America and may God bless His people and continue to bestow His mercy and Grace upon us. Amen.
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I'm Not As Smart As The Prophets Of Doom, I Gotta Trust In The Lord. (reworked) by Jack Hectormann "...our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the simple-hearted..." __Psalms 116:5-6 I am as willing as any man alive to look the problems and dilemmas of America (and the West) square in the face. I will not bury my head in the sand like the proverbial ostrich and pretend that all is just peachy fine and dandy. Because all is not, and much is seriously and dangerously very un-peachy. I will list the problems and dilemmas and even emphasize them, but never outside the context of the Sovereignty of God and His control of history, and never apart from "hoping and trusting" in Him to work things out for the best for His people in accordance with His plan. A few of our Conservative friends do not want to do that. The Conservative Movement has several (perhaps well-meaning ?) journalists and pundits that NEVER look to the Lord and His word the Holy Bible for hope and help. Significant numbers of very influential Conservatives, some of them true Christians, see only the problems and dilemmas, and NEVER mention the part the Lord plays in restraining the evil men of this world and in protecting we His people in spite of our flaws, sins and stupidities. They could at least mention "hope in God" once in a awhile, they don't have to preach long windy sermons. :-) But they refuse to mix in the old-time religion of the Bible and it's "faith and hope in the Lord" as applied to the present American (and Western) political problems and dilemmas that are here now and surely to intensify in the coming years. They seem to think they can successfully fight this political and culture war now raging in America without God's intervention to help them. I note that the Biblical heros never looked at the battles they fought as "battles they would fight alone", but always said that "the Lord helped them" and they "trusted in Him" while they fought as hard as they possibly could. Joshua, David, Caleb, and all the rest fought on doing it exactly that way. It's one thing for the pessimists to call attention to a set of serious problems, but it's another thing altogether when they do that and leave the Lord totally or even mostly out of the equation. Here they become little more than Prophets of Doom, and a very depressing group of people to read. I can take 'em only in small doses and even then I have to mix in verses from God's word with the dose, even though the dose they give is the truth. There are also other truths that need to be mixed in with the "dose" of the problems and dilemmas that they so accurately list, and those other truths are verses from God's word (the Bible) that stress the Sovereign control of God over this world and His long history of watching over and protecting His people in dangerous times. Here is a truth. It is possible that the Lord has decided to preserve America in spite of the serious flaws and sins and stupidities of us all. The Prophets of Doom do not KNOW that He will not. They, as mere men, do not KNOW the future. That truth should be constantly stressed. They do not KNOW the future and they do not KNOW the plan that God has for America in the coming years. The Lord declared that He would in fact spare the totally wicked and totally corrupted city of Sodom if Abraham could find just 10 righteous people in that city. You can, most likely, find 10 righteous people in just your Sunday School class on any given Sunday. There are over 16,000,000 Southern Baptists in America . How many righteous people do you think might be in that group ? Probably a whole herd, wouldn't you think ? A huge majority of Southern Baptists are making a decent effort, it appears, to do right and live right, and to raise their families in the fear of the Lord. If the Lord would have spared Sodom for the sake of just 10, it is reasonable to assume that the Lord will preserve America just for the sake of the 16,000,000 Southern Baptists who have, for certain, at least hundreds of thousands of God-fearing born again Christians in their ranks. It is unreasonable to assume that He will not. The Lord has never thrown out the baby with the bath water. The truth is there is a "nation within a nation" here in America. We, "the people of God" form a large "nation" of people and we are in the tens of millions and we depend on the security of America for the well being and safety of our families. And for sure, Christians in America are far more numerous than just the Southern Baptists. In some polls, as I recall, 86% of Americans identify themselves as Christians. How many in that 86% ( roughly 258 million people) are right-living born again Christians ? Only God knows the answer to that one, but I would think a whole big huge group, wouldn't you ? Maybe the Lord will preserve America for the sake of His children in spite of our flaws and sins and our political indifference ? Or in other words, maybe the Lord will continue to give "grace and mercy" to His people here in America. Maybe he will preserve America because the decision NOT to preserve America would be certain and absolute world wide political, military, and economic catastrophe on a murderous scale. That isn't even arguable. If America is allowed to self-destruct there would be an immediate