The Days and Daze of Diabolical Delusion

Many, but not all, Christians in the United States of America have now been deluded into believing that a form of subtle Christian authoritarianism or low key theocracy, is the way–or at least the most effective way–to Revival; i.e., to bring Christianity (back?) to America, and thereby make America a truly Christian nation (again?), as in “one nation, under God.” In this way they hope to “Make America Great Again.”

It is a delusion because the God of the Bible doesn't coerce believers. He does not force those who follow Him to do so. So why would He ever want believers and those who follow Him to coerce others to either believe or to behave as they do?

It is also a delusion because not only is it not God’s way to force Himself or His way on human beings that He created, but it isn't even the American way to deny people in this country the liberty of conscience, the freedom to believe or not to believe what they choose to believe, or not to believe.

The Constitution of the United States is the governing document that the federal government's elected and appointed representatives and officials (both civilian and military) are sworn to preserve, protect, defend, and uphold. It is the document that establishes and gives legitimacy to this republic.

The Constitution was drafted by the nation's founding leaders–its framers–with painstakingly precise language; as it was intended to be the legal representation of the principles of liberty and self-government laid out in the Declaration of Independence that would endure in perpetuity, and withstand the proverbial test of time.

mention of, nor refers in any way to any religion or to any Deity at all. Its First Amendment in fact forbids the legislative branch of government to enact ANY law with regard to an establishment of religion, and likewise forbids the making of ANY law that prohibits the free exercise of religion.

The framers of the Constitution were aware that the Pilgrims who came across the Atlantic Ocean (to the so-called New World) were ‘Separatists,’ who sought to worship God freely and without any interference from the Church of England–the established and official ‘state’ religion–and from King James.

The ‘Father of the Constitution,’ James Madison explained the principles behind the concepts of liberty of conscience and of religious liberty this way.

“If ‘all men are by nature equally free and independent,’ all men are to be considered as entering into Society on equal conditions; as relinquishing no more, and therefore retaining no less, one than another, of their natural rights. Above all are they to be considered as retaining an “equal title to the free exercise of Religion according to the dictates of Conscience.” Whilst we assert for ourselves a freedom to embrace, to profess and to observe the Religion which we believe to be of divine origin, we cannot deny an equal freedom to those whose minds have not yet yielded to the evidence which has convinced us. If this freedom be abused, it is an offense against God, not against man: To God, therefore, not to man, must an account of it be rendered.”

Something that Americans who want our society to be ordered in such a way as to legislate that their fellow citizens live and conduct themselves as they sincerely believe is the Biblical or God-preferred way of doing so, are particularly exorcised by what has occurred in America with regard to human sexuality, reproduction, and gender; particularly abortion and LGBTQ.

They politically support those politicians and parties that promise or purport to give them what they want on those particular issues, because those particular issues are perceived as the most visceral, most visible, and the most traditionally moral issues that exist in our society.

Among the problems with this approach to civics and with this approach to American citizenship is the failure of these citizens to either acknowledge or to appreciate the reality that liberty for all, and particularly religious liberty, can only exist in a country where people are free to have their own opinions and beliefs about how they choose to conduct themselves within their own persons and their own households, without interference from other individuals or from other institutions that may disagree with their choices and their beliefs, or that may disagree with their concepts of morality.

Another problem with wanting to legislate such beliefs and behavior is the failure to appreciate and/or to understand that liberty– and particularly religious liberty–always resides on a two-way street. In order for we as Christians, or Jews, or Muslims, or Buddhists, or Hindus, or agnostics, or atheists–or for those of us of any other traditional belief (or disbelief) system–to have our absolute freedom to believe and to practice our beliefs, and for us to retain our freedom to choose–or to ignore, or to refuse to accept anyone else's beliefs–anyone and everyone else must be free, and remain free, to believe whatever they choose to believe, and free to disbelieve or disregard whatever they choose to disbelieve or disregard.

In other words, everyone in America who values their liberty should be able to say that “insofar as religious beliefs, customs, and practices are concerned, I don't want the responsibility and I don't have either the moral, ethical, legal, or Constitutional right to impose my religious beliefs on anyone else; because I don't want anyone else to ever think that they have either the responsibility or the moral, ethical, legal, or Constitutional right to impose their religious beliefs on me.

Thomas Jefferson, who is generally credited with having drafted much of the Declaration of Independence, said “But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.”

Along these lines, Jefferson also wrote that “Perhaps the single thing which may be required to others before toleration to them would be an oath that they would allow toleration to others.”

Given that one of the core teachings of Jesus is the practical principle of treating others as you yourself would want to be treated, Christians of all people should appreciate this principle as much as anyone.

What's more is that, Jews (of all people) should arguably be even more highly sensitized to intolerance, given the heavily documented persecution they have historically endured for thousands of years in various places around the globe...including here in the United States.

Muslims are currently experiencing, and are now subject to, discrimination, prejudicial profiling, and stereotyping right here in this country; and should therefore be likewise just as sensitized to such negative treatment of others.

So, as a general proposition, Christians, Jews, and Muslims wanting the government to define, dictate, legislate against, mandate, forbid, criminalize, or in any other way outlaw or stigmatize things on the basis that they are counter to, or different than their religious norms, values and traditions, are at best fundamentally misguided and misinformed; but probably very dangerously deluded.

Coercion has historically been the means and the method by which the father of lies has diabolically deluded and exploited the professed people of God to persecute, torture and murder skeptics, critics, dissenters, and ‘heretics’ for millenia. It is an old and tricky playbook, but he uses it simply because the plays in it are so reliably consistent in their demonic effectiveness.

As amazingly tragic as it is, the sad fact of the matter is that these plays are working yet again, right here, and right now; in an America that we may soon no longer recognize at all. At least not based on what it was literally designed, by its founders, to represent.