Oh, that my head were waters, And my eyes a fountain of tears, That I might weep day and night For the slain of the daughter of my people! Jeremiah 9:1
For the hurt of the daughter of my people I am hurt. I am mourning; Astonishment has taken hold of me. Jeremiah 8:21

Human slavery was by no means abolished in 1863. Nor did it cease in civilized nations, including the United States of America, nearly 150 years ago. It continues to this day, unabated, even within the borders of this American nation.

The trade is not limited to men, women, and children with dark skin, for purposes of forced labor. Modern slavery has taken a more ghastly, dispicable, and nefarious face: the majority of those who are slaves are women and children, who are forced into lives of prostitution. The statistics are horrific:

* A child is trafficked every 30 seconds. – UNICEF
* The average age of entry into commercial sex slavery in the United States is 13 years old. – United States Department of Justice
* Human Trafficking occurs in 161 out of 192 countries. – The United Nations
* Pornography is a 96 billion dollar per year industry. – The Internet Filter Review
* Up to 96% of women in prostitution want to escape but feel they can’t. – United Labor Organization
* Human Trafficking is a 32 billion dollar per year industry. – The United Nations
* In some countries it is estimated that 70% of men purchase sex. – Victor Malarek; The Johns
* Over 27 million people are enslaved around the world. This is more than double the number of Africans enslaved during the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. – Kevin Bales; Free the Slaves

(Source: “The Cold Facts of Modern Slavery” http://nefariousdocumentary.com/learn-more/)

This slave industry is global, but most of the victims are brought here — that’s right, to the United States of America — to be exploited. Exploited by whom? According to statistics, more than 80% of the buyers of slaves for purposes of prostitution are American businessmen. Europe is also a major destination for victims of human trafficking. That is unspeakably disgusting.

Although forced labor is a part of global human trafficking, the greater majority is that of forced prostitution. How sick! We gasp at how 200 years ago, Africans were sold and bought, and treated most degrading manner, to be subjected to forced labor all their lives. We wonder at how our ancestors, not even a full 2 centuries ago, could be so brutal to another human being.

But now, there are even more slaves today than there ever were in history at any one time. It is not the need for labor and hired hands that is fueling this multi-million dollar industry. The majority of slaves are being obtained and sold, not for the purpose of picking cotton or harvesting sugar cane, but for the purpose of gratifying the carnivorous appetite of a man who feels like being a pervert that day.

This problem is in no way far removed from even middle-class citizens. We are continually bombarded with immoral propaganda, on purpose. Even the shopping isles and grocery store tabloids shamelessly display the very things which fuel human trafficking. Sexual gluttony is not just inappropriate; it is costing millions of women and children, almost none of whom chose this kind of life, their lives and souls. And every single person who patronizes the businesses that promote this kind of behavior — either through viewing porn, clicking in internet adds, subscribing to slimy magazines, or anything else — bears the burden of responsibility for these people.

And the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” Genesis 18:20-21

God hears the cry of those who are oppressed, and He executes righteousness and justice on their behalf (Psalm 103:6). God does not take that cry lightly, and neither should we. When He comes to visit, He should find out that the hands of His people are clean of this great iniquity, and are standing on the side of justice, ready to move at His word.

Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save;  Nor His ear heavy,  That it cannot hear.
But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you,
So that He will not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood, And your fingers with iniquity; Your lips have spoken lies, Your tongue has muttered perversity. No one calls for justice, Nor does any plead for truth. Isaiah 59:1-4

Why does not God move? Why does God not powerfully intervene in this situation, and turn this whole wicked industry to dust? Because no one calls for justice. We don’t care, and our hands are just as defiled with sin as our neighbor’s. If there was zero perversion in “Christian” circles in this country, I am confident that a lot of wicked causes and businesses and industry would go bankrupt. After all, don’t professing, church-going Christians make up the majority of people in this country?

