The American Soul
The American Soul
Soul Revolution: Reclaiming America Through Biblical Literacy
The decline of Bible literacy stands at the heart of America's cultural and political crisis. When a nation no longer knows Scripture, it loses its moral compass and becomes vulnerable to manipulation, deception, and tyranny. As Jesse Cope passionately argues, "One of the main reasons our nation is in the mess we're in today is because we don't know the Bible anymore."
Drawing from Forrest Greeley's profound observation that "It's impossible to mentally or socially enslave a Bible reading people," this episode explores how our collective departure from biblical knowledge has weakened our cultural foundations. When we forget Scripture, we become susceptible to ideologies that previous generations would have immediately recognized as dangerous.
The podcast delves into marriage as a microcosm of this larger cultural drift. God designed specific roles and responsibilities that create harmony when honored. Jesse offers a compelling analogy: marriage isn't about being "clingy" but about "cleaving" – becoming like two colors of Play-Doh mixed until inseparable. When we abandon these divine designs for cultural trends, heartache inevitably follows.
How we allocate our time – what we "pour ourselves into" – reveals our true priorities. Using the metaphor of sand in an hourglass being placed in different buckets, Jesse challenges listeners to consider whether their time goes toward eternal purposes or temporary distractions. With historical perspectives from Mercy Warren and Ezra Stiles, the episode examines the parallels between the choices faced by America's founders and those confronting Americans today.
What path will you choose? Will you commit to Bible literacy and discernment, or continue down the path of confusion and manipulation? The health of your family, community, and nation may depend on your answer. Make time today for God's Word – it remains the surest foundation for both personal peace and national renewal.
The American Soul Podcast
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Hey folks, this is Jesse Cope, back with another episode of the American Soul Podcast. Hope y'all are doing well today, wherever y'all are, whatever part of the day you're in, sure do appreciate y'all joining me, giving me a little bit of your time and energy, a little piece of your day day. I know you have other things that you could be doing and probably a lot of other things that are pulling on your springs for your attention. So I'm glad that you're here. Hopefully you get to enjoy it with somebody else. Gives y'all something to talk about, a little fireside chat, so to speak, even if it is summer. For those of y'all who continue to share and support and tell others about the podcast, thank you so much. For those of y'all who continue to pray for me and for the podcast, thank you so much, very, very grateful for that, father. Thank you for today. Thank you for you, father, and your Son, jesus Christ and your Holy Spirit. Thank you for your love and your mercy, your grace and your forgiveness of sins, for all your many blessings, father, the ones we admit and the ones we don't, for whatever reason. Help us to do your will, father, throughout the day, each day. Help us to care for the widow and the orphan, the poor and the needy, with actions and deeds, not merely words. Help our yes to be yes and our no to be no. Yes to be yes and our no to be no. Help us to not make vows rashly. Be with those who are listening to the podcast, father. Comfort them. Offer them your comfort. Help them to accept it. Help us all too, father. Help us to take our comfort from you and your son, jesus christ. Fill us with your holy spirit. Give us your peace. Help us to practice virtue, father, in our own lives and to encourage it in those around us To follow your commands, to teach them to our children, both our particular children and the children of our nation as a whole. Help us to get our education and our institutions, our constitutions, our laws, our courts turned back to you, father and your Son, jesus Christ. Be with the family of those police officers who have been killed recently. Comfort their families. Help us to comfort them. Comfort their families. Help us to comfort them. Forgive us our sins. Father and God, my words are placed in your son's name. We pray Amen. Have you made time for God and Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit today? Have you made time to pray? Have you made time to read the Bible, folks?
Speaker 1:One of the reasons that we one of the main reasons, the very main, like top two or three reasons that our nation is in the mess that we're in today is because we don't know the Bible anymore. We don't study it, we don't memorize passages out of it, we don't live it out in our lives. We do not know the Bible. We have become a Bible illiterate society.