return to the Dark Ages. There would be world-wide economic chaos, major wars would break out all around the globe, and for all practical purposes we would be plunged back into the times of "Genghis Khan" and the "law of the jungle" where war-lords and thug nations ruled by tooth and claw. The bottom line here is that the Prophets of Doom can be precisely RIGHT on every problem and dilemma they identify, while being precisely WRONG on how they predict or suspect those problems and dilemmas will actually play out on the time line in the real world. Only God knows that, and they're not God even though you'd never know it from reading their writings. But I'm a simple man. When I read in Holy Scripture the hundreds of simple verses that teach God is in charge of the unfolding of history, that He is Sovereign over the affairs of men, and that nothing....NOTHING... happens that He has not either predestined or permitted to occur, and that He will never leave nor forsake His children, then I take hope and I put my faith in Him and His word. And NOT in the words of the Prophets of Doom, even though they are exactly correct in identifying the problems and dilemmas. These Prophets of Doom are NEVER satisfied with the simple answers. Clear and simple Bible verses are not enough for them. They must keep searching "for answers" and the answers must be sophisticated and complicated and they must come from philosophical sources, and not from some Book as primitive as they perceive the Bible to be. They must always somehow "keep the discussion going", and nothing for them can "ever be settled." They never even mention the Bible verses that teach that God is in control of history and that He has promised to never forsake His people no matter what the political circumstances. All that want that approach to life can certainly have it, but there are many of us out here that are not going to live our lives thinking like that. We quote "All scripture is given by inspiration of God", and we stand without budging an inch on that great truth. And two clear truths in Scripture is that God is in control of human history and that we have every reason to believe He will preserve His people even in such times as the despicable and highly dangerous 21st century. "...The Lord Almighty has sworn, Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand..." (Isaiah 14:24) Some of us out here believe that the Sovereign God has purposed and planned to protect His people here in America for the sake of the Lord Jesus, His Son, who died for us and thereby redeemed us by His shed blood at Calvary, and to Whom we now belong, having been made sons and daughters within the family of God by His mercy and grace. If we are right on this point, then the Father would protect His people for the sake of His Son who "bought us" and whose Life and Death and Resurrection established for us, by grace and mercy, great worth and value as a special family of God's sons and daughters. (Note: Isaiah 14:24 is only a general statement declaring that God's plans and purposes always stand firm. We must learn from other Scriptures what God's plans and purposes actually are for His Church who are His people. The Bible is full of nothing but encouragement for the "...people of God...", there is not a single verse in all of Holy Scripture that discourages the faith and hope of the soul that has trusted in the Lord Jesus as his Savior and is putting forth a consistent effort to please the Lord and live according to His word. And there are tens of millions of born again Christians in America that are in fact doing that. Let us consider standing with the Scriptures on this issue and NOT with the Prophets of Doom as noted in the article above.
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Are The Premillennialists Right ?
by Jack Hectormann (Reference: Christians Use Prophecy To Excuse Laziness, by Chuck Baldwin, posted in my blog on 2/3/09)
A recent web article got me thinking about this notion of "prophecy" being used by large numbers of Christians as an excuse to "do much of nothing" because "it's God's will" that all this stuff we see happening around us is "prophecied to occur" along with "their list" of stuff they are so sure the Bible is predicting.
I note that Christian eschatology (the Biblical teaching on future events) has a DIRECT bearing on the "fighting attitude" of Christians in the present. If a man believes the Christian Church is "prophecied to lose" the war between good and evil then he does not see much reason to "fight it out" in the trenches. After all, why fight a war that he believes God has "said" he cannot win because of a long list of "prophecies" that must yet be fullfilled. The claim that "God said" is pretty strong for all Christians.
But just suspose God never said any such thing. Just suspose that the Pre-millennialists are WRONG...WRONG...WRONG, about all that they have claimed the Bible says about the Christian future.
I am posting the following in this blog just in case there are some out here that wish to study Christian eschatology for themselves, and are willing to consider possibilities and interpretations of Biblical texts other than the ones they perhaps have heard all their lives from other people....family members, their pastors, radio/TV preachers, etc
There are two HIGHLY RESPECTABLE theological camps within Christendom regarding Christian eschatology that DISAGREE TOTALLY with the Premillennialists.
