Going from apathy to dependence
Published 3:13 pm Friday, July 10, 2015
In your July 3 edition, you printed a letter from Tom Driscoll. His point was in support of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to endorse gay marriage. He states this decision was “not rightly seen as civil law overturning God’s law.” Really?
Regardless of any opinion your readers have on this subject, printing his letter is your endorsement of his comment by its black-and-white presence on page A4. Might you have printed other letters that you undoubtedly received? Interestingly, the Herald continues to print a select group of writers who seem to be Marxist apologists. And like your big brothers in Seattle and on the national mainstream media front, the spin seems the same — telling your readers what to think.
To be clear, my point is not about endorsing or finding fault with the decision. My point is the Herald manipulates readers’ opinions through these communications. Sophistry is an old art, but many see through it.
Blatantly, in his effort to impugn and traduce the original script, Mr. Driscoll cites Genesis 4:19 as the first use of the word “married.” This script indicates “Lamech married two women.” Driscoll uses the New International Version of the Bible (changed in the 1970s to assert his point) and, according to Wikipedia, this version and rewrite has been rejected by many national Christian sources. The King James Version reads: “And Lamech took unto him two wives.” Obviously, this read shows that Lamech’s decision was his own and was not sanctioned by the authority of the church.
The King James Version states the first use of the term “married” was Genesis 19:14. “And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.” Lot’s decision was sanctioned by God.
Know this: For centuries, thousands of churches have stood and been the benefactor for populations across this nation and the world. This country, according to luminaries such as Ayn Rand and Alexis de Tocqueville, pointed out years ago that America was founded on moral principles, which have directed us toward enlightenment, yet now we stand at the crossroads. The secular path beckons America. And with it, cultural and moral implosion, just as the Roman Empire succumbed to its secular determination.
In 1787, Alexander Tyler, professor at the University of Edinburgh, stated of the fall of the Athenian Republic 2,000 years hence, that nations always progressed through the following sequence:
1. From bondage to spiritual faith;
2. From spiritual faith to great courage;
3. From courage to liberty;
4. From liberty to abundance;
5. From abundance to complacency;
6. From complacency to apathy;
7. From apathy to dependence;
8. From dependence back into bondage.”
I find that America today is hovering around stage 7.
Barry Clemons
Poulsbo
Editor’s note: Regarding Mr. Clemons’ assertion, “Might you have printed other letters which you undoubtedly received?,” we received no other letters related to this topic that week.