Speaker 1:Forrest Greeley, that quote that we have used so often in the past on the podcast. It's impossible to mentally or socially enslave a Bible reading people. You know the Bible is the groundwork. I think he said also in that quote of freedom something along those lines. I'm paraphrasing but we have become, you know, you hear so often people talk about disinformation or misinformation.
Speaker 1:We've become so gullible for it, so easy to deceive and manipulate because we are a bible illiterate people. It's easier today to mentally and socially enslave us to lies. And it doesn't matter whether you're talking about people that deny the holocaust, or whether you're talking about people that claim that the Jews are behind everything and that Hitler was a hero, or if you're talking about people that claim that Stalin or Mao were heroes and that socialism and communism actually works. We're susceptible to all of those lies because we don't spend time in God's word day in and day out and we don't. We do a horrible job of teaching history because we focus on so many things that are unimportant, just like we always talk about each day with faith, and our marriage, our spouse, god and our spouse.
Speaker 1:You know that ought to be, if you're married, your top four priorities, right there God, jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and your spouse. Every day, throughout the day, whatever time you have to give to God and Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, and then whatever your spouse wants to do that day, those ought to be your top priorities. And if they're not, and if you're not willing to make those your top priorities each day throughout the day, then don't get married. And if you're already married folks, I'm sorry, it's too bad. Those are your top priorities. And if you're not, that's a horrible reflection on you and I'm really talking to those of us in the church today.
Speaker 1:If we are rebelling against our God-given roles and responsibilities in our marriage, if we're following the world instead of God in our marriage, if we're not clinging to our marriage, you know it makes. God just really fires me up when you hear people talk about being too clingy. Quote unquote God tells us to cleave to our spouse. That's worse than being clingy folks. That's like two different colors of Play-Doh that you mixed and mashed all up to the point where you can't even tell them apart anymore. That's what your marriage is supposed to look like each day. If you were a kid that grew up probably in the 70s, 80s or 90s, maybe even in the 2000s, maybe all the way up to now, you know Plato and you know that if you took two colors and just kind of lightly pressed them together, you could take those two colors back apart again. And there wasn't really, you know, they were still basically just those two colors. But if you put those two colors together and mashed them all up and squished them up and twisted them and turned them and then rolled them back up in a ball, those colors were. It was impossible to extricate, to separate those colors again without it just being a total mess. And that's what our marriage needs to look like each day. And that's why so many marriages are in a mess is because we're trying to separate each other out and do our own little thing. We've forgotten how much, how desperately we need each other. Forgotten how much, how desperately we need each other.
Speaker 1:I wanted to run through some comments from our pastor a couple weeks ago. If I can find them, just some things that I wrote down. He said Do not be yoked to unbelievers. This includes people who claim to follow Christ but do not. Being yoked with unbelievers makes us less than we should be.
Speaker 1:If you're not married yet and you're looking to get married, you need to really, eyes wide open, focus on whether that person you're thinking about marrying follows Jesus Christ. You need to have completely open and transparent we love that word today right Transparency. You need to really have completely open and transparent conversations about marriage and the roles and responsibilities of men and women in marriage and sex, and make sure that this person that you're thinking about marrying A that they know what their roles and responsibilities are and they know what yours are and you know what yours are and you know what theirs are. And then B this is the important part that they're actually willing to live out and execute those roles and responsibilities. And if they're not, you need to run screaming into the hills. And if you don't, folks, I am telling you from observation over the years it is a long, hard, nasty road, long, hard, nasty road.