There are some very, practical steps that we can take to squash this squalid traffic in this country, and hopefully, worldwide. There are a number of excellent Christian organizations that you can partner with, and help the cause of liberty, but the two groups I would like to highlight are Pearl Alliance, led by John and Lisa Bevere of Messenger International Ministries, and Exodus Cry, a ministry led by the International House of Prayer, based in Kansas City. Both organizations raise awareness about the truth of human trafficking, and they work to rescue those caught in it. What is great about the Exodus Cry ministry, is that they understand the indispensable importance of prayer in this fight against slavery; hence they do not only appeal to men, but to God, and angels and demons move in the spiritual realm, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Below are two video clips by these anti-human trafficking ministries. If you possibly can, share these videos with others, and get the word out about this cause.

Exodus Cry: The Mission Briefing

Exodus Cry: The Mission Briefing from Exodus Cry on Vimeo

The A21 Campaign: Maria’s Story

http://herkyreflects.blogspot.com/2010/10/revival-is-coming-and-so-is-opposition.html

From the American Revolution Center, which conducted the survey:

The survey questions addressed issues related to the Revolutionary documents, people, and events, and also asked attitudinal questions about the respondents’ perception of the importance of understanding the Revolutionary history and the institutions that were established to preserve our freedoms and liberties. The survey results highlight the importance of, interest in, and lack of understanding of our Founding.

The specifics of the poll, and their results, can be viewed by viewing the PDF file available from the American Revolution Center’s website, here.

The average score was 44%, and nearly 83% of those surveyed failed to get a passing grade, meaning that they failed to get more than 16 questions correct on a 27-question exam.

The survey showed that by far, the majority of what Americans know about the Revolution and its principles comes from what they were taught in the school system. That statistic alone should account for the rest of the results of the survey. Hence the question posed in the title of this post: Why are we so surprised? Why are we so surprised that

Sixty percent of Americans could correctly identify the number of children in reality-TV show couple Jon and Gosselin’s household (eight), but did not know the century in which the American Revolution took place.

What?! Is 1776 such a hard date to remember? Or is this the result of a confusion over which century the 1700s were? (It was the 18th, and not the 17th century.)

Many more Americans knew that entertainer Michael Jackson sang “Beat It” and “Billie Jean” than knew that the Bill of Rights is part of the United States Constitution.

The survey also showed that the second most popular source of information concerning the Revolution, its leading figures, and its principles (again, this statistic is not a surprise), comes from books written on the subject. That can be good. However, given the kinds of books that are the most popular these days on the subject of the American Revolution and the Founders, that can also be bad. If one examines the kinds of books that are most popular today on the Revolution and on the Founders, books written by popular authors, it is pretty clear that these books, in general, tend to (A) market their works to popular audiences, and (B) add to/reinforce what the reader most likely was taught in school (not surprising, since most of these popular authors are professors at public universities and colleges).

Now, these two attempts are not bad in and of themselves. However, marketing to popular audiences is wrong when one tries to appeal to the baser passions of the people, by accentuating the grotesque and the negative to make the material sensational, in an attempt to add to the work’s “popular appeal.” Reinforcing what has been taught in the schools is also dangerous when the schools are bent on impressing the minds of the students with humanistic philosophy, and not the truth.

And the third greatest source of information concerning the Revolution is (again, no big shock here) the television. Most of what is televised on the Revolution is drama and documentaries, but we really do not seem to have much on the Revolution in either category. And of course, it is no big surprise that Hollywood would *gasp* play fast and loose with the facts, all in the name of “creative license” and “entertainment.” If you think that popular books debase everything to add to their “popular appeal,” dramas and even documentaries do it to a much greater extent, and much more effectively. Therefore if someone is interested in learning more about our Revolution, ah, the boob tube would be the last place to get such an education. Most likely it will not inform. It will deform, twist, distort, until it has molded a false and graven image of the Revolution, its leaders, and its principles, into the minds of as many viewers as possible.

