The Evangelical Universalist Forum

The Purge: Election Year, Hypocrisy, and The Nature Of God

Theology Biblical Theology
#292

Yes.

I like to describe myself as an “extreme liberal of the far right”. The “far right” part of that indicates my Orthodox monarchism. The “extreme liberal” part of that describes the sort of Orthodox monarch I want: one of extreme mercy and humility. St. Vladimir, Equal-to-the-Apostles (who ruled Russia from A. D. 980 to 1015), actually abolished the death penalty entirely. That is the sort of monarch I want, not one who drapes himself in Christian garb while inside is a ravening wolf.

What is horrifying for us, living as we do in the age of the totalitarian secular state, is contemplating the body count of western secular governments, beginning with the French Revolution and culminating in Stalin’s exterminations and persecution of the Church (the most violent in the Church’s entire history). The twin icons of Christ and of His Mother have been replaced by icons of death camps and of mushroom clouds. As bad as some of those ostensibly Christian monarchs were, their crimes pale in comparison to the mind-boggling horrors unleashed by the likes of Stalin, Hitler, and Mao. And let us not forget the slaughter of the pre-born. In the U. S. alone the death toll since 1973 has totaled nearly 60,000,000–thus more than tripling Hitler’s murder of 18,000,000. God help us.

#293

LLC, I see now what you did there with the capitalization. That makes sense. Since the French revolution, western man has indeed deified the state.

#295

qaz, I would say the reason the Torah became so enlarged with commandments is because the people were trying to solve their problems by using law to do so. This is nothing compared to the thousands of laws we have on the books today. Has this gotten us anywhere? I would say not, for the evidence is right before our very eyes. Although Jesus was tempted by others to become engaged in the world of politics, he refused. He showed us a better way. Notice that he did not go about making laws to feed the people, clothe the people, heal the sick, etc.etc., but accomplished these things through the power of the Spirit.

#296

Why do you say defilement, began with the French revolution?
Are there any historians (contemporary or otherwise), who would agree with you?

Now to a point I wish to make - from an earlier post. If you take any 2 variables (i.e. SNAP recipients, UFO believers, alcholol addicts, drug addicts, etc.), you must first establish a relationship between them. Like the National Center for Health (I believe that is the body). And I can only use numbers from that survey conducted, etc, to make statistical conclusions regarding variables.

Take drug addicts and SNAP recepients - for example. We could have 1%, 2%, 5%, 10%, 20%, etc., being actual drug addicts (who are also SNAP recepients). We can’t take the numbers seperately and make a conclusion. But we can use the survey data, to analyze and draw conclusions - regarding the general population. As long as it is a representive population sample (i.e. approaches a bell shaped curve).

To those in the US (and elsewhere):

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

One Woman’s Frantic Thanksgiving Prayer

#297

While “defilement” is a fine word, I wrote “deified”.

Before the French Revolution, the entirety of Europe (with the exception of Switzerland, which proves the rule) consisted of Christian monarchies. The French Revolution began the ball rolling of secular totalitarian/authoritarian/democratic states.

I have read a great many historians mention the French Revolution as a major turning point not only in the history of France, but of Europe and the world as a whole. I have learned a lot from the works of Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_von_Kuehnelt-Leddihn ), especially his book, Leftism.

All the currents of contemporary political thought, whether democracy, republicanism, socialism, communism, etc. had the French Revolution as their mother. A couple of quotes from the introductory paragraphs of wikipedia’s article on the French Revolution:

“Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history.”

“Globally, the Revolution accelerated the rise of republics and democracies. It became the focal point for the development of all modern political ideologies, leading to the spread of liberalism, radicalism, nationalism, socialism, feminism, and secularism, among many others. The Revolution also witnessed the birth of total war by organising the resources of France and the lives of its citizens towards the objective of military conquest. Some of its central documents, like the Declaration of the Rights of Man, expanded the arena of human rights to include women and slaves, leading to movements for abolitionism and universal suffrage in the next century.”

I think my view of the French Revolution’s place in history is uncontroversial. Where I would disagree with the contemporary consensus is not in the realm of fact but of evaluation: I think that the French Revolution and its aftermath have been mostly bad for humanity. (Like the Taoists, I recognize that nothing can be 100% bad. Every cloud has its silver lining.)

#299

A few of today’s headlines:

Mexican cement company offers to build Trump’s wall

Rapper Nick Cannon Has Some Donald Trump-ish Thoughts on Planned Parenthood: He pulls a Kanye and goes on a controversial political rant

Planned Parenthood Dropped a MASSIVE 38 MILLION On Hillary’s Losing Campaign

#300

Of course they will. But the article doesn’t say that:

They will do it for free
Or expect the Mexican government, to pay for it.

http://www.truthdig.com/images/made/images/cartoonuploads/sw1129cd_590_356.jpg

Most likely, they are in it for:

The financial incentives
The publicity. Great way to secure new clients.

