Doctor Issachar

In a sermon, a pastor boasted that he no longer watched the news. The purpose in so sharing seemed to be to insinuate that “since I don’t, neither should you.” It was suggested that instead of paying attention to the social and cultural decay around us, our efforts should rather be directed towards bringing Jesus to the attention of the lost. All well and good as that is the only way to prevent people from going to Hell. But of those converted, will they be encouraged to return to those spheres of influence from whence they came or had an interest in as a sort of ministry or will they also be expected to join the chorus of only “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus”? If that is the case, will things really improve to any considerable degree? You will end up with pretty much the same diehard reprobates continuing to wield power for corrosive and destructive ends. And those now with both the ability and insight to perhaps do something about it will find themselves shamed into embracing the pious nonengagement demanded by the prevailing herd mentality. By Frederick Meekins

Apparently Governor Cuomo is alright locking down New York under his own authority but flies off the handle over the prospect of President Trump considering a similar possibility. Does that mean that he is now a convert to the cause of states’ rights? Perhaps he can demonstrate his fidelity to the cause by endorsing Arizona’s efforts to protect its own borders. Is it really socialist to accept the government economic relief check when it was the government that ordered the economy locked down and perhaps even crashed? In light of the coronavirus crisis, apparently the slogan of the hour is “We are in this together.” It will no doubt be one of those things said as citizens have their wealth and possessions they’ve labored to accumulate over a lifetime confiscated in the attempt to cover financially crippling plague stimulus outlays. Could also be something the thousands left to die or actively euthanized are told to deemphasize the worth of individual lives in favor of the alleged survival of the species. A declaration of emergency was promulgated in Champaign, Illinois detailing that, in light of the coronavirus, municipal authorities are allowed to seize foodstuffs held in private homes under certain circumstances. In a time of quarantine, the government might possess justification to curtail the movement of residents outside of their respective domiciles. However, if a government insists upon the power to violate the sanctity of your home for the purposes of confiscating without benefit of criminal conviction provisions acquired in compliance with the agreed upon norms of commerce in place at the time the goods and legal tender were exchanged, can such souls still be considered free people? If Americans are obligated to refrain from extraneous travel during the era of plague for the sake of the COMMUNITY, was there really reason why Trump needed to turn the hospital ship sent off from Norfolk as relief to New York City into a staged media event? It’s not like the crew was not capable or unmotivated to set out without a spectacle being made of it. In a sermon on racial reconciliation, a pastor begged for forgiveness on behalf of the church universal from those of a minority background that felt they have been judged, mistreated, or wounded by Christians that acted sinfully in regards to race either “willfully or implicitly”. In other words, you just aren’t racist if you called someone a cruel name without provocation but rather also if you clutched your wallet a little tighter as a group of questionably adorned youth approached you on a dark street and even in circumstances where the minority was upset over nothing more than not feeling deferentially catered to. So does the pastor intend to articulate an apology on behalf of minorities claiming to be good church folk that looted property following unpopular trial verdicts or those claiming to be ministers of God that egged on such behavior from the pulpit? It seems that Evangelicalism is mired in an anti-male perspective similar to that of the broader American culture. On the 2/2/19 episode of Generations Radio, a homeschool activist considered the issue do “Men Prefer Debt Free Virgins Without Tattoos Or Should They Prefer Repentant Sinners?” Before the presentation concluded, a full circle was completed with these sorts of problems once again blamed solely on the men. Many contemporary men might play an inordinate amount of video games. However, one cannot catch or spread sexually transmitted diseases like from someone that is not a virgin. So why is it then that these skanks without a lick of financial aptitude, substandard beauty, and dubious health are supposedly worthy of men that have abided by standards that they themselves have not lived up to either? Jesus might wash away sins. However, He usually leaves behind the microbes. A pastor remarked in a sermon that from the commencement of the homily argued against the formulation of analytical arguments that the speaking of evil of authority figures has been rampant in America for the past twelve years. So what the pastor is insinuating is that no President prior to Obama was subject to scathing or salty criticism. But is it really speaking evil of those in authority to point out the evil that those in authority have done? Bill O’Reilly published a book titled “Give Please A Chance.” Wonder if he tried the magic word in regards to the women other than his wife that he attempted to bed, a number not so willingly from the sound of it. A $500 fine for failure to wear a plague mask is not about preventing disease but is instead a New World Order revenue scheme. It was hinted at in an online sermon that, during a time of plague closures in which services are conducted online, members should be required text in that they logged on to view the service. It is a blessing if a church can post teaching online at this time. But if a church is tracking if you attend virtually, perhaps it is time to look for another church. A pastor remarked that he is seeing people outside working when they need to be inside streaming services. But if the content is online to be viewed at leisure, who is to say the time which it is supposed to be viewed? It is being claimed that with human movement restricted by the threat of violence inherent to any prospective law enforcement intervention, the environment is allegedly starting to improve. As evidence, it is claimed that dolphins have returned to the canals of Venice and the skies are supposedly clearer and less blurred by smog. Let’s see what good that will do when you find yourself confronted with the prospect of economic ruination, potential homelessness, and even starvation. Is it that the coronavirus is the result of the Chinese eating bats in violation of Mosaic law or more that the bats are improperly prepared? Will there be as much outrage over duck being part of Chinese cuisine? Such waterfowl are just as verboten by the Old Testament. Would be interesting to hear a perspective on this from Maryland congregations that shuck oysters and steam crabs Or perhaps from a North Carolina congregation that shovels pork barbecue into their mouths. For none of these local delicacies measure up to Old Testament standards if those are the guidelines one insists upon abiding by. So why is it safe to move about freely Friday at 5:00 PM but not safe to do so at Friday 3 PM? Am not attending a worship service where a mask is required. I am not a female jihadist. If the two ghetto counties of a state remain under lock down, what is to prevent residents of those from leaving their cellphones home and traveling to the liberated territories of the jurisdiction? A government public service announcement warns viewers of the toxic substances that can be introduced into the body through vaping. Will there be similar forms of propaganda detailing how they will likely be injected with the same sorts of compounds as part of a coronavirus vaccine? Regarding theme parks that will compel visitors to wear face masks. Will replacements be available should someone vomit on a ride or will the poor soul be forced to wear the same contaminated covering for the remainder of the visit? New Yorkers will soon be allowed to gather in groups of ten or less provided they wear masks and socially distance. But if masks and space between individuals are sufficient measures to interdict the spread of the plague, why must the size of the throng be limited unless for purposes of psychological manipulation? So do those that get jacked out of shape over Rush Limbaugh articulating the phrase “with talent on loan from God” intend to toss as much a fit over a radio host/podcaster calling himself “Charlemagne the God”? In regards to churches that might require “reservations” to attend services once things begin to reopen, what assurances do we have that such a paper trail won’t be handed over to public health authorities as part of the contract tracing bureaucracy? The nanny state fanatics demanding customers be denied access to the inside of fast food restaurants are the same ones that would toss you onto the sex offender registry for taking a leak alongside the road when these totalitarians cut off access to publicly available toilets. It is being admonished that now that he’s gone on to Glory, the character flaws of Ravi Zacharias should be overlooked. But threatening to kill oneself over an alleged online affair and pressuring a woman your brother got pregnant to get an abortion is a bit more profound than whether he left the toilet seat up or might have flipped off someone that cut him off in traffic. The Governor of Virginia insists it is wrong now just as it was wrong years ago to erect a statue of Robert E. Lee. Just as it was wrong then as it is now to have dressed in a Klan robe, Black face, and to have conveniently forgotten which one one was depicting. In his enthusiastic denunciation of systemic or institutional racism, does G.W. Bush intend to surrender the portion of the family fortune claimed to have accumulated through his grandfather’s collaboration with Nazi Germany? A number of politicians such as elected legislators and municipal executives are calling for the defunding of police departments. Does that include the Capitol Hill Police Department and assorted protective details? By Frederick Meekins