Here are the two theological camps standing OPPOSED to Premillennialism:
(1) Postmillennialism
(2) Amillennialism
I have the high honor to state that the Postmillennialist and Amillennialist camps are packed with the highest Christian scholarship. We are talking earned doctrates in the Biblical sciences here, in Greek, Hebrew, theology, etc and these Bible-believing Christian scholars have published massive theological works refuting Premillennialism (in my view.)
POSTMILLENNIALISM:
**Loraine Boettner, The Millennial
*Keith A. Mathison, Postmillennialism:An Eschatology Of Hope
David Brown, The Second Advent
Roderick Campbell, Israel and the New Covenant
Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology
Erroll Hulse, The Restoration of Israel
Marcellus J. Kik, An Eschatology of Victory
W.G.T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology
James Snowden, The Coming of the Lord
Augustus H. Strong, Systematic Theology
Benjamin B. Warfield, Biblical Doctrines
Note: Hodge, Shedd, and Warfield were three
of the old Princton theologians known in their day,
in all of Europe and America, as stanch defenders of
the Biblical faith. ( I have in my library Warfield's massive
The Inspiration and Authority of the Scriptures, which is
a solid defense of the Bible as the true word of God.)
AMILLENNIAL:
Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology
Joseph M. Canfield, The Incrediable Scofield and His Book
Everett I. Carter, When Jesus Comes Again
Theodore Graebner, War In The Light Of Prophecy
William J. Grier, The Momentous Faith
Floyd E. Hamilton, The Basis Of Millennial Faith
William Hendriksen, More Than Conquerors
Jessie Wilson Hodges, Christ's Kingdom and Coming
Archibald Hughes, A New Heaven and a New Earth
Abraham Kuyper, Chiliasm, or The Doctrine of Premillennialism
William Masselink, Why Thousand Years?
Phillip Mauro, The Seventy Weeks and the Great Tribulation
George L. Murray, Millennial Studies
Albertus Pieters, The Seed Of Abraham
William H. Rutgers, Premillennialism In America
Martin J. Wyngaarden, The Future of the Kingdom
Geerhardus Vos, The Pauline Eschatology
Every single one of these Christian scholars are strong
believers in the inspiration and authority of God's word
the Holy Bible, and every single one of them TOTALLY
DISAGREES with the Premillennialist position on Christian
eschatology.
For anyone wishing to study eschatology for himself I highly
recommend **Dr. Loraine Boettner's The Millennium.
From P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg, New Jersey, 410 pages,
about $14 softcover. (can be ordered direct from P&R online)
Dr. Boettner was a distinguished Christian gentleman who
wrote this book in 1957. He is a very careful scholar, and
a strong believer in the authority of Holy Scripture.
In my view, Dr. Boettner refutes the Premillennial position,
and establishes the Postmillennial position as the true Biblical
teaching on eschatology....and....
Postmillennialism as the only "fighting eschatology"...it alone has the
doctrines that encourage, yea even permits.... true Christian warrior
soul and fighting spirit.
* Keith A. Mathison's Postmillennialism:An Eschatology Of Hope
is also highly recommended and can be ordered direct from
P&R Publishing. (Mathison is carrying the torch for Dr. Boettner
who went to be with the Lord a few years ago.)