#301

What follows is from Victor Davis Hanson,

Illegal Immigration. No country can exist without borders. Hillary and Obama have all but destroyed them; Trump must remind us how he will restore them. Walls throughout history have been part of the solution, from Hadrian’s Wall to Israel’s fence with the Palestinians. “Making Mexico pay for the wall” is not empty rhetoric, when $26 billion in remittances go back to Mexico without taxes or fees, largely sent from those here illegally, and it could serve as a source of funding revenue Trump can supersede “comprehensive immigration” with a simple program: Secure and fortify the borders first; begin deporting those with a criminal record, and without a work history. Fine employers who hire illegal aliens. Any illegal aliens who choose to stay, must be working, crime-free, and have two years of residence. They can pay a fine for having entered the U.S. illegally, learn English, and stay while applying for a green card — that effort, like all individual applications, may or may not be approved. He should point out that illegal immigrants have cut in line in front of legal applicants, delaying for years any consideration of entry. That is not an act of love. Sanctuary cities are a neo-Confederate idea, and should have their federal funds cut off for undermining U.S. law. The time-tried melting pot of assimilation and integration, not the bankrupt salad bowl of identity politics, hyphenated nomenclature, and newly accented names should be our model of teaching new legal immigrants how to become cit

#302

Well, I’ll ignore all the rhetoric from Dave, Donald Trump, Victor Davis Hanson, etc. and run with this tried - but true - motto :exclamation: :laughing:

#303

Big deal - we ALL have to ignore rhetoric ALL the time - it’s the new norm. :laughing:

But I applaud your hermenutic of suspicion, which is also the new norm. I won’t “show you” however. As if rational argument solved anything, alas.

BTW - what rhetoric did I use? I quoted someone else. So, I’ll ignore your rhetoric. There, take that :laughing:

#304

qaz, I don’t feel that it’s might right to examine my neighbor’s belongings and judge whether they are superfluous or not. I think these are the seeds of covetousness and jealousy. According to Scripture our offerings should be pure and come through the Spirit, that is they should be given willingly through a heart of love. Offerings that come from the plundering of another are ones that are defiled and are unacceptable to God. America will rise or fall depending on whether we follow the righteous ways of God or not. As I see that we are not doing all that well, I think it is time to reassess ourselves and return to the ways of the Lord.

#306

My question for the libertarians is, “If you succeed in getting out from under the thumb of oppressive government, are you all going to go out there and construct your own roads and highways? Indeed, as individualistic as you all are, will you be able to coöperate enough to do so?”

#307

Any and all civil laws are backed-up by capital punishment. Any law that a man supports, he needs to believe that it is worth killing for. Example:

Suppose a man neglects to pay the property taxes on his house. (Mine come to just under $1,000/year, so we’ll use that figure in our example.) He will receive a letter from his local court house informing him of his “oversight”.

After the man throws that letter away unanswered, the following letters will become less polite and downright threatening.

After receiving no reply to any of its letters, the local government will send government employees to collect the taxes. After the man does not open the door to their knocks, the sheriff will be sent to evict the man from his house.

When the man refuses to leave his house with the sheriff, guns will be pulled.

When the man pulls his own gun in response, he will find himself in a lethal gunfight. Even supposing he wins the fight, the government will continue to send more gunmen until the homeowner is finally slain.

All over, ultimately, simple refusal to pay his property tax bill. A man gets capital punishment for refusing to pay less than $1,000.

Every single law, every single one, is necessarily backed-up by lethal force. Otherwise the laws would be unenforceable.

Make sure that when you support a law, you realize that you are basically saying, “This law is so vital that those who absolutely refuse to obey it must be slain.”

As an extreme liberal of the far right, this illustrates why I think all civil laws when typed in 11-point font should fit on the back of an index card.

#308

Som e laws are backed up by incarcernation, exile. If we can catch the offender. If the offender refuses to run, or starts shooting - then we’re not imposing capital punishment for the original crime, but for trying to murder cops or other authorities.

So: shoot for taxes? No. But shoot to defend onself from one who, in addition to not paying taxes, feels he can kill others to defend his right. The taxes would not then be the issue.

#310

I seem to recall a famous meeting, between Thoreau and Emerson :bulb:

#311

I’m only saying that the state will ultimately kill a man who wishes nothing more than to be left alone in his own house.

I will also observe that the state, as a false god, demands human sacrifice.

As an extreme liberal of the far right, I do not support the existence of police or of military. Any man who wishes to sit in his house and read all day should be left to do so.

#312

This election I voted for Trump for strategic reasons. Chief among them being the battle for western civilization. Islam is not compatible with the west. History has shown that over and over again.

#313

The private sector can build our roads. Why should the state build one using stolen money?

#314

qaz, you falsely accuse me. I am well aware of the troubles that exist in our society, and I take my duties as a Christian very seriously. We are not asked to be saviors of the world which is what the government proposes and pretends to be. We are asked to personally care for the sheep in our flock, as many as have been given us, and lead them to God. As it is said, one cannot serve two masters. When we see the expansion of the state, this is a sign that something is definitely wrong. From what I understand, the church is to be the head not the tail.

#315

A Question of Balance

A civilized society requires a balance between the laws that govern individuals as they relate to the whole, and the freedoms granted individuals as they relate to the whole.

Extremists around the edges pull in the direction their own interests and limited perceptions. The most civilized citizens find themselves somewhere near the center, able to look with tolerance at those who have different views from themselves, and share the understanding that a just balance is necessary for the maintenance of the community.

Chaos is the result when there is no law. Oppression is the result when their is too much law, or when too much leverage is held in too few hands.

Honest scales and balances belong to the LORD; all the weights in the bag are of his making. Prov 16:11