| A group calling itself "Americans United for Separation of Church and State"
claims that James
Dobson of Focus on the Family "SEEKS
A FUNDAMENTALIST THEOCRACY." Doesn't that sound frightening? In fact, all Dr. Dobson wants is what America's Founding
Fathers wanted: children in public schools should be taught that the Declaration of
Independence is really true, and what it teaches is really true: |
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Not to mention the fact that America's founding charter says that any time a government claims to be god, it ought to be
abolished. |
If the teaching of these ideas creates a "fundamentalist
theocracy," then America is clearly a "fundamentalist theocracy," because the foundational charters of this nation endorse
and promote those ideas. |
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If you went to a secular school run by the government, everything you know about the word "Theocracy" is wrong.
The "mainstream media" and the secular (atheist) government in Washington D.C. love to use the word "Theocracy" as a boogeyman to obstruct
calls to cut harmful and wasteful government programs and promote personal responsibility.
You've been brainwashed to believe that every "Theocracy" in history is a tyrannical police-state led by priests or an ayatollah.
But the word "Theocracy" literally means "God governs." It doesn't mean "priests govern." It doesn't mean "The Ayatollah
governs." It means "GOD governs."
For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us.
Isaiah 33:22
Benjamin Franklin, addressing the delegates to the Convention that gave us the Constitution, said
“God governs in the affairs of men”
This idea is known as "Providence." God intervenes in human history and alters what would
otherwise be the "natural" course of events. He does this in response to prayer, to judge evil, or to bless righteousness. Providence is the opposite of
"deism," which claims that God wound up the world like a clock, started it ticking, and walked away, never again to interfere with "natural law."
Not a single person who signed the Constitution was a "deist." Not one. The Founders believed in Providence. They believed God
governs.
As human beings created in the Image of God, we are to "exercise dominion over the earth" following the blueprints
of God's Law.
A well-governed society, in the Christian conception, depends upon "self-government." It depends
upon the people obeying the Lawgiver spoken of by Isaiah. It depends upon people conforming their lives to "the
Laws of Nature and of Nature's God," which Blackstone correctly said were to be found "only in Holy Scripture."
Teaching the Bible in public schools was therefore "necessary
for good government and the happiness of mankind."
God governs when we obey His commandments.
The vast majority of Americans, victims of educational malpractice, believe that under a "Theocracy," a group of men -- priests, ayatollahs, mullahs,
monks -- govern the rest of us -- in the name of God. If your society believes in a god that commands a priesthood to rule over others, then this is the kind of
"theocracy" you'll have. But this is not the Theocracy of America's Founding Fathers. They believed in the God of the Bible, who does not command us to set
up a religious oligarchy. Very plainly, any attempt to set up an earthly government is considered by the God of the Bible to be a rejection of God Himself. See 1
Samuel 8.
America's Founders intended America to be a Christian Theocracy. Not a clergy-driven Theocracy, but a "Bottom-Up
Theocracy."
Any nation that claims to be "one nation under God" is claiming that God is over
the nation, and therefore that nation is a "Theocracy." Any government that will not admit that it is "under God" is a government
that claims it is God.
When America was a Christian Theocracy ("one nation under God"), it was the most prosperous and admired nation in history.
When America became a secular theocracy (where every man is his own god, and the government is "separate"
from God), America substituted bankruptcy for prosperity and ridicule
for admiration.
My campaign slogan is "Liberty Under God." Most other politicians are not willing to bring God into
politics as consistently and explicitly as I am. They know that if they do they will be criticized by a shrill minority for advocating "theocracy."
I advocate "Theocracy."
America was once a Theocracy. Every single colony.
The Declaration of Independence is a Theocratic document.
The 20th century will be known as the century that repudiated the idea of "theocracy" and became the most violent century in the history of the human
race. And in America, the secular federal government now prohibits teachers in its schools from teaching students that the Declaration of Independence is really
true.
Because I oppose the violence and the illiteracy of secularism, I support "theocracy." Specifically, I
believe we should move in the direction of a pure Christian Theocracy.
Benjamin Rush signed the Declaration of Independence and served in the Presidential administrations of John Adams, Thomas
Jefferson, and James Madison -- each of whom came from a different political party. And of what party was Rush?
| I have been alternately called an aristocrat and a democrat. I am now neither. I am a Christocrat. I believe all power
. . . will always fail of producing order and happiness in the hands of man. He alone Who created and redeemed man is qualified to govern him. |
We have been trained by secular government schools and secular government-controlled media to criticize "theocracy" -- the rule of God -- but to
unquestioningly accept the rule of man -- and the murder of hundreds of millions of people by governments that
officially reject God.
Are you ready to become a supporter of "Theocracy?"
Do you have an open mind?
Are you ready to think?