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Baldwin makes excellent points here, points so much on target that I am posting his piece. At this point I do not see how what he has said can be improved upon. I would add my hearty Amen to the spirit and tone of everything he has said here in this article. Jack Christians Use Prophecy To Excuse Laziness
by Chuck Baldwin
February 3, 2009
In response to my two previous columns regarding the current development of a devilish New World Order, many professing Christians wrote me with comments to the effect that we should not be concerned about whatever global tyranny may be developing, because "it's all a part of God's plan," or "Jesus is coming soon," and similar statements. I, too, believe in the imminent return of Jesus Christ to earth. But, then again, so did Christians from every generation over the last two millennia. In fact, the Apostle Paul was looking for the return of Christ while he lived (Philippians 3:20). But does anticipation of Christ's Second Coming excuse personal neglect, indifference, and downright laziness? Of course not. Had pastors and Christians of colonial America believed and acted as most Christians believe and act today, this country would still be a Crown colony and we would never have known the freedoms and liberties that our forebears bequeathed to us. Christians of that era, however, believed that it was their duty and obligation to fight for right and do everything within their power to resist tyranny. They also believed that God would honor and bless their efforts, which He certainly did! It is extremely difficult for me to reconcile the apathy and slave-like mentality that seems to permeate modern Christendom (in America) with both our own heritage and the very Word of God. For example, the Apostle Paul is very clear when he writes that a Christian must never "do evil, that good may come" (Romans 3:8). Yet, that is exactly what many, if not most, Christians are doing today. When confronted with an obvious evil (a burgeoning tyrannical New World Order, not to mention a number of lesser evils), modern Christians will shrug and glibly say, "It's God's will; we must not oppose it," or words to that effect. This attitude says, "I will tolerate or even condone evil in order to hasten Christ's return." In the first place, no one knows when Christ will return, no matter how many books or tapes they have produced to say they do. In Acts chapter 1, Jesus was asked by His disciples if He would, at that time, set up His kingdom. The first words out of His mouth were, "It is not for you to know." Oh, we can speculate, surmise, and make educated guesses, but that's the best we can do. It's time we were honest enough to admit it: only God knows when Christ will return. In fact, Jesus said, "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only" (Matthew 24:36). In the meantime, millions of Christians across America are trying to play God. They talk as if they know when Christ will come. It's actually worse than that. They have the attitude that they have no personal responsibility to defend freedom and resist despotism. They seem to look at God as some kind of glorified fireman, who is obligated to rush in at the last minute to rescue them from a burning fire--a fire that they helped ignite, or at least, refused to put out themselves when they had the opportunity to do so. It's the old, "God would not let that happen in America" syndrome. How arrogant can we be? Ask believers from despotic regimes around the world what they think about God letting tribulation come, and they will quickly tell you, "We are already in tribulation." Are Christians in the United States really that arrogant as to believe that God loves them more than He loves believers in other countries? If not, can we not see that if believers around the world have suffered (and still suffer) the heavy hand of tyranny and oppression, it is certainly possible for tyranny and oppression to come to our land? The fact is, the only reason that Christians in America have not (for the most part) suffered tyranny and oppression is because of the hard work and sacrifice of our forefathers. We are simply enjoying the fruit of their labor. In the second place, how do we know what God would do, if we only had the backbone to do our duty? How do we know that God would not give America "a new birth of freedom" for our children and grandchildren, if we only had the courage and fortitude to oppose the evil being thrust upon us by these would-be tyrants? America is only the "land of the free," because it was the "home of the brave." Take away the latter and we lose the former. And that is exactly what is currently happening. In the third place, Christians have a moral imperative to resist evil, even if their efforts are fruitless. We are not responsible for outcome, only effort. Believers throughout history acted on principle, leaving the results with God. (Read Hebrews chapter 11.) Some were delivered; some were not. That did not matter. What mattered was doing one's duty. We Christians are to give our bodies as "a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1). It is God's prerogative to use our sacrifice as He sees fit. Therefore, there is no such thing as a "losing effort," when it comes to doing right. Doing right (resisting evil) is its own reward. The three Hebrew children were not commended because God delivered them from the burning fiery furnace; they were commended because they were willing to go into the burning fiery furnace. So must we be. I believe the real reason why so many professing Christians are so apathetic and indifferent to what is happening has nothing to do with the teachings of Scripture, Bible doctrine, eschatology, or anything of the like. It has everything to do with old-fashioned laziness. Today's average Christian just flat does not want to be bothered. He has a comfortable house, an easy chair, television, and a set of golf clubs in the closet. He takes two or three weeks' vacation every year, goes to church on Sunday (a church that does not intrude on his comfort zone, of course), pays taxes, and votes for his favorite "pro-life" Republican candidate every two years, and assumes that he is a "good" Christian and "patriotic" American. He is neither! A real Christian patriot would never allow his country to be taken over by a gaggle of elitist goons bent on stealing his liberties--including his religious liberties--without doing everything in his power to prevent it. A real Christian patriot is active, alert, engaged, zealous, and committed to preserving liberty. What if Jesus doesn't come for another 100 years? Another 200 years? What are we going to say to our grandchildren when they ask us what we were doing when our freedoms and liberties were being stolen? What will we say to our Christian forebears when we meet them in eternity? They sacrificed everything so that we could live in peace and freedom. What will we say to them? What will we say to God, who handed this land of liberty to us on a silver (albeit blood-soaked) platter? Tell me again that "there is nothing we can do about it," or "it's God's will," or "Jesus is coming soon." Better yet, tell it again to the suffering Christians around the world; tell it again to our Christian forebears; tell it again to your children and grandchildren who are going to inherit a land of tyranny and oppression, all because you were too lazy to resist. I know unbelievers who have more character and determination about preserving liberty than many who call themselves Christians. And I have a ton more respect for them, too. Our Lord told us, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required" (Luke 12:48). Yes, Christians in America have been given the best of both worlds, and many do not even appreciate it enough to see to it that their own children--their own flesh and blood--will live to enjoy the same blessings. They are pathetic! So, the next time you hear some piety-draped Christian talking about how he won't engage the enemy and fight for liberty, because of prophecy, or some other spiritually-sounding platitude, just remember, it has nothing to do with prophecy, or anything of the sort: it has everything to do with old-fashioned laziness. My feeling toward him is the same as that of Sam Adams (a fellow Christian) toward the Tories of old: "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest for freedom--go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!" Amen!