Speaker 1:I have a couple of very close people to me multiple, actually, sadly quite a few in my life that have ended up in a marriage where their spouse had zero interest in following their roles and responsibilities and in every single case it ended in heartache and just pain. So I can see why our pastor was talking about that. It's a huge topic we don't talk about inside the church near enough. And where do you find those roles? Right, I need to. We need to go through that. Maybe we'll do that in one of the next podcasts. One of those have one of those marriage podcasts that we do every once in a while. Where do you find these roles? Ephesians 5, 1 Corinthians 7, titus 2, 1 Peter 3, proverbs 5, 19, hebrews 13, 4 and Song of Solomon I go through those. There's other places, definitely that are some really good. I have some good comments on marriage, but those are some pretty good ones where God's pretty explicit about our roles and responsibilities, and I cannot remember the verses right now where God's pretty explicit about our roles and responsibilities, and I cannot remember the verses right now. There's multiple places Genesis and the Gospels where it talks about the fact, you know, that husband and wife become one flesh and cleave together. Those are also obviously that's extremely important central to a marriage functioning is to cleave to one another, like we just talked about.
Speaker 1:But do we put things screens in front of people? What are we pouring ourselves into? Are we pouring ourselves into eternity? This was just. He said this and I felt like it was a neat way to rephrase storing up for ourselves treasures in heaven instead of on earth.
Speaker 1:What are we pouring ourselves into? So if you looked at your life as an hourglass and that sand inside there and you got to put that sand in whatever little bucket you wanted, but that's all the sand that you had, right? We all have a certain amount of time. None of us know how much time we have, but it's all the sand that you had, right, we all have a certain amount of time. None of us know how much time we have, but it's all God does and it's very specific and that's how much time we have. And we get to put that sand in different little buckets. We can put it in the bucket for social media. We can give a lot of our time to that. We can put it in the bucket for YouTube. We can put it in the bucket for watching sports or playing sports. We can put it in the bucket for working out, we can do workouts, and every time you do something, you have to take a little bit of your sand and you have to dump it in one of those buckets.
Speaker 1:In one of those buckets, what are you pouring your time into? What are you pouring your life into, your energy into, or are you pouring it into the right thing, people? Are you pouring it back into God? Are you pouring it into your spouse? Those ought to be your top two way, before anything else each day. Are you pouring it into your children? Are you pouring it into your parents? Are you pouring it into the widows and the orphans in your community? Are you pouring it into your church and the people there? Are you pouring it into your kids in your community? Just a couple of things that he said that I thought were, and then one actually this was from that week, and then one actually this was from that week the man given our children's moment. He was talking about being grounded in faith and scripture In order to handle and discern as good or negative when things occur inside or outside of the family. That's how we can discern truth, folks. That's how we discern truth is knowing the Bible, reading the Bible. So in lieu of that, we will get into 2 Corinthians, chapter 2. But I determined this reaffirm your love. That's the title of this section, 2 Corinthians 2.
Speaker 1:Sorrowful, excuse me, this is the very thing. I wrote you so that, when I came, I would not have sorrow from those who ought to make me rejoice, having confidence in you all that my joy would be the joy of you all. For out of much affliction and anguish of heart, I wrote to you with many tears, not so that you would be made sorrowful, but that you might know the love which I have, especially for you. But if any has caused sorrow, he has caused sorrow not to me, but in some degree, in order not to say too much, to all of you. Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority, so that, on the contrary, you should rather forgive and comfort him. Otherwise, such a one might be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow, wherefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. For to this end also I wrote, so that I might put you to the test whether you are obedient in all things, but one whom you forgive.
Speaker 1:Anything I forgive also, for, indeed, what I have forgiven. If I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes, in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes. Now, when I came from Troas for the gospel of Christ, and when a door was opened for me in the Lord, I had no rest for my spirit, not finding Titus, my brother, but taking my leave of them. I went on to Macedonia, but thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things? For we are not, like many, peddling the word of God, but, as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ, in the sight of God.
Speaker 1:15, 16, and 17. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one, an aroma from death to death, to the other, an aroma from life to life. What does our life do to others? Are we an example of Christ? Do we give them a little bit of Christ? Do we give them hope? We can't make people turn to Jesus Christ, folks. All we can do is set the best example we can, try and follow Jesus Christ the best that we can and encourage those who turn to him.