The links above are a good place to start. Here are more:
"Theocracy in Biblical law is
the closest thing to a radical libertarianism
that can be had."
R.J. Rushdoony, "The Meaning of Theocracy" |
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It is an undeniable fact of American history that this nation was designed to be a nation "under God."
"Under God" is the literal meaning of the word "theocracy."
I am willing to admit that I advocate "Theocracy." My goal is to turn America into a Christian Theocracy.
This frightens most Americans, and understandably so. When most Americans think of "theocracy" they envision a nation dominated by corrupt priests or
armed ayatollahs. In the post 9-11 era, "Taliban" might be the word most frequently associated with the word "theocracy."
There is a world of difference between Osama bin Laden's version of a Muslim theocracy and the
prophet Micah's version of a Christian Theocracy, an ideal which had a great influence in creating America.
Micah's world of "swords into plowshares" and everyone safely "sitting under his vine
and fig tree" is a world without terrorists, mullahs, priests, and politicians. In fact, Vine & Fig Tree
advocates the complete elimination of the institutional church, as well as the
complete elimination of the State, its borders and its military.
I believe America's Founding Fathers wanted America to be a Christian Theocracy, and I believe they would have
supported my agenda if they could see our world today.
A Definition Surprising in its Simplicity
"Theocracy" comes from two Greek words, Theos, God, and kratein, to rule.
A Theocracy is where God rules, or governs.
Nothing here about priests; nothing here about the Taliban; nothing about a policeman standing on every corner.
- A society where priests rule is better called an "ecclesiocracy" or "hierocracy."
- A society where a king rules is called a "monarchy," and the
Bible says this form of government is a rejection of Theocracy (1 Samuel 8).
- A society where lots of little kings rule -- but are called "princes," "presidents," "ministers," "commissars,"
"representatives," "senators," "CEO's," or anything else -- is still a violation of the spirit of 1
Samuel 8, and is thus not a "Theocracy."
Many societies throughout history have been called "theocracies." Some societies in our day are called "theocracies." America
was once called a Theocracy. But our standard is not any other country, past or present. My goal is not to make America like
any other nation, but to follow the blueprints given to us by our Creator. In America's Declaration of Independence, those blueprints are called "the
Laws of Nature and of Nature's God."
What did America's Founding Fathers mean when they spoke of "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God?"
They were talking about the Bible.
John Locke (1632-1704) was a Christian philosopher who had a great influence in America. He said:
[T]he Law of Nature stands as an eternal rule to all men, legislators as well as others. The rules that they make for other men's actions must . . . be
conformable to the Law of Nature, i.e., to the will of God.
[L]aws human must be made according to the general laws of Nature, and without contradiction to any positive law of Scripture, otherwise they are ill made.
Locke, Two Treatises on Government, Bk II sec 135. (quoting Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, 1.iii, § 9 )
William Blackstone (1723-1780) was cited more frequently than Locke by America's Founding Fathers. In 1810 Thomas Jefferson wryly
commented that American lawyers used Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England with the same dedication and reverence that Muslims used the Koran.
Blackstone described the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God in a chapter in his Commentaries
entitled, "Of the Nature of Laws in General." An excerpt is
found here. Among the highlights:
Man, considered as a creature, must necessarily be subject to the laws of his Creator, for he is entirely a dependent being. And
consequently, as man depends absolutely upon his Maker for everything, it is necessary that he should, in all points, conform to his Maker's will.
This will of his Maker is called the law of nature.
This law of nature, being coeval [existing at the same time - ed.] with mankind, and dictated
by God himself, is of course superior in obligation to any other. It is binding over all the globe in all countries, and at all times: no human laws are of
any validity, if contrary to this; and such of them as are valid derive all their force and all their authority, mediately or immediately, from this original. The
doctrines thus delivered we call the revealed or divine law, and they are to be found only in the holy scriptures.
These precepts, when revealed, are found upon comparison to be really a part of the original law of nature, as they tend in all their consequences to man's felicity
[happiness].
Upon these two foundations, the law of nature and the law of revelation, depend all human laws; that is to say, no human laws should be suffered to
contradict these. [more]
| 3. “Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as Yahweh my God commanded me…. Keep therefore and do them;
for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great
nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as Yahweh our God is in all
things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I
set before you this day?” (Deuteronomy 4:5-8)
4. Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 2 vols. (New York: NY: The Colonial Press, 1899) vol. 1, pp. 36-37.
5. John Clark Ridpath, History of the United States, 4 vols. (New York, NY: The American Book Company, 1874) vol. 1, p. 181.