However, the part of the survey which is the most astonishing, is that although a majority of Americans believe that the Revolution’s principles apply today, and that many of the rights, privileges, and protections that we enjoy under our form of government — freedoms which our American forefathers fought and died for — are important, enough Americans do not believe that those rights are important to make one shudder. See the image below (click to enlarge), from which these statistic are obtained, to view how American opinion has changed for or against these rights and protections within a year.

And now for the figures, which speak for themselves:

14% said that although the right to a fair trial was important, it was not essential to American liberty.
18% said that although the right to practice the religion of your choice was important, but not essential.
22% said that the right to privacy was important, but not essential.
28% said the right to “speak freely about whatever you want” was important, but not essential, and 2% said it was not important at all.
23% said that the right to practice no religion was important but not essential, and 10% said that it was not important at all.
29% said that the right to march, protest, or petition the government is important but not essential, and 6% said it is not important at all.
32% said that the right not to have your property searched or seized is important, but not essential, and 6% said that it was not important at all.
35% said that the right to own firearms was important, but not essential, and 19% said that it was not important at all.

OK, a little disclaimer needs to be added here. The “rights” of “speaking freely about whatever you want” and of “practicing no religion” are not rights, nor did the Founders fight to protect them. You do not have the government right to speak about whatever you want. Speaking profanity, obscenity, or insulting the Christian religion and Jesus Christ were viewed as serious offenses to the Founding Fathers.

See for example, the case of The People v. Ruggles (1811), which was brought before the Supreme Court of New York State, and the opinion of the court was delivered by Chancellor James Kent. Kent was a contemporary and close associate with such notable Founding Fathers as Alexander Hamilton and John Jay (and no, the majority of Americans couldn’t identify those two figures either). Kent is known as one of America’s two “Fathers of American Jurisprudence” (the other is Kent’s contemporary Judge Joseph Story), for his authoritative Commentaries on the United States Constitution. Kent, in the case in question, made this declaration:

The people of this state, in common with the people of this country, profess the general doctrines of Christianity as the rule of their faith and practice; and to scandalize the Author of these doctrines is not only in a religious point of view extremely impious, but even in respect to the obligations due to society is a gross violation of decency and good order. Nothing could be more offensive to the virtuous part of the community, or more injurious to the tender morals of the young, than to declare such profanity lawful. (SOURCE)

We do enjoy freedom of speech, but that is not the same as enjoying the right to “speak freely about whatever you want.” If it was the intention of the survey to inquire as to how Americans view the importance of freedom of speech, as specified in the Bill of Rights, then they misinterpreted it with their question, making a whole new “right.” If I had taken the survey, I would have answered as the minority above answered it.

And as for “having no religion” — that is not a right. It is something that is not within the sphere of government, so you might say that because the government is not allowed to interfere in that matter, it is something you enjoy under a free system of government. However, that does not automatically make it a “right.” Nor did the Founders specify it in the Founding Documents as a protected right.

So as for those two questions, I think I can understand the reasons for the minority’s answers. At best, those two questions are poorly phrased. However, the rest are as plain as they need be, and we have considerable numbers of people saying that they are not essential? The right to bear arms (i.e., the right to defend myself, defend my family and property, the power to defend the innocent) is not essential? The right to peacefully assemble to petition the government for a redress of grievances is not essential?

Maybe I good question to ask the people who took this survey would be this:

WHAT ON EARTH IS ESSENTIAL?!?!?!

By looking at the ways in which the majority of the surveyed Americans excelled in knowledge, they think that television and entertainment is essential. As the survey PDF will show its readers, most of the Americans surveyed say that they have a desire to know more about the Revolution, until now they think they have a fairly good understanding of the basics, and they expected (at least the majority did) to excel, and they did not. Maybe this would make a good illustration of “good intentions” versus “good actions.”

So that is where we are at, America. We are enjoying ourselves to death. Literally. As the country fantasizes over the things that entertain it and tickle its whimsical fancies, our liberties are being ripped apart piece-by-piece by those who hate this country and everything for which it really stands. This survey is not all bad news, but if the body of the American citizenry is not awakened to a sense of real danger and real urgency, our tiny steps toward improvement will mean nothing, as our destruction makes huge strides.

Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you.
Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.
~ Proverbs 4:5-7

If you are stopping by, and have taken the time to read this post, please leave your comment and tell me what you think of the blog as it is, and its appearance. The way it stands is by no means complete; I think the font should be fixed and the template spruced up a little. There are widgets to be cleaned up and put in the sidebars, and so forth. And then of course, are posts. I will get to writing them — I promise!

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy what is already here. Again, comments are welcome.

H. M.

It concerns a state representative from Oklahoma named Sarah Kern. Probably never heard of her on the “fair-and-balanced” Fox News Channel. If you did, it probably wasn’t very positive (or extensive) coverage. Well, she recently drew up the “Oklahoma Citizens’ Proclamation of Morality,” which is also in national form, and can be signed by Americans everywhere.

I am encouraged to see this proclamation. I am heartened by the fact that someone in a place of public trust is openly recognizing that private moral conduct is essential to the survival of our nation. I am heartened that there is a growing realization amongst our Christian brethren in this country that repentance, and not legislation and lawsuits, is what is needed in this country. I am hopeful that more and more of us will become truly convicted, not only where the sins of abortion, sodomy, and others are concerned, but with the general permissiveness of evil that has pervaded our churches. May we repent of our disrespect for God and His law, and may we who teach righteousness to others, exhort ourselves also (Romans 2).

Here is the proclamation in full, taken from Kern’s website:

I periodically get emails from David Barton’s group Wallbuilders, and this morning I was pleasantly surprised to find such an email in my inbox.

It concerns a state representative from Oklahoma named Sarah Kern. Probably never heard of her on the “fair-and-balanced” Fox News Channel. If you did, it probably wasn’t very positive (or extensive) coverage. Well, she recently drew up the “Oklahoma Citizens’ Proclamation of Morality,” which is also in national form, and can be signed by Americans everywhere.

I am encouraged to see this proclamation. I am heartened by the fact that someone in a place of public trust is openly recognizing that private moral conduct is essential to the survival of our nation. I am heartened that there is a growing realization amongst our Christian brethren in this country that repentance, and not legislation and lawsuits, is what is needed in this country. I am hopeful that more and more of us will become truly convicted, not only where the sins of abortion, sodomy, and others are concerned, but with the general permissiveness of evil that has pervaded our churches. May we repent of our disrespect for God and His law, and may we who teach righteousness to others, exhort ourselves also (Romans 2).

Here is the proclamation in full, taken from Kern’s website:

We the People of Oklahoma, Invoking the guidance of Almighty God, in order to secure and perpetuate the blessing of Liberty; to secure just and rightful Government; to promote our mutual Welfare and Happiness, do establish this proclamation and call upon the people of the great State of Oklahoma, and our fellow Patriots in these United States of America who look to the Lord for guidance, to acknowledge the need for a national awakening of righteousness in our land.

WHEREAS,“It is Religion and Morality alone, which can establish the Principles upon which Freedom can securely stand” (John Adams); and

WHEREAS,“We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by Religion and Morality” (John Adams); and

WHEREAS,“Our Constitution was made only for a Moral and Religious people” (John Adams); and

WHEREAS, “We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government…but upon the capacity of mankind for self-government, upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God” (James Madison); and

WHEREAS, “Freedom is not a gift bestowed upon us by other men, but a right that belongs to us by the laws of God (Benjamin Franklin); and

WHEREAS,“God who gave us life gave us liberty and can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the Gift of God” (Thomas Jefferson); and

WHEREAS, “Whether any free government can be permanent, where the public worship of God, and the support of Religion, constitute no part of the policy or duty of the state” (Joseph Story); and

WHEREAS,“We hold sacred the rights of conscience, and promise to the people…the free and undisturbed exercise of their religion” (Roger Sherman); and

WHEREAS “This great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians” (Patrick Henry); and