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Should True Conservatives Leave The GOP ? by Jack Hectormann Where To Go to better stand on one's principles is a very hard question. It has been kicked around on threads endlessly. I was at Redstate when Ron Paul was hot, and they argued it for months with hundreds of thousands of words and discussed, quite possibly, every conceivable point in the universe both pro and con. Most of us have heard all the pros and cons on should we leave the GOP or stay and be a doormat for the sake of our movement, while we "work for better results." There seems to be two motivations regarding leaving the GOP. (1)To better stand on one's principles, and (2) To get better political results. Where to go to get better political results ? That place does not exist here in America. Americans have what they TRULY want. Where to go to get better political results is an easier question to answer I think, because that question goes to the ROOT PROBLEM of our dilemma, which is this: The American people as a whole do not REALLY and TRULY want to FORCE Conservative principles on the huge hard-core liberal swath of the American population. There are plenty of Conservative Hawk politicians in America. Americans will NOT elect them to office. Why not ? It is agreed by all our Conservative pundits and most of the rank and file, that America is a "Center-Right" country, by which is meant the vast majority of the American people are a little to the right of the Middle, that is, a little to the right of being Moderates. Translation: They want the immigration laws obeyed, but they are NOT willing to put the US Army on the border and actually perform the harsh violent work that would be required to actually stop illegal immigration, much less are they willing to use FORCE to drive the millions of illegals that have settled here, back across the border. They want the institution of marriage protected, but they do not want homosexuals actually suppressed, what they would call "persecuted." Well, if you don't actually suppress them, you're going to get homo "marriage" sooner or later. Anyone with a brain knows that. Besides, it's already happening so it isn't arguable. They don't like crime and don't want it, but they're not willing to see the government use methods harsh enough to actually stop crime in America. Capital punishment for ALL major felonies would stop crime in America. The dead do not commit crimes, not here on earth anyway. The American people know that very well, but they never elect the pols that would actually "make it happen." It wouldn't be nice. On most, if not all, Conservative issues the American people are Center- Right, but they are not willing to use FORCE to actually make even the weak Center-Right positions a legislated and ENFORCED reality. I'd say enforcing America's immigration laws would be a Center-Right position, wouldn't you? But the American people do NOT want to see that ACTUALLY done. Because it would require violence against "innocent civilians." Yes, they want the laws enforced, but they want it done without "hurting anybody." And that's impossible. We have already asked them politely not to break into out country. They ignore us and keep breaking in anyway, and they will continue to do that until they meet sufficient FORCE that stops them. But Americans are to "nice" to tolerate that level of FORCE, so illegal immigration will continue. We are in a war against "niceness" here. The American people are "nice", which is a pretty good working definition of a Center-Right moderate. That's where the country is and has been for a long time. Therefore the political party one attaches oneself to is pretty much irrelevant as to the political results he is going to get. The GOP not long ago had the entire government of the United States...the Presidency, the House, and the Senate. What did we get from that ? A couple of good judges. What else ? (You can't count the tax cuts...they found a way to take the money back from us.) The Conservative Movement has been talking the good and true talk since about 1951 when William F. Buckley published his God And Man At Yale (some call that the beginning of the Conservative Movement in America.) That's some 58 years of good and true Conservative ideas and doctrines published abroad in the ears of the American people. What did all that good and true talk and print get us ? It got us BHO elected POTUS in 2008 and it got us a Republican Party that has for the most part abandoned Conservative principles and Conservative policies. Of course, the standard answer is: "We have to do a better job of "convincing" the American people that our Conservatives principles and doctrines are true and the way the country ought to go." The truth is, I think, that the majority of the American people already know how to solve these problems and dilemmas...they simply do not want to ACTUALLY see the harsh actions take place that would solve these problems. It's true. We're in a battle against "niceness" here in America. We're a "nice" country and the majority of the American electorate has a misconception of the true meaning of the words "love" and "compassion." To them those words mean that we're supposed to be "nice" to all members of "the human family." The platforms of the various political parties here in America are NOT going to change this "niceness" attitude that permeates the electorate. The GOP is not going to change that, nor the Constitution Party, nor any other party. If there is an answer to this dilemma it would be that we have to educate the American people on the virtues and rightness of taking the Tough Hawk Line on the issues, and convincing them that Harshness and