A Perfect Republic

Many Christians today, while they would most likely oppose the evil of abortion, are, on the other hand, some of the most rabid supporters of empire-building, otherwise known as foreign wars! These same Christians voice their stance against abortion & yet throw their full support behind the warmongery this nation has been embroiled in for at least three quarters of her relatively short life! They justify their involvement with anything from, 'we must root out evil wherever it crops up', to 'we must support the nation of Israel at all costs'! Most of these Christians, as well, would likely tell you that we must blindly obey any governmental authority!

A republic, by its very definition, is a nation whose form of government is 'of the people, by the people, for the people'! According to this Rule of Law, elected representatives from the people govern by the statutes that the people, through their representatives, have ratified. This vision is fast fading in this great nation! Those representatives, for the most part, have become corrupt; rather than truly representing the people that they are meant to represent, they are representative instead of those who have themselves become corrupted through greed, maliciousness & terror!

'We the people' are not immune to this disease, either! Much of the problem lies with the general population; when it comes to decimating the Islamic Horde, most Americans, including many Christians, are almost as blood-thirsty & adept at warmongery as our corrupt leaders! The answer to the question, 'can we serve the Prince of Peace & bomb our neighbors' should be a simple one! The answer is a quick & definite NO! Then there is the nagging question of, 'who IS our neighbor'! Is 'our neighbor' limited to a certain geographical are? Is 'our neighbor simply one who needs our help, or is 'our neighbor' one who has done us no harm, yet stands between us & our target ( enemy ), through no fault of their own, but simply because they live there?!

Now, peace is not always the easiest option; there are times when it seems all you can do is bomb those who threaten our way of life, but we must remember too, our way of life, our Foreign Policy in particular, threatens their way of life! With our history of animosity towards them, even if we began to treat them all as our neighbors ( yes, even our enemies ), it is most likely that we would not experience an immediate reciprocation, but as Christians, are we not commanded to love our neighbor as ourselves & to treat others as we would like to be treated?

The problem is that we are on the receiving end now; having treated other nations like we have, we are now, as a nation, probably one of the most hated ( though feared ), probably on par with Ancient Rome! Much of what has made the evening news recently, including domestic violence, can be attributed almost directly to our involvement in foreign wars. Although Islam, as a religion, is in opposition to Christianity, groups like ISIS would probably not be lopping heads off if Christians had simply followed Jesus' command to love their neighbor! Again, this is not to say that Islamists would have never directly opposed Christianity, if Christians had not taken the violent tack they have, but at least the Christians would not be guilty of warmongery & idolatry!

If we are truly to have a republic, one governed by actual representatives of the people, then we must have a people who are Governed, not just by the Rule of Law, but by our Creator's Law, by the principle of loving our neighbor as ourselves & treating them like we would have them treat us! Until this change registers in the hearts & minds of Americans, Christians in particular, then all we can expect is more of the same & worse, for it can & will only get worse! This system of things, what can hardly be called a republic anymore, must be brought crashing to its knees before its citizens will realize that the Kingdom of God rules & until they understand & acknowledge this, there will be no lasting peace!

If Americans in general & Christians in particular opposed the killing of our neighbors across the seas as staunchly as they oppose the murder of the innocent, we would no doubt see a steep decline in the foreign conflicts that the U. S. Inc. involves this nation of fools in! Would God that we would see this day, the Day when Christians, even Americans in general, not only voice, but show a religious opposition to the senseless killing of our neighbors, whether they be next door or over the seas!

As things stand, though, all that we as Christians can do is to love God & our neighbor as ourselves! Treating others as we would have them treat us may seem a bit simple-minded & like closing the gate after the horse gets out, but at least we will have done our part! Though we as a nation have pretty much irreparably stuck our foot in it, maybe the best we can do as Christians is to secede ( politically ) from this Union & give up this idolatrous notion of empire-building! The only Empire a Christian should support & pledge his or her allegiance to is the Kingdom of our God & Father!

Charles Haddon Shank