6. William Holmes McGuffey, McGuffey’s Sixth Eclectic Reader (New York, NY: American Book Company, 1879) p. 225.
h/t |
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Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 1835: “They [the 17th-century Christian Colonials] exercised the rights of sovereignty;
they named their magistrates, concluded peace or declared war, made police regulations, and enacted laws as if their allegiance was due only to God. Nothing can be
more curious and, at the same time more instructive, than the legislation of that period; it is there that the solution of the great social problem which the United
States now presents to the world is to be found [in perfect fulfillment of Deuteronomy 4:5-8,3 demonstrating the continuing veracity of Yahweh’s moral
law and its accompanying blessings, per Deuteronomy 28:1-14].
“Amongst these documents we shall notice, as especially characteristic, the code of laws promulgated by the little State of Connecticut in 1650. The legislators
of Connecticut begin with the penal laws, and … they borrow their provisions from the text of Holy Writ … copied verbatim from the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and
Deuteronomy.…”4
John Clark Ridpath, History of the United States, 1874: “In June of 1639 the leading men of New Haven held a convention in a barn, and
formally adopted the Bible as the constitution of the State. Everything was strictly conformed to the religious standard. The government was called the House of
Wisdom…. None but church members were admitted to the rights of citizenship.”5
William Holmes McGuffey, McGuffey’s Sixth Eclectic Reader, 1879: “Their
form of government was as strictly theocratical insomuch that it would be difficult to say where there was any civil authority among them distinct from ecclesiastical
jurisdiction. Whenever a few of them settled a town, they immediately gathered themselves into a church; and their elders were magistrates, and their code of laws was
the Pentateuch…. God was their King; and they regarded him as truly and literally so….”6
Public schools were originally created to teach everyone the Bible. America's Founding Fathers believed a
Bible-based education was "necessary for good government and the happiness of mankind."
I agree with influential Americans of centuries past rather than the pretend-Americans of today.
In a Christocracy, or Christian Theocracy, God is our Governor. God is our Ruler. God is our
Judge. God is our Lawmaker; the laws of a Christian Theocracy are the Laws of the Bible. This is the message of Isaiah
33:22. Better to be governed by the infallible Word of God than the fallible, fluxuating, and tyrannical word of man.
"God Bless America"
We heard this phrase a lot in the days following 9-11. But do we really want God intervening
in human history, changing things, ruling things, undoing what man has done? Isn't deism more comfortable: God creating the universe but stepping back, refusing
to get involved in any way, letting man the new god have his own way?
Are we a nation of hypocrites?
God Bless America, by Irving
Berlin
"While the storm clouds gather far across the sea,
Let us swear allegiance to a land that's free,
Let us all be grateful for a land so fair,
As we raise our voices in a solemn prayer.
God Bless America.
Land that I love
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies ,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America
My home sweet home."
From: http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/symbols/songs.htm#GBA
see also USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/2001-09-18-god-bless.htm
Every "solemn prayer" is a request for God to take charge. Every prayer is a request for
Theocracy.
Theocracy: A society without priests and kings, all people reconciled to God and to each other, living in harmony and prosperity, blessed
by God, governed by "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God."
"Theocracy" vs. "Providence"
In a sense, God rules everywhere. Communist China can be said to be a part of "God's Government" or
Theocracy, and the eye of faith can see God's judgments in China.
But the normal sense of the word "Theocracy" is a political state which officially acknowledges the authority of God and allows
God to call the shots, politically speaking. We distinguish between "Theocracy" as a social state and "providence"
as God's government over nations which do not have a Theocratic form of "government."
Democracy vs. Theocracy
Theocracy vs. Ecclesiocracy
Theocracy vs. Theonomy
Dictionary Definitions
Was America Ever a Theocracy?
Theocracy vs. Ecclesiocracy: There is a Difference
What About “Theocracy?”
A Primer on Theocracies | Blog & Mablog
(continued from here)
- If a "Theocracy" is where God makes the rules, then America was (or was dedicated to progress along the path of being) a benevolent, clergy-free
Theocracy after 1776, a nation "under God." The Declaration of Independence declared that it
was a Theocracy; a nation officially acknowledging "a firm reliance on the Protection of Divine
Providence." The thinking of philosophers like Locke was embodied in the Declaration: "the
Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" reflected the belief that America was obligated to obey God's will. That "God rules" America was clearly
stated by every agency and branch of government on state and federal levels. As the Supreme Court in Holy
Trinity vs. United States (1892) put it, "there is a single voice making this affirmation."
- The real question is one of consistency:
- Is America being consistent with its Theocratic claims?
- The national motto is "In God We Trust."
Really?
Thus the question is not whether America is a Theocratic nation.
The question is, Are we consistent Theocracts, or are we backsliders and apostates? And if we are not consistent, can we really expect God to Bless
America?
next: The State As Criminal
David Ramsay, An Eulogium Upon Benjamin Rush, M.D. Phila: Bradford and Inskeep, 1813) p. 103. [Back to text]
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