WHEREAS, “When you…exercise the right of voting for public officers, let it be impressed upon your mind that God commands you to choose just men who will rule in the fear of God” (Noah Webster); and

WHEREAS,“The principles of genuine Liberty and of wise laws and administrations are to be drawn from the Bible” (Noah Webster); and

WHEREAS,the people of Oklahoma have a strong tradition of reliance upon the Creator of the Universe; and

WHEREAS, we believe our economic woes are consequences of our greater national moral crisis; and

WHEREAS, this nation has become a world leader in promoting abortion, pornography, same sex marriage, sex trafficking, divorce, illegitimate births, child abuse, and many other forms of debauchery; and

WHEREAS, alarmed that the Government of the United States of America is forsaking the rich Christian heritage upon which this nation was built; and

WHEREAS, grieved that the Office of the president of these United States has refused to uphold the long held tradition of past presidents in giving recognition to our National Day of Prayer; and

WHEREAS, deeply disturbed that the Office of the president of these United States disregards the biblical admonitions to live clean and pure lives by proclaiming an entire month to an immoral behavior;

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that we the undersigned elected officials of the people of Oklahoma, religious leaders and citizens of the State of Oklahoma, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world, solemnly declare that the HOPE of the great State of Oklahoma and of these United States, rests upon the Principles of Religion and Morality as put forth in the HOLY BIBLE; and that we, the undersigned, believers in the One True God and His only Son, call upon all to join with us in recognizing that “Blessed is the Nation whose God is the Lord,” and humbly implore all who love Truth and Virtue to live above reproach in the sight of God and man with a firm reliance on the leadership and protection of Almighty God; and

BE IT RESOLVED that we, the undersigned, humbly call upon Holy God, our Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer, to have mercy on this nation, to stay His hand of judgment, and grant a national awakening of righteousness and Christian renewal as we repent of our great sin.

Signed on the second day of July in the year of our Lord Christ Two Thousand and Nine.

Documentation for Founder’s Quotes

John Adams. Quote 1. June 21, 1776. Charles Francis Adams (son of John Q. Adams and grandson of John Adams), ed., The Works of John Adams—Second President of the United States (Boston:Little, Brown, & Co., 1854), Vol. IX p. 401

Quote 2. October 11, 1798, in a letter to the officers of the First Brigade of the Third Division of the Militia of Massachusetts. Charles Francis Adams, ed. IBID pp. 228-229.

Quote 3. IBID, p. 229.

James Madison. Quotation attributed to him in 1778 by numerous authors. Fredrick Nymeyer, Progress Calvinism (January 1958), Vol 4 p. 31 is one such author.
This quote is in line with the beliefs of Madison as given in documented statements by him. Also, his appointment of Joseph Story to the Supreme Court in 1811, who wrote two commentaries on the Constitution support Madison’s statement. In 1829 Justice Story explained in a speech at Harvard that “there never has been a period of history, in which the Common Law did not recognize Christianity as lying at its foundation.” He, also, wrote in Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States, Vol. III in 1833 that “Christianity…is not to be maliciously and openly reviled and blasphemed against, to the annoyance of believers or the injury of the public.” These statements and many others verify Madison’s belief in Christian principles as presidents always seek to appoint Supreme Court justices who reflect their beliefs and views.

Benjamin Franklin. William S. Pfaff, ed., Maxims & Morals of Benjamin Franklin (New Orleans: Searcy and Pfaff, Ltd, 1927)
Thomas Jefferson. 1781, in his Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVIII, 1781, 1782, p. 237

Joseph Story. 1833. Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution, 1833 (reprinted NY: Da Capo Press, 1970), Vol. III, p. 726, Sec 1868, and p. 727, Sec 1869.

Roger Sherman. February 1776, in a directive for the embassy to Canada. Christopher Collier, Roger Sherman’s Connecticut (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1979), p. 129.

