Plato, who died around 347 BC, the only sign over the door of his Academy in Athens had these words: “let no one but seekers of truth enter here.” I believe there has been a shift in American mentality, people are not as willing to believe lies anymore. St. Augustine, one of the greatest minds to ever live said, “Christians should learn everything about everything. Look at the world objectively and learn the difference between truth and lies.”
Christians, and certainly Christian martyrs never do a risk analysis. Every time I was in the Congo, I thought of George Greenfield, British missionary to the Congo, proceeding down that great Congo river, opening dark Africa to Christianity, he buried three children and his wife on the banks of the Congo. Yet, at this time exactly 100 years ago, 1910, at his funeral at the head of the Congo, near Goma, a choir of 10,000 Christian converts sang “all hail the power of Jesus' name”. What a difference 100 years can make. The same year of Greenfield's funeral, 1910, my father was born, and my great grandfather, preacher of the Gospel throughout eastern NC, (Elder P.T. Lucas, father of 12, large landowner) died.
When I was in Goma, about 50 years ago, there was already a great upheaval between the Christians and Muslims. Today, there is absolute conflict, pillaging and killing. Traveling from Goma to Bukavu, a dirt road, but main highway through the nation, my guides stopped the car at a large tea plantation home. The home, a beautiful home in a beautiful setting on the Congo river had been deserted by the British owners of the plantation. The Muslim hordes who were terrorizing the country, had taken over the plantation. Guards stayed at the house, because it was being kept for the government. They insisted on our using the bathrooms in the house. The Goma hotel had prepared us a picnic lunch which we ate on the grounds. This hotel, with only three guests, me, my guide and a French tourist had electricity two hours a day. The owners of the plantation had been run off, leaving their home and everything in it behind. At least, they had somewhere to go. Most of us, when the hordes take over here, will have nowhere to go.
In political realignments, even when politicians are truthful, no one believes them. Madison avenue has taught politicians as well as business people how to lie, or at least put a “handle of truth” on a lie. Even churches feel they must use Madison avenue techniques, counting numbers instead of making numbers count. Not believing that God will take care of his church. That which is closest to your heart, you speak of first. Money has become our idol, even though we know that our money and everything else belongs to the government, how quickly we have become slaves. The dollar of 100 years ago is worth about 4 cents now. All our taxes added together, we just pay the cost of social security, medicare and medicaid. We borrow the money from China, Japan, and other places to pay everything else...two wars, veteran's benefits, education grants, most of the world's research, etc.
Most states are broke, California, wealthiest, has a 50 billion dollar debt. However, the poorest Americans today live better than kings 200 years ago, if for no other reasons, just the medicines available. A country so blessed, why we do risk it for political expediency? We know that George Tenet, Director of the CIA, knew in August that our nation would be attacked, as it was, on September 11th. Why didn't he tell the President?
There is certain respectability that comes with knowledge. Many corrupt things that go on in this country are legal, everything Adolf Hitler and Joesph Stalin did were legal under the laws of those countries. The George W. Bush administration set this country up for dictatorship with the Patriot Act, making the CIA another branch of the armed services.
Are we willing to just take a chance on our future? Intelligentsia, academia, news media conglomerates are depending on reason and logic. We are hardwired to have morals, not just to be an animal among animals with natural instincts, to know the absolutes of right and wrong. We do not have to study Chimpanzees in Africa to know how to behave.
Everyday, in every way, we get the images and warnings of what we have become. A gay judge in California has opened the flood gates for same-sex marriage. Tolerant people in Manhattan have made way for the building of a $100,000,000 mosque just two blocks from the 9/11 disaster. We have a total weather dilemma, the jet stream, on which the world depends no longer functions...earthquakes everywhere, the latest in Ecuador, floods, unusual heat. The handwriting is on the wall, images which all should understand.
No comments:
Post a Comment