Toughness and the Hawk positions are more in line with the Truth and with Righteousness than are the soft wimpy stand-for-nothing "niceness" that has gripped the country. And one can do that as well from the GOP bleachers as he can from the bleachers of the Constitution Party or any other party. In other words, we have to convince the American electorate that Harshness is justified in order to conserve (Conservative) the ancient traditions of America. Remember that Conservatism is "conserving", it is saying No! to tens of millions of Americans who want NOT to conserve or keep the ancient traditions, but to get rid of them and try "new" institutions and policies and attitudes (homo "marriage" unrestricted porn, multiculturalism, non-judgementalism, celebration of diversity, multi-religionism, Globalism, Internationalism, secularism, humanism etc. All these things and more are what many Americans want, and to prevent them from having what they want, via legislation actually ENFORCED, is going to require an American electroate that can live emotionally with the harshness required to actually stop these people from changing America. They're NOT going to give up their plans to turn this country into a liberal Hell just because we ask them nicely not to do that.
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The article below is the clearest "bottom line" description of liberalism's America juxtaposed with Conservativism's America that I have come across to date. This article deals with principles and is therefore ageless. by Dennis Prager Tuesday, October 14, 2008 It is time to confront the unhappy fact about our country: There are now two Americas. Not a rich one and a poor one; economic status plays little role in this division. There is a red one and a blue one. For most of my life I have believed, in what I now regard as wishful thinking, that the right and left wings have essentially the same vision for America, that it's only about ways to get there in which the two sides differ. Right and left share the same ends, I thought. That is not the case. For the most part, right and left differ in their visions of America and that is why they differ on policies. Right and the left do not want the same America. The left wants America to look as much like Western European countries as possible. The left wants Europe's quasi-pacifism, cradle-to-grave socialism, egalitarianism and secularism in America. The right wants none of those values to dominate America. The left wants America not only to have a secular government, but to have a secular society. The left feels that if people want to be religious, they should do so at home and in their houses of prayer, but never try to inject their religious values into society. The right wants America to continue to be what it has always been -- a Judeo-Christian society with a largely secular government (that is not indifferent to religion). These opposing visions explain, for example, their opposite views concerning nondenominational prayer in school. The left prefers to identify as citizens of the world. The left fears nationalism in general (this has been true for the European left since World War I), and since the 1960s, the American left has come to fear American nationalism in particular. On the other side, the right identifies first as citizens of America. The left therefore regards the notion of American exceptionalism as chauvinism; the United Nations and world opinion are regarded as better arbiters of what is good than is America. The right has a low opinion of the U.N.'s moral compass and of world opinion, both of which it sees as having a much poorer record of stopping genocide and other evils than America has. The left is ambivalent about and often hostile to overt displays of American patriotism. That is why, for example, one is far more likely to find American flags displayed in Orange County, Calif., on national holidays than in liberal neighborhoods in West Los Angeles, Manhattan or San Francisco. The left subscribes to the French Revolution, whose guiding principles were "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity." The right subscribes to the American formula, "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." The French/European notion of equality is not mentioned. The right rejects the French Revolution and does not hold Western Europe as a model. The left does. That alone makes right and left irreconcilable. The left envisions an egalitarian society. The right does not. The left values equality above other values because it yearns for an America in which all people have similar amounts of material possessions. This is what propels the left to advocate laws that would force employers to pay women the same wages they pay men not only for the same job but for "comparable" jobs (as if that is objectively ascertainable). The right values equality in opportunity and strongly believes that all people are created equal, but the right values liberty, a man-woman based family and other values above equality. The left wants a world -- and therefore an America -- devoid of nuclear weapons. The right wants America to have the best nuclear weapons. The right trusts American might more than universal disarmament. The left wants to redefine marriage to include same-sex couples for the first time in history. The right wants gays to have equal rights, but to keep marriage defined as man-woman. This, too, constitutes an irreconcilable divide. For these and other reasons, calls for a unity among Americans that transcends left and right are either naive or disingenuous. America will be united only when one of them prevails over the other. The left knows this. Most on the right do not.
