Friday, February 18, 2005
The Deism of the Left
As the Democratic Party grapples with its recent defeat in the presidential elections, many of the commentators of the left have focused alleged that the Republicans have stolen the "value words" and defined them in a Christian way more at home in orthodox or fundamentalist schools of thought than in progressive ways. What the left fails to understand is that the Deist minimum it has gravitated towards (which is further to the left even than the Deism of Thomas Jefferson) puts them at odds with the those who make up the moral core of the country.
Jefferson, an Unitarian, has been described as a Christian Deist in a recent article by Avery Cardinal Dulles in First Things. Jefferson believed that a punishment for evil did exist in an after-life and could occur on earth as well, although that differed from pure Deism which was popular during Jefferson's time.
The pure deists, as Cardinal Dulles points out have a seroius internal problem:
"If there is an omnipotent God, capable of designing the entire universe and launching it into existence, it seems strange to hold that this God cannot intervene in the world He had made or derogate from the laws He had established. He might have good reasons for bestowing some added benefits not contained in the work of creation."
I am no fan of Jefferson's view of Deism as I am an orthodox Roman Catholic. However, Jefferson's Deism is far superior to the left's view of God and religion today which seems to be a more pure form of Deism (if they have any faith at all). In essence, the left's propensity to poo-poo organized religion (unless it is organized to be political first) rests on the idea that God is indifferent to us, and the intelectuals should be able to discuss matters and come to a reasonable conclusions for the world on any given matter. This can be seen in the operations (and failings) of the United Nations in addition to the foreign policy proposals of the defeated Kerry campaign.
This does not mean that God simply uses humans as pawns in His fatalistic chess game. What it does mean is that all humans need to be conscience of the fact that there is a master plan in which our free will to accept (and then act on) or reject the teachings of God actually matters.
During the 1940s and after World War II, Pope Pius XII remarked: "Into the hands of America, God has placed an afflicted mankind." America's cold war with atheistic global communism, culminating with Ronald Reagan's confrontation with the Soviets and the collapse of the U.S.S.R., is the outcome of the United States acting to help the afflicted. The question that needs to be answered today is: "Is America acting to help a mankind that is still afflicted?"
As for communism, it appears that our desire to make a dollar outweighs our moral duty to combat the communist Chinese as Reagan did. The global war on terror appears to be an attempt to relieve at least some of the affliction that has been foisted on parts of the world by radical Islamic fascism. What is clear is that the battle is not over; afflictions (including others, but the two most important are discussed here) remain and the United States is obligated to be an active player carrying out God's will. The world will never be perfect (Satan will see to that), but we can stive to make it better at all times as we live out our Judeo-Christian faith.
This type of language makes liberals cringe. However, it is the same type of language, more than mere words, that constantly had the left in an uproar over Ronald Reagan. The idea at the root of these words, Judeo-Christian values, scares the dickens out of the atheists and Deists of the left. Since their focus is worldly, they reject the idea that America has been or could ever be the shining city on the hill as America carries out God's will.
After being shot, Reagan was fond of saying that whatever time he had left on this planet was "for Him." Americans who listed moral values as the primary reason for voting for George Bush in 2004 understand what Regan meant, and they see a similar idea driving at least some of Bush's policies. What was obvious to this same group of people was that John Kerry thoroughly rejects this notion to the same degree as he refuses to stand up for the values of his Roman Catholic faith. Far too many Democrats are like Kerry. So long as they are Deists (or worse), they will continue to be a detriment to America and to the world.
Jefferson, an Unitarian, has been described as a Christian Deist in a recent article by Avery Cardinal Dulles in First Things. Jefferson believed that a punishment for evil did exist in an after-life and could occur on earth as well, although that differed from pure Deism which was popular during Jefferson's time.
The pure deists, as Cardinal Dulles points out have a seroius internal problem:
"If there is an omnipotent God, capable of designing the entire universe and launching it into existence, it seems strange to hold that this God cannot intervene in the world He had made or derogate from the laws He had established. He might have good reasons for bestowing some added benefits not contained in the work of creation."
I am no fan of Jefferson's view of Deism as I am an orthodox Roman Catholic. However, Jefferson's Deism is far superior to the left's view of God and religion today which seems to be a more pure form of Deism (if they have any faith at all). In essence, the left's propensity to poo-poo organized religion (unless it is organized to be political first) rests on the idea that God is indifferent to us, and the intelectuals should be able to discuss matters and come to a reasonable conclusions for the world on any given matter. This can be seen in the operations (and failings) of the United Nations in addition to the foreign policy proposals of the defeated Kerry campaign.
This does not mean that God simply uses humans as pawns in His fatalistic chess game. What it does mean is that all humans need to be conscience of the fact that there is a master plan in which our free will to accept (and then act on) or reject the teachings of God actually matters.
During the 1940s and after World War II, Pope Pius XII remarked: "Into the hands of America, God has placed an afflicted mankind." America's cold war with atheistic global communism, culminating with Ronald Reagan's confrontation with the Soviets and the collapse of the U.S.S.R., is the outcome of the United States acting to help the afflicted. The question that needs to be answered today is: "Is America acting to help a mankind that is still afflicted?"
As for communism, it appears that our desire to make a dollar outweighs our moral duty to combat the communist Chinese as Reagan did. The global war on terror appears to be an attempt to relieve at least some of the affliction that has been foisted on parts of the world by radical Islamic fascism. What is clear is that the battle is not over; afflictions (including others, but the two most important are discussed here) remain and the United States is obligated to be an active player carrying out God's will. The world will never be perfect (Satan will see to that), but we can stive to make it better at all times as we live out our Judeo-Christian faith.
This type of language makes liberals cringe. However, it is the same type of language, more than mere words, that constantly had the left in an uproar over Ronald Reagan. The idea at the root of these words, Judeo-Christian values, scares the dickens out of the atheists and Deists of the left. Since their focus is worldly, they reject the idea that America has been or could ever be the shining city on the hill as America carries out God's will.
After being shot, Reagan was fond of saying that whatever time he had left on this planet was "for Him." Americans who listed moral values as the primary reason for voting for George Bush in 2004 understand what Regan meant, and they see a similar idea driving at least some of Bush's policies. What was obvious to this same group of people was that John Kerry thoroughly rejects this notion to the same degree as he refuses to stand up for the values of his Roman Catholic faith. Far too many Democrats are like Kerry. So long as they are Deists (or worse), they will continue to be a detriment to America and to the world.