Patrick Henry. Attributed. Steve C. Dawson, God’s Providence in America’s History (Rancho Cordova, CA. Steve C. Dawson, 1988), Vol I, p. 5. This statement, like Madison’s is completely in line with documented statements of Henry.

Noah Webster. Quote 1. 1832. History of the United States (New Haven: Durrie & Peck, 1832), pp. 307-308, paragraph 49.

Quote 2. 1833. Noah Webster translated Common Version of the Holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, with Amendments of the Language (1833), p. 160.

If you are not from Oklahoma, and would like to support this petition, go here.

If you are a citizen of Oklahoma, support Representative Kern’s petition here.

Here is Mrs. Kern on her proclamation:

To hear so many public figures, or even ordinary people who publicly sound their opinions, say it, many might answer “yes” to the above question. So many people, on all sides of any issue, see so many wrongs in a country, including ours, that need to be corrected. It seems to be the fashion these days, indeed, the fashion throughout the ages, to seek solution to moral and social ills in reason and in legislation. We humans tend to look to the source of power for the righting of wrongs; usually, that source of power, intended for the preservation of truth and justice (when Superman is not available, of course), is the government. We go to the halls of legislation and law enforcement to right social and moral wrongs. In doing so continually, we are demonstrating the great confusion we have over (1) the purpose and capability of government and (2) the cause of moral and social problems.

I have discussed these two issues extensively on this blog, so I will not go into these issues presently. Instead, I will focus on answering the original question: “Can legislation and reason change America’s moral climate?”

I choose to answer this question, by presenting to my readers a parable, in the form of a dream that Benjamin Rush had in September of 1808, which he related in a letter to his good friend John Adams in that same month. Benjamin Rush was deeply concerned about the effects of alcoholism on the American populace, especially after observing how one of his patients had abused it. This moral pestilence troubled him deeply, and followed him into his sleep. Hence the dream:

After having recently observed the fatal effects of intemperance in the use of ardent spirits in one of my patients, and reflecting afterwards upon the incalculable evils they are spreading through our country, I went to bed a few evenings ago at my usual hour, and during the night I dreamed that I had been elected President of the United States [may I insert here, that Dr. Rush was a very humble man?*]. At first I objected to accepting of the high and honorable station [See? What did I tell you?], but upon recollecting that it would give me an opportunity of exercising my long-cherished hostility to ardent spirits by putting an end to their general use in our country, I consented to accept the appointment and repaired to the city of Washington where I entered upon the duties with spirit and zeal.

The secretaries brought me a number of letters and reports. I laid them upon a table and told them I would do no business until I got a law passed by Congress to prohibit not only the importation and distilling but the consumption of ardent spirits in the United States and counties in which spirits were consumed in the greatest quantities. Petitions flowed in upon me from all quarters to advise Congress to repeal the law, but I refused to comply with them.

One day sitting alone in my council chamber, a venerable but plain-looking man was introduced to me by one of my servants. I offered him a chair and delicately asked him what his business was with me. “I have taken the liberty,” said he, “Mr. President, to call upon you to remonstrate with you against the law for prohibiting the importation, manufactory, and consumption of ardent spirits. He said the law was well enough for a month or two, during which time all the drunken men had become sober, but, protracted as it was for nearly a year, it did such violence to the physical and commercial habits of our citizens that it had not and could not be carried into general effect; that many of the persons who had conformed to it had been sick form drinking nothing but cold water; that the plow and the wagon stood still from the want of that strength in the men which they formerly derived from their morning dram; that the stage drivers and coachmen everywhere fell from their seats from the same cause; that the clergy in many places were unable to preach and the lawyers to plead from the want of a little grog to moisten and oil their organs of speech; that women everywhere became unusually peevish and quarrelsome from a relaxation of their nerves brought on by the want of a little brandy in their tea; and that all the West India merchants, distillers, and tavern-keepers in the country were in an uproar; and that unless the water and small beer law were instantly repealed, we should soon have our country filled with hospitals and our jails with bankrupts.”