Speaker 1:Whether it's a good saying or not, it's one that I've come to use often Work as hard as you can, for as long as you can, to save as many as you can. And we need to remember that, folks, especially in regard for those of us that really love America. If God gives us any extra time as a nation, you have to assume that the main reason for that is for us to save more individuals. Right, because that's his viewpoint. Outside of time, he's trying to get as many of us as will turn to him, to turn to look to him through his son, jesus Christ, and so, if he's kind enough, merciful enough, if he gives us that opportunity, we need, as Christians, to really remember.
Speaker 1:The goal is not so that we can live in more ease and comfort and opulence. The goal is not so we can buy more land or fancier cars or bigger houses or whatever else. The goal is to save more souls, to draw more people to God and Jesus Christ Verse 17, for we are not, like many, peddling the word of God, but, as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ, in the sight of God. We don't want to peddle Christianity for our own gain, folks, although it is for our own gain, right, eternally. And the Bible clearly tells us that. Those of us that are wise, we save souls, that's whoever is wise, he who is wise, save souls, save sinners, right. And that has to be part of building up for ourselves. I think this is just my opinion here, talking folks that has to be part of building up for ourselves treasures in heaven For eternity, right? So in a way it does. It does help us and people can see our sincerity.
Speaker 1:Folks, you don't have to worry about that. Focus on God, focus on Jesus Christ. As John Quincy Adams says, duty is ours, results are God's. We can't worry about the results, we just have to worry about the duty, about trying to follow the commands of Jesus Christ as much as possible. And then in here, verses 5 through really 11, I think they talk about that. On the contrary, you should rather forgive and comfort him. Such a one, otherwise such a one might be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow, wherefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him, for whatever reason.
Speaker 1:When I was reading through this today, it reminded me of the woman that was caught in adultery and brought before Jesus Christ, and he didn't contemn her right. He told her to go and not sin anymore, which I think we missed. That last part A lot of us do today. When we want to support something immoral, we forget the very last comment there by Jesus go and sin no more.
Speaker 1:But the other part of that is how often do we continue to hold people accountable for sins that they committed long ago? And I'm not talking about people that have refused to seek forgiveness or even ask for it. Right, it's impossible to really be forgiven by somebody if you don't ask for forgiveness. But when somebody does ask us for forgiveness, folks, we need to move on. Forgive them and move on, and not hold on to it. That doesn't mean that you have to set yourself up for sorrow. That doesn't mean that you become bosom buddies, best friends with this person, and open yourself back up to heartache Again. Our pastor talks about that often. Forgiving someone doesn't mean that you have to go back to that person over and over again and continue to get hurt, but it does mean that we let go of that bitterness and that anger and that resentment and forgive them, as God forgives us through Jesus Christ, and move on. And if it's somebody you know that the relationship has become impossible, that's fine. Just offer them the forgiveness and then move on with your life. But we need to make sure that we're not continuing to hold something against people that have sought forgiveness.
Speaker 1:Medal of Honor Oof Hoatan, if I said that right. Beatty, first Sergeant US Civil War Gulf Company, fifth US Colored Infantry, us Army. Medal of Honor. Action Date September 29, 1864, chappins Farm, virginia, usa. Took command of his company, all the officers having been killed or wounded, and gallantly led it Accredited to Cincinnati, hamilton County, ohio. Not awarded. Posthumously presented April 6, 1865. Born April October 8, 1837, richmond County, virginia. Died December 6, 1916, cincinnati, ohio. Buried Union Baptist Church Cemetery, cincinnati, ohio, united States. Poeton Beattie. Yeah, I think that's all we'll get to today, but another name, folks that we need to remember a great deal more often and teach our children more often than we teach them song lyrics from the latest pop singer or statistics for NFL or Major League Baseball or anything else Volleyball, softball, baseball, whatever tennis players. All right, we'll move on.