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The Family:The Greatest Fortress Of Human Liberty.
"The greatest fortress of human liberty, proof against all earthly
powers, is the Family. In it's small private space, it can defy the
will of authority and the might of wealth.
It is without doubt the most effective means of passing lore, culture,
manners and traditions down through the generations. Its loyalties
are stronger than those of the state, more powerful even than patriotism.
All serious tyrannies have sought to undermine or infiltrate it, socialist
tyrannies most of all. (eg. the former U.S.S.R.) ...The huge, wedge-shaped
Place of Weddings in Kiev was known locally as 'The Bermuda Triangle'
because so many of the marriages solemnized there later disappeared
without a trace. Divorce was deliberately made as easy as possible, while
abortion was an out-patient treatment, so trivial and cheap that many women
had seven or more abortions in a lifetime. (in the former U.S.S.R.)
There are many explanations for authority's mistrust of the Family. The main
one is that it cannot control what goes on there, what ideas are taught, what
wealth is stored up, what loyalties are fostered.
Perhaps more galling for those who believe that government action solves all
problems, a fully functioning Family does not OWE the state anything much.
If it feeds itself, clothes and schools it's children and cares for it's old and ill,
it does not need to show the almost feudal fealty to government demanded
of the rest of us in an age where the authorities, rather than God...seem to
be in charge of everything and to require most of our money to pay for their
services....
Full Family independence would undermine the government's supposed right
to demand heavy taxation.
It would also leave people free to cling to individual ideas of conscience,
rather than the nationalized 'social' conscience which measures a citizen's
value by how much tax he is willing to pay.
The freer a society is, the more it leaves the Family alone..."
__From The Abolition Of Britain by Peter Hitchens pp.190-192
Marriage and the Family is the one and only barrier/obstacle to stop
the all powerful state from it's natural tendency to rule by tyranny.
Destroy marriage and the Family and soon you will have the all powerful
state at your door first for your money (heavy taxes) then to take away
your rights and freedoms under one pretense or another. This is true
because the break down of marriage and the Family creates huge social
problems and dilemmas that only an all powerful government can "fix."
And they need your tax dollars and some of your rights and freedoms in
order to "fix" the resulting social mess created by the breakdown of marriage
and the Family. (Which "fix" btw, only creates more and deeper social problems
and dilemmas that need more and more tax dollars to "fix.")
One could make this culture war a battle front to preserve the Christian/American
Family, draw the battle line there, and he would be at precisely the right spot. If
we win the Battle For The Family we will automatically win this culture war, and if
we lose the Battle For The Family then we'll lose this culture war no matter how
many other minor skirmishes and battles we win.
Btw, there is no reason to assume we will lose this culture war, and many reasons
to believe that we will eventually win it. Here is one reason right here: "...THEN
the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father AFTER
He has destroyed ALL dominion, authority and power. For He must reign UNTIL
He has put ALL His enemies under His feet..." I Corinthians 15:24,25 (caps mine) That Biblical text sounds like our side wins at some point on the time line, doesn't it ! "...Then the end will come..." That would be the end of time, right ? It would seem so. And if that is the correct interpretation of that phrase, then we have a pretty clear statement from the Biblical text that the Lord will reign in history "...until He has put all His enemies under His feet..." "...AFTER He has destroyed ALL dominion, authority and power..." (caps mine) That's just another way of saying that our side wins this war at some point on the time line. (That is a very encouraging verse of Scripture as we fight this culture war.) The Lord Himself is the originator and designer of the Christian Family and some of us believe that this vital institution will not be defeated in the Earth, but will be sustained and protected by the Lord Himself, through mercy and grace, even in the darkest of political times. Jack Hectormann
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