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And an empire without borders
By J. Jeff Toler for Shenandoah Christian Alliance j.toler@sca4christ.org
- For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are; they are not stricken like the rest of mankind. Therefore pride is their necklace; violence covers them as a garment. (Psalm 73: 3-5)
“Conservatives love little more than to lament the death of the West,” writes Michael Knowles in his review of Spenser Klavan’s “How to Save the West” appearing in the Winter 2022/23 edition of the Claremont Review of Books.
Spenser Klavan, is the son of Andrew Klavan, (who, Andrew never fails to remind us is “no relation.”) and he has written one of the really good—probably great-books on this very lament. Klavan is the associate editor of the Claremont Review of Books, as well as the features editor for The American Mind and host of the Young Heretics podcast.
In the description of “How to Save the West: Ancient Wisdom for 5 Modern Crises” we read,“It has been proclaimed many times, but perhaps never more convincingly than now, when every news cycle seems to deliver further confirmation of a world gone mad… Is this the endgame? Have we come to closing time in the West?”
Klavan, who by his own profession is a Christian, has written this book to reintroduce “ancient wisdom for five modern crises.” But this is a lament with a hopeful prognosis—as it should be.
What are these crises of which Klavan laments you ask? He lists them as: “reality, body, meaning, religion, and regime.”
If we have been paying any attention at all, we should know: these are the targeted objectives of those shadowy antagonists who have been making enormous strides in dominating all of the above with their nefarious methods and means; gradually gaining ultimate control of the destiny of this earth and its future—or so they would like to think.
I am referring to the ruling elites, the small but fabulously wealthy and powerful cultural influencers; titans, if you will, in the transition from western civilizational dominance toward something else, something ultimately very evil, something cruelly dystopian. These titans are not shy about forging any alliance they can to accomplish their goal: an empire of complete and total control—of everything.
The new Crisis of Regime
For example, Mark Zuckerberg wants to wrest all of us from the grip of the real world and drag us into Meta, his version of the “metaverse”—a place where we imagine ourselves in and of something we can only be and do with his collaboration. While he lost a substantially large amount of his personal wealth, he’s continuing to actively promote Meta.
Klaus Schwab, (cover photo) and others in the Davos elite, not only talk about a “Great Reset,” they’re actively implementing it through the World Economic Forum, as was recently revealed during the COVID 19 pandemic in 2020. (Source: GotQuestions.com)
Valerie Huber, the architect of the Geneva Consensus Declaration, cited in a commentary at LifeNews.com of Bill Gates’ recent announcement of his plan to turn over $7 billion over a number of years to aid abortion in Africa. (Source: WND.com)
Zuckerberg, Schwab, and Gates are only part of something much bigger, the culture of the new capitalists, who, with their fabulous wealth, would rule an empire without borders: in league with men like Bezos, and Soros; and those who manage their wealth, like Schwarzman, Fink, or Buffet.
“The word “imperialism” comes from the Latin word imperium. It refers to a nation or a state implanting its rule on other states, treating them as subordinates and in an inferior fashion,” writes Victor Davis Hanson in “Imperialism: Lessons From History,” from a speech appearing in “Primus.” But how do we, the collateral damage made by these imperialist’s lust for greed, react? Should we just roll over? Should we lament?
Lament is solidarity with all who hurt. When we lament, do we say out loud that this world is not the way it’s supposed to be? When we lament, do we tell the truth about our hurt, our loneliness, our sadness, and our grief in God’s presence? Yes! We must say, “The world is not right.” And, in this way, we initiate protest against injustice, suffering, and evil. But, who is “we” exactly?
In Western culture, and by extension the Church in the Western world, we, it seems, are the ones with a deep aversion to lament. Most want to sweep our negative emotions under the rug and hide them away in the shadows of our inner selves. Last week I pointed out that we need to see true horror to fully appreciate how precious and holy true life really is. This is how serious the crisis of regime has become. To me, those of us with the most to contribute to course correction are the ones with the weakest grip on the wheel, or who possess the faultiest compass. Not all of course, but there needs to be more of us at work speaking truth to power. While it may be that the powerful have grown too big to hear the truth anymore, we absolutely must believe that unifying against their plans is one of our best hopes to foil their efforts.
Very recently, Shenandoah Christian Alliance, in association with Virginia Christian Alliance presented “A Declaration of Covenant,” a new video about how and why this nation was established. It was produced to present to America’s pastors—those who still maintain their reliance on the truth found solely in the scriptures and in Christian orthodoxy, and most importantly, with the need for its conservation.
A new movement is shaping up in America—to promote and defend the truth of our heritage. And it is this: we are indeed a Christian nation because we were founded that way, and history proves it.
To paraphrase Jon K. Lauck (pictured) from his new book, “The Good Country: A History of the American Midwest, “There can be virtue in evoking something worthy in the past. [America] could be a reservoir of idealism and hope, if we knew its history.”
This is not about nostalgia, but a place, he says, “[that’s] animated by the belief that a self-governing republic, upheld by the sturdy virtues of a generous, courageous, thoughtful, and self-reliant citizenry, is the best regime for man, and that its success is the best possible source of moral and political inspiration for the world. We need that example now more than ever.” (emphasis added)
The producers of this soon to be released video, A Declaration of Covenant asked ourselves, who better to inspire, lead, and extol the virtues of historical truth, and the nation that God blessed, than her church pastors and teachers.
We seem to be facing a choice: to stand and fight the spiritual war that is literally inside our borders, or yield to the insidious culture that has inured us to the true truth.
- The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 ESV)