Speaker 1:Ezra Stiles in his sermon before the Connecticut General Assembly, he was just talking about the importance of giving men the ability to own their own land without being forced to rent it from the government and, more importantly, or that goes along with that, the ability to worship God and Jesus Christ. He was talking about the experiment in Russia under the Empress back in 1762 to 1768. Liberty, civil and religious, has sweet and attractive charms. The enjoyment of this with property has filled the English settlers in America with a most amazing spirit, which has operated and still will operate with great energy. Never before has the experiment been so effectually tried of every man's reaping the fruits of his labor and feeling his share in the aggregate system of power.
Speaker 1:The ancient republics did not stand on the people at large and therefore no example or precedent can be taken from them.
Speaker 1:Even men of arbitrary principles will be obliged, if they would figure in these states to assume the patriots so long that they will, at length, become charmed with the sweets of liberty. This is probably a little thing, folks, but I like this here. The ancient republics did not stand on the people at large and therefore no example or precedent can be taken from them. It's not that our founders didn't look back at ancient republics and systems when they were crafting our american republic. They did, but we were unique throughout all of history for a few reasons. The biggest one, the primary one, is that we were a christian republic at our foundation. Our, our republic was founded on on the principles of Christ, but there were others.
Speaker 1:The other again here is just this give a man a little property that he doesn't have to rent from the government, where he can take care of his wife, they can raise their children and then allow him the ability to worship God and Jesus Christ in the manner that he sees fit, not to pretend that the imposter faiths are equal to Christianity, but to allow him to worship God and Jesus Christ however he sees fit within Jesus Christ, however he sees fit within, whatever denomination he sees fit, or no denomination, and we can't even imagine how quickly America would turn back around. Our degree of population is such as to give us reason to expect that this will become a great people. It is probable that within a century from our independence the sun will shine on 50 million of inhabitants in the United States. This will be a great, a very great nation, nearly equal to half of Europe. Already has our colonization extended down the ohio and to the cossack on the mississippi, and if the present ratio of increase should be rather diminished in some of the other settlements yet an accelerated multiplication will attend our general propagation and overspread the whole territory westward for ages, so that before the millennium the English settlements in America may become more numerous millions than the greatest dominion on earth, the Chinese empire. Should this prove a future fact, how applicable would be the text when the Lord shall have made his American Israel high above all nations which he hath made in numbers and in praise and in name and in honor? I am sensible.
Speaker 1:Some will consider these as visionary utopian ideas, and so they would have judged, had they lived in the apostolic age and been told that by the time of Constantine the empire would have become Christian, as visionary that the 20,000 souls which first settled New England should be multiplied to near a million in a century and a half. As visionary that the Ottoman Empire must fall by the Russian. As visionary to the Catholics is the certain downfall of the pontificate. As utopian would it have been to the Loyalists at the Battle of Lexington that in less than eight years, the independence and sovereignty of the United States should be acknowledged by four European sovereignties, one of which should be Britain herself. The events of providence. We live in an age of wonders. We have lived an age in a few years. We have seen more wonders accomplished in eight years than are usually unfolded in a century.
Speaker 1:A lot in this paragraph, folks, but the bottom line is there's so many times throughout history when, if you talk to that generation about what was going to happen in the next few years, next few decades, next century or two, they would look at you and just shake their heads and say there's no way. That's possible. All things are possible with God, folks, if we'll simply turn back to God and Jesus Christ as a people. There's no telling what he will do with that. If we will actually repent of our national sins of supporting abortion and feminism and LGBTQ lifestyles and no-fault divorce and sexual immorality of every kind, and turn back to God and Jesus Christ. There is no telling what he will do with this nation again, but it's all predicated on us turning back to repenting of our sins and turning back to God and Jesus Christ. And if we don't, there is no amount of policy or number of Elon Musk, american parties or politicians that you love, be it Trump or AOC or Bernie Sanders or whoever else you want to pick there is nothing that they can do that will stave off the absolute disaster and destruction that's coming. That's the key part of everything. Folks is turning back to God and Jesus Christ. Yeah, much time. Yeah, we'll leave it there.