“Hold, sir,” said I. “You don’t know the people of the United States as well as I do; they will submit to the empire of Reason, and Reason will soon reconcile them to the restrictions and privations of the law for sobering and moralizing our citizens.”

“Reason! Reason! Mr. President. Why, you forget that it was Reason in the form of a Goddess that produced all the crimes and calumnies of the French Revolution, and that it was by a book entitled The Age of Reason that Tom Paine demoralized half the Christian world. You forget too that men are rational only, not reasonable creatures. … But Mr. President … permit me to mention an empire of another kind to which men everywhere are yield a willing, and in some instances, involuntary, submission, and that is the Empire of Habit. You might as well well arrest the orbs [planets] of heaven in their course as suddenly change the habits of a whole people. Even in little things they resist sudden innovations upon their ancient and general customs. Peter, the husband of the late Catherine of Russia, lost his life for an attempt to change a part of the dress of his subjects. The inhabitants of Madrid once rose in a mob to oppose an edict which was intended to compel them to use privies in order to prevent the accumulation of night soil in their streets. An hundred other instances might be mentioned of the fatal or mischievous consequences of opposing the settled habits and prejudices of nations and communities.

“Indeed, Mr. President, I am sorry to tell you, you are no more a philosopher than you are of a politician, or you never would have blundered upon your spirit law. Let me advise you to retire from your present station and go back to your professor’s chair and amuse your boys with your idle and impracticable speculations, or go among your patients and dose them with calomel and jalap [internal medical purges] –”

“Stop, stop, sir,” said I. “What do you mean by thus insulting the First Magistrate of your country? Here, John (calling to my servant), turn this man out of doors.” The noise of John coming hastily into the council chamber, and the vexation I felt in being thus insulted, awoke me and made me happy in discovering that the whole of the scene that I have described was nothing but a dream.”
Benjamin Rush: Signer of the Declaration of Independence, by David Barton, pages 153-156; cites Letters of Benjamin Rush (edited by Lyman Butterfield), volume 2, pages 977-979
*DISCLAIMER: It is not the intention of the author to be sarcastic, but the styling of Rush’s words here prompted him, and said author could not resist inserting a little humor. Said author does indeed believe in the humble character of Doctor Benjamin Rush.

There is a lesson that can be learned from this. Rush saw a legitimate problem, and he cared about it enough to try to fix it, as much as was within his power. His solution came through the means of strict legislation, that was sure, he thought, to stamp out the problem (liquor) once and for all. He was convinced that the people of America would “submit to the empire of Reason” — that they would see the wisdom in such legislation, and would jump on the bandwagon of anti-alcoholism, “President Rush”-style. This, of course, did not seem to happen. Such was the complaint among the people, that Congress was flooded with petitions, and “President Rush” was himself personally visited by one of the protectors. This anonymous visitor seems to have taken less concern for the moral health of the nation than for other things; and he did not seem to argue very strongly in support of his view, until he argued that men are more creatures of habit than creatures of logic.

This was his unshakable point. It is a point that we Christians especially seem to miss in so many of our efforts to reclaim our culture and win the hearts and souls of our fellow-men. We think that it will only take reason and the arm of the law to at least preserve the corps of what is long-dead. We try to work up and to manufacture what only the Holy Spirit can do with willing and obedient vessels. As I wrote recently, our refusal to learn this lesson is reaping bitter fruit. Let us learn it and apply it while we still have time.

Thanks for reading Founding Father’s Quote Friday! If you would like to participate in the weekly meme, visit this link, and write me a comment, with a link to your blog, letting me know that you participate. If you participated today, leave a comment with a link to your FFQF post below! Thank you!

Allow me to relieve my fellow bloggers and loyal readers: no, I have not yet been deported for sedition, thankfully. I am quite alive and well. A bit under the weather, and certainly very much preoccupied with an increased number of projects, but well. I would like to heartily thank those who have kept up the Founding Father’s Quote Friday meme in my protracted absense. My apologies that I have not kept up on your posts.