An article published in the April 2012 issue of “In These Times” asks in its title “Will Catholic Bishops Be GOP Pawns?” and warns in the subtitle “The Church and Evangelicals are finding common ground”. The author suggests that American Catholic leaders ought to concentrate more on promoting the cause of “economic justice” rather than upon so-called cultural issues that have been thrust to the forefront of the American civic dialog over the course of the past several decades dealing with matters such as abortion and homosexuality. But what the author fails to realize is that, in terms of Christian doctrine, the shared stance between conservative Evangelicals and traditionalist Catholics are more clearly spelled out in the pages of Scripture than something more nebulous such as “social or economic justice”. For example, the Ten Commandments bluntly declare “Thou shalt not commit murder”. Murder is defined as the taking of an innocent human life. Nefarious factions profiting from the practice, especially if they have seared their own consciences, might insist vociferously otherwise. But abortion is undeniably a form of murder. Likewise, marriage is clearly defined in the pages of the Bible. The old adage derived from the Genesis account is that God did not make Adam and Steve, He made Adam and Eve. Those preferring their Biblical exegesis with more of a distinction of solemnity are not left without textual support from the pages of Holy Writ. Mark 10:7-8 extols, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” Revelation does not say man and man or wife and wife. If there are those that prefer living this way that want to go off and shack up together, that raises a whole other interpretative argument as to what good Christians ought to do if anything. However, those deliberately deciding to go off into such sin should not expect religious and social institutions to extend the same degree of cultural blessing as to those entering into sanctified matrimonial partnership. And this applies also to heterosexual couples living together without authorization of either clergy or state. The issue of so-called economic and social justice is not quite as clear cut. It is pretty obvious whether or not an individual has been murdered and which relationships are not homosexual. However, there are various interpretations as to which policies will be the most effective at ameliorating the suffering of the poor. It is not so much that American Protestants or Catholics of a more individualist or free market orientation want to increase the misery of the downtrodden or fail to comprehend the suffering that can be inflicted by excessively complicated institutions. It is precisely because religionists of a more distinctively Americanist perspective do understand profoundly threats posed by behemoth bureaucracies that those of such a worldview endeavor to limit power from whatever social sphere such intrusions might originate. One aphorism, possibly attributable to Rush Limbaugh, posits that it is easy to be charitable with other people's money. While one may earn a good reputation for being concerned for the poor when calling for increased public spending, it isn't really going to crimp the lifestyle of elites calling for it if their taxes are increased should such policy proposals and rhetorical suggestions actually be put into practice. Most levelheaded people, no doubt even a few American Roman Catholic bishops among them, have a hard time swallowing and complying with these exhortations to give more sacrificially when those higher up the ecclesiastical flow chart can't seem to keep straight the funds on the books of the Institute For The Works Of Religion also commonly referred to as the “Vatican Bank”. It has been argued that over $100 million has been embezzled from or laundered through the institution in a variety of scandals. So should globalist planners --- both sacred or secular --- be successful in compelling regular people to surrender more of what we own, in all likelihood it will no more go to alleviate the suffering of the downtrodden than it already does. There are certain universal truths that transcend traditional divisions within the broader Christian faith. Those redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb irrespective of on what side of this divide they stand must prioritize what transgressions of the moral law are more egregious than others. By Frederick Meekins