Speaker 1:We'll get back into miss warren and chapter six of the history rise, progress and termination of the american revolution. Just been talking about some of the men in britain that stood against the actions of Parliament and their tyranny directed toward the colonists, particularly the Earl of Effingham, and that he wouldn't be, despite his love of being a soldier and king and country, he wouldn't be part of slaughtering, bearing arms against the Americans. But there is no age which bears a testimony so honorable to human nature, as shows mankind at so sublime a pitch of virtue that there are not always enough to be found ready to aid the arm of the oppressor, provided they may share in the spoils of the oppressed. Excuse me. Thus, many officers of ability and experience courted the American service as the readiest road to preferment. And that's kind of what I was trying to talk about on the previous podcast.
Speaker 1:Folks, if we end up in a civil war, if we choose not to willingly go into slavery to leftism, socialism, communism, islam, despite the lack of character, the lack of morality, there's still going to be citizens that have ability and experience, that are willing to fight for the side of the oppressor against those they're trying to be to oppress. There's always going to be people of ability. You can look throughout history. There's always going to be people of ability. You can look throughout history. You know Hitler seems to be somebody we pick on, but Stalin, mao, all of those people evil based on their actions and killed, slaughtered millions. But you can't make the argument that they weren't bright. You can say they were mad or that they were in the process of going mad, but they definitely had ability and experience.
Speaker 1:And so don't make the mistake, if we get into a civil war, of thinking that it's going to be over quickly, that it's going to be against people that are going to be scared and turn tail at the very first shots, that there's not going to be any resistance and that it's just like people thought about the Civil War at the beginning it was just going to be a little summer war, it wasn't going to last for four years and be the bloodiest conflict in the history of our nation. You need to go in with the opposite mentality that it's going to be the longest, hardest, bloodiest, nastiest fight that our country has seen and that there's going to be people from outside the United States, countries that try and take advantage of it. Administration, not satisfied with their own severe restrictions, set on foot a treaty with the Dutch and several other nations to prevent their aiding the colonies by supplying them with any kind of warlike stores, everything within or without war. The most hostile appearance, even while the commercial interest of Great Britain was closely interwoven with that of America and the treasures of the colonies which had been continually pouring into the lap of the mother country in exchange for her manufacturers, were still held ready for her use in any advance to harmony. Were still held ready for her use in any advance to harmony.
Speaker 1:The boundaries of the King of England's continental domains were almost immeasurable and the inhabitants were governed by a strong predilection in favor of the nation from whom they derived their origin. Hence it is difficult to account on any principles of human policy for the infatuation that instigated to the absurd project of conquering a country already theirs on the most advantageous terms. But the seeds of separation were sown and the ball of empire rolled westward with such astonishing rapidity that the pious mind is naturally excited to acknowledge a superintending providence that led to the period of independence, even before America was conscious of her maturity. Precipitated into a war dreadful even in contemplation, humanity recoiled at the idea of civil feuds and their commensurate evils. Nobody wants war folks. Anybody that tells you that they want a war you ought to avoid wholeheartedly as either insane or evil. And you can see that the columns here they still, even at this point. They didn't want a war, they didn't want separation.
Speaker 1:And it seems it does seem, as Ms Warren says here almost supernatural from God that Parliament and the King should take this path, because they had every advantage. The colonies already belonged to them. All they had to do was treat them as equal citizens. And you can make the same argument in this specific aspect. Today, with illegal immigration, the only real requirement is that we treat the native and the foreigner the same, and we're not right now. We're giving special preference to the foreigner, whether you're talking about illegal immigration or mass immigration, and we're treating with contempt the citizen.