But I here now intend to resume said meme, starting today. Again, anyone willing to participate may. Here are the rules.

Because I am getting a late start in this meme, I am not going to put out a full-blown post here, just some weighty words from John Adams:

Posterity! you will never know how much it cost the present generation to preserve your freedom! I hope you will make a good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in Heaven that I ever took half the pains to preserve it.
Letter to Abigail Adams, 26 April, 1777

SOURCE: Letters of John Adams, Addressed to His Wife (ed. by Charles Francis Adams), volume 1, page 218

After an absence from this blog, and from my own meme “Founding Father’s Quote Friday,” I now resume my pen typewriter. I also apologize (do I do that more than I blog, I wonder?) to my readers and to FFQF participants. My absence was the result of necessity.

Today, we pose the question “Does one size fit all?” Meaning, “Is one form of government appropriate to all kinds of peoples, nations, societies, cultures, and so forth?” It seems ridiculous at first to think so, because all people are different; but it seems that it is viewed as unpatriotic these days to say that the United States Constitution, or ‘democracy,’ is not going to work for all people.

Let’s see what Founder Alexander Hamilton had to say about this:

… I hold, with Montesquieu, that a government must be fitted to a nation as much as a coat to and individual; and consequently, what may be good at Philadelphia [the unofficial United States capitol at the time], may be bad at Paris, and ridiculous at Petersburg [then capitol of Russia].
To Marquis de Lafayette, January 6th, 1801

We are told that all people have an inner desire for freedom (which is true), and that therefore all people should experience political freedom no matter what their beliefs, culture, or moral standards.

While this is a nice sentiment, and one would naturally hope that this could be realized, it is a sad impossibility. Only those who are capable of governing themselves in such a way that is consistent with the order, peace, and protection of society, can sustain any form of popular government.

I will no doubt be accused of bigotry by saying this, but it is truth nonetheless. Only the moral standards of God, who created man, are fit to govern man sufficiently and properly. God has made it clear that His word has been revealed to us in the form of the Holy Scriptures. If you have any doubts about this, I would suggest that you research the facts, internal and external. Some of the greatest internal evidences that have convinced me personally of the Scriptures’ superhuman origin are the scientific and medical facts which were hidden within the passages of the Bible, some of which have been discovered only during this past century. Ray Comfort has listed these facts in his book Scientific Facts in the Bible, available at Amazon.com. Another evidence is the Bible codes. Good reads on this subject include Dr. Chuck Missler’s The Cosmic Codes, and W. E. Filmer’s book God Counts. There are many other evidences of the Bible’s accuracy and supernatural origin, but these two categories of evidence are totally mind-blowing.

Free government has worked in America as long as America has respected and observed those standards. When she departed, she departed from her origins of civic freedom as well. Now, we need politicians to look out for us, and protect us from ourselves. Such is the price a nation pays for deserting its own good by deserting God’s law.

You can listen to the interview here:

http://www.sidroth.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=5434&news_iv_ctrl=0&abbr=rad_

If there is one thing America could use now, it’s an attitude of gratitude. Maybe a major factor in America’s straying is the thinking that we have entertained for several decades, is that we made ourselves great, and that therefore, America’s destiny and purpose was ours to carve. Contrary to what our humanist history books would have us believe, America is not a monument to man’s potential. It is a monument to the Gospel.

Generations of Christian martyrs fought with the world, stood firm under fire, and preserved the Scriptures with their blood, so that their descendants could live in this land in freedom, could spread the Gospel to the most distant corners of the earth, and shelter countless immigrants on our shores.

No nation has ever seen success without God’s help, and the nation that refuses to acknowledge that, and to respond with humility and gratitude has always been humbled.

No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency; and in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their united government the tranquil deliberations and voluntary consent of so many distinct communities from which the event has resulted can not be compared with the means by which most governments have been established without some return of pious gratitude, along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seem to presage. These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed.

President George Washington, First Inaugural Address, April 30, 1789