Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called “Rabbi” by others.”
Matthew 23:5-7
As a former Episcopalian, if I ever had a mind to nail my own 95 Theses to the door of a cathedral, à la Martin Luther, I would have much about which to write. But if I were to condense my grievances down to a single complaint, it would be the mewling, social climbing, status-seeking, virtue-signaling hypocrisy that has become the hallmark of not just the Episcopal Church, but the majority of the mainline Protestant denominations in the United States. It gives me no pleasure to say that. I would love to be able to root for the home team, see the ship right itself, and be navigated by true lights. But some things are just too far gone to be salvaged. There is too much to be gained from the dysfunction that such churches embrace, even if it means they become stranded on a reef.
Christ preached reconciliation. At one time, the Anglican Communion had an entire ministry devoted to reconciliation called “Cross of Nails,” but reconciliation is not socially or politically expedient. To that end, according to Religion News Service, the Episcopal Church has terminated its relationship with the U.S. Government over the resettlement of white Afrikaners from South Africa, as refugees under the Trump administration.
The outlet noted the reaction of the denomination’s presiding bishop, the Most Rev. Sean W. Rowe:
In light of our church’s steadfast commitment to racial justice and reconciliation and our historic ties with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, we are not able to take this step. Accordingly, we have determined that, by the end of the federal fiscal year, we will conclude our refugee resettlement grant agreements with the U.S. federal government.
Rowe said that the church would continue to support refugees who have already been resettled.
In response, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said, “Afrikaners have faced unspeakable horrors” and are “no less deserving of refugee resettlement than the hundreds of thousands of others who were allowed into the United States during the past administration.” I have been to South Africa and have visited the ghettos. I have seen firsthand the lingering and devastating effects of apartheid. But I have also seen the rallies in which “Kill the Boer” was chanted. I have read the reports of violence against white farmers. An old friend of mine came from a South African farming family. He said his father not only paid his workers a good wage, but also paid for their children to have college educations. Those hardly seem to be the actions of an apartheid hard-liner. There are those who would say that the reports of terror and murder are exaggerated and are the exception, not the rule. But how much violence is enough? Christ would say that it was time for healing, not time for vengeance. Yes, grave and wicked injustices were done, but the way forward would not be through revenge or repetition.
However, social justice, such as it is, can be highly lucrative financially and socially. If we ever stop visiting the sins of the fathers upon the sons, the Left will lose its whole raison d’être.
But, you may ask, most of the U.S. social justice warriors are white, privileged people. How do they justify themselves? They do it by pointing out the specks in their neighbors’ eyes while ignoring the planks in their own. Or by going to a Planned Parenthood rally or, God help them, forming another hidebound committee. Those things bring status, which is everything to the Left. They find unending joy in congratulating themselves or one another. They love the places of honor.
Last week, I wrote about a contingent of high-ranking Democrats who took it upon themselves to “storm” an ICE detention facility in Newark, NJ. On Monday. Fox News reported that clergy members had gathered at the facility in protest:
The group is composed of roughly 50 clergy members from Faith in N.J. and Faith in Action. They linked arms outside the main gate of Delaney Hall Detention Center as they chanted and sang songs.
Several speakers also said prayers for the inmates inside the facility and condemned their detention.
The clergy members say they have “volunteered” to be arrested and that they will attempt to enter the ICE facility.
Bear in mind that the people being housed in the ICE facility have been accused of violence, gang activity, drug trafficking, and the sexual abuse of children. One would think that such people of faith would understand the need to incarcerate those who would engage in such things. Such people of faith would by definition be opposed to Tren de Aragua taking over apartments in Aurora, the human wreckage caused by the illicit fentanyl trade, the women and children who have disappeared into the sex trade, and the people who have lost their lives to the violence visited upon this land by illegal alien criminals. Surely, they can get on board with that, right?
No, they cannot. After all, these are the same people who will go to the wall for the murder of the unborn. They cannot because they are obsessed with maintaining their social station and self-constructed ethical and theological high ground. They want to look and feel right, rather than struggle with actually being right. They prefer to ignore the suffering created by their policies rather than fall to their knees and say, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” They benefit too much from it. Molech feeds their sense of superiority, and therefore, they must feed Molech.
A book and its film adaptation have recently been recommended to me. If I ever get some downtime, I intend to read the book and watch the film. The book is called “The Zone of Interest” by Martin Amis. It is a fictionalized account of Rudolf Höss, who was the commandant of Auschwitz, and his family. Amid marital infidelity, the family manages to enjoy what seems to be an idyllic life, despite the hell being unleashed just yards from their doorstep, and even manages to find time to sort through the clothing and personal effects of slaughtered inmates to seize what treasures they can recover for themselves. They choose to ignore the evil in which they are not only complicit but also perpetrate. Why? Not having read the book or seen the movie, my guess (and this is only a guess) would be that they benefit from the carnage. Their station in life and their security are incumbent upon it.
Some may call that an over-the-top comparison. In reply, I would say that all evil has a beginning place, and such places never lack for apologists.
The Left does not have a monopoly on speaking truth to power. In fact, the Left never speaks truth to power, but at PJ Media, we try to do that every day. One way you can help is by becoming a VIP member. Click here to get started and save 60% with the promo code FIGHT.