Speaker 1:My wife often talks about the fact that so many companies out there you know you talk about AT&T or Xfinity or, you know, pick, whatever service you want so many of these companies will offer great deals to people who aren't their customers and yet to the people that have been their customers for years and years, what do they do? They jack the price up. They make the service less enticing. You would think common sense would say that it should work the other way around, that your very best deals ought to be offered for those who have been clients for the longest. That's who you ought to treat the best. The colonies already belonged to Britain. They didn't have to go out and conquer them. It wasn't like they were invading a new land. All they had to do was treat them the same as they treated the people that actually lived in Britain.
Speaker 1:In America today, we ought to be treating our American citizens better than we treat that actually lived in Britain. In America today, we ought to be treating our American citizens better than we treat people that aren't American citizens. We don't have to go out and convince them to be Americans, they're already Americans. Now you can make the argument that the people that support leftism and socialism and communism and Islam are not very good citizens, and that's easily argued. But the point is still we shouldn't be giving special preferential treatment to to people who are breaking down our rule of law and doing so much damage to our nation, whether you're talking again about illegals or mass immigrants.
Speaker 1:It's hard not to see something coming. Also, folks, there's so much going on right now and I think a lot of people maybe think or hope that Jesus Christ is coming back, and that would be very nice. But you know, God specifically tells us. We have no idea. It might be today, next week, next year, another 2000 years. The point is to always be on the alert, be ready, look to God, but it is hard not to think that something is coming. You can't keep the status quo the way it is right now. Something is coming.
Speaker 1:When the news arrived in the colonies that the British army in Boston was to be reinforced, that the coercive system was at all hazards to be prosecuted. Though astonished at the persevering severity of a nation still beloved and revered by Americans, deeply affected with the calamities that threatened the whole empire and shocked at the prospect of the convulsion and cruelties even ever attendant on civil war, yet, few balanced on the part, they were to act. The alternative held up was a bold and vigorous resistance or an abject submission to the ignoble terms demanded by administration. Armed with resolution and magnanimity, united by affection and a remarkable conformity to opinion, the whole people, through the wide, extended continent, seemed determined to resist in blood rather than to become slaves of arbitrary power. That is exactly the choice that we have coming, folks. The alternative was a bold and vigorous resistance or an abject submission to the ignoble terms demanded by administration. And what was their choice? Through the wide, extended continent, they all, the whole people, seemed determined to resist in blood rather than become slaves of arbitrary power. That's, that's quickly becoming the choice, folks.
Speaker 1:Reconciliation, coexistence as is, is an impossibility. And reconciliation with citizens that insist on following and their leaders that insist on following leftism, socialism, communism, islam that possibility seems less. Leaders that insist on following leftism, socialism, communism, islam that possibility seems less possible. It seems more remote with each passing week, and so again you see the choices, very similar to that of our colonists and also, you could say, very similar to what the British faced as the years got later and later in the 1930s. Alright, I think we got enough time. I think we'll go back into in the 1930s. All right, I think we've got enough time.
Speaker 1:I think we'll go back into Fox's Book of the Martyrs and the persecutions in the valleys of Piedmont in the 17th century, talking about the Duke of Savoy and some of his trickery in persecuting the Reformed. As if these severities were not sufficient, the Duke soon after published another edict in which he strictly commanded that no Protestant should act as a schoolmaster or tutor, either in public or private, or dare to teach any art, science or language, directly or indirectly, to persons. To teach any art, science or language, directly or indirectly, to persons of any persuasion whatever Sounds a little bit like what the left has managed to do in the United States today to Christianity in general and not allowing Christians to share their faith in the classroom, when again, as Fisher Ames said, the Bible should be our primary textbook in our schools. That's another great example, folks, of when given true freedom, true liberty, christ is always going to come out on top and we need to trust God and trust Christ in that manner. And what we ought to be desperately doing more than even what I recommend, which I think we need to be doing is communicating between states and cities and towns and schools and churches, etc. We need to be sharing the gospel every single chance we get, in every way, particularly children. But with adults, children it doesn't matter any chance you get in your sphere of influence, sharing the Bible, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. And there's again. There's nothing wrong with missionaries and going overseas folks, but we have so much work to do right here in our own backyard in America. We have so many problems right here. So almost every problem we have today in the United States goes back to all of it goes back to rejection of God and Jesus Christ, but so much of it goes back to Bible illiteracy. We would do so much for the nation if we would just work on improving the Bible literacy of our nation as a whole.
Speaker 1:This edict was immediately followed by another which decreed that no Protestant should hold any place of profit, trust or honor. And, to wind up the whole. The certain token of an approaching persecution came forth in a final edict by which it was positively ordered that all Protestants should diligently attend Mass. There's something here that's really important to note folks. This paragraph right here exemplifies the difference between separation of church and state and separation of God and state. This is separation of church and state. So what you had here is you had a duke demanding that no Protestant should be able to serve as a schoolmaster, tutor, public or private, teach any art, science or language, directly or indirectly right, and then that they couldn't hold any place of profit, trust or honor.
Speaker 1:I'm assuming on the civil side here, that separation that's what our founders wanted. They wanted to separate the state from a particular denomination. They didn't want one denomination being able to tell everyone else you have to be part of our denomination. That's wholly different from separation of God and state, which is what we've had over the last 80 plus years. Give or take God and state, which is what we've had over the last 80 plus years. Give or take from 1947, really actuallyism, atheism, even Satanism, be on equal level with Christianity. Our founders didn't want that, they didn't intend that. They would never have countenanced that.
Speaker 1:Joseph Story talks about that in his commentaries on the Constitution, one of our premier early justices on the Supreme Court. So that's the first thing they did is they tried to make sure that all religions were viewed as equal, even the imposters. And then the second thing is they tried to say that separation of church and state was. Really. Our founders didn't want God or Jesus Christ involved at all in our forts or institutions, institutions etc. And that isn't true. Our founders very much wanted God and Jesus Christ involved in our institutions, like education and our constitutions. All you have to do is go back and pay attention to the way they set things up Right, and we've talked about it on this podcast for years and years now and so this is just a good example of that this paragraph was. Is just a good example of that this paragraph was.
Speaker 1:The publication of an edict containing such an injunction may be compared to unfurling the bloody flag, for murder and rapine were sure to follow. One of the first objects that attracted the notice of the Papists was Mr Sebastian Basin, a zealous Protestant who was seized by the missionaries, confined, tormented for 15 months and then burnt. Previous to the persecution, the missionaries employed kidnappers to steal away. This is one of those times, folks, where it's obvious Unlimited submission this is one of those times, folks, where it's obvious unlimited submission is just simply a horrible idea. You would never stand by while someone came in and murdered and raped your wife and children and stole them away, nor should you, going directly against God.
Speaker 1:To give greater vigor to the persecution, the Duke of Savoy called a general assembly of the Roman Catholic nobility and gentry when a solemn edict was published against the reform, containing many heads and including several reasons for extirpating the Protestants, among which were the following For the preservation of the papal authority that the church livings may be all under one mode of government. To make a union among all parties in honor of all the saints and of the ceremonies of the church of Rome. Again, folks, the important point here to note is none of this had anything to do with Jesus Christ, and that's the dead giveaway when you're looking at any denomination and their actions. If their actions aren't centered around following Jesus Christ, then they are not being a proper church. If they're more concerned with their denomination, their authority, their power, their prestige as a denomination, as opposed to the glory of God and Jesus Christ and serving them, that's one of those situations where you either need to demand immediate change inside that denomination if you want to stay or you need to leave find a different denomination and hopefully, from the help, change that particular one that you left.
Speaker 1:God bless you all. God bless your families. God bless your marriages. God bless America. God bless your nation, wherever you are around the world. Listen, we'll talk to you all again real soon. Folks Looking forward to it.