Democracy or Theocracy?

The morning had been a bit stormy, with a torrential rain falling dropping 5 inches of water. Flash flooding had occurred in some low lying areas. Alvin and Amy had enjoyed the Wednesday night church service where Brother Bannon had preached regarding the end times that were soon to come to the earth. Alvin and Amy had grown up in their little church called the Assembly of Faith…as had their mothers and fathers before them. Brother Lloyd had told the congregation of 100 members that the end of days were upon them. He explained that the entire world lay in darkness and that their little fellowship represented God’s chosen people. The group understood that their calling was special and that they were part of an elite remnant that God had set aside for himself and that most of the inhabitants of the world would be destroyed when Jesus returned to set up his kingdom on the earth. The book of Revelation said that the blood would flow to the horses bridle during the time of Armageddon! But, Gods chosen would be raptured into heaven before the seven last plagues of the wrath of God were bestowed on the inhabitants of the earth…much like the plagues of Egypt in the Old Testament where Moses pleaded for Pharaoh to let my people go…but God had hardened his heart. And so there were locusts, and the water turned to blood, and all of the first born being killed by the angel of the Lord…unless you had blood applied to your lintel and doorposts! Alvin and Amy had been taught for all of their lives that God would send a John the Baptist as the forerunner of the return of Jesus to the earth to set up his physical earthly kingdom in Jerusalem on the site of the Dome of the Rock.

So…they despaired as their government persisted in emphasizing the importance of diversity and inclusivity and that democracy included all people from around the world. When it came to accepting other religions that did not preach the doctrine that they had been reared to understand was God’s word…they were incensed. Their spiritual revelation was that Jesus loved those that obeyed his word…and they were the possessors of that sacred word…while those that were not drawn to their fellowship…were lost… And the idea that anyone could be the president of the United States that did not prescribe to their narrow vision of faith…was abhorrent! This group did not accept divergence from the message of the Man of God. You see the teachings of this fundamentalist group were that God did not speak to regular folks but only to his chosen mouthpiece and that others must accept the word of Jesus from their leader. Now Alvin and Amy studied the scriptures much as the Hasidic Jews study the Torah…several hours per day. They attended church on Wednesday and Saturday night and Sunday morning and Sunday night. They made no major decisions without discussing them with their pastor before they proceeded. If the pastor did not want them to do what they had been thinking about…they simply did not do it! The pastor required financial fidelity! Ten precent of their gross income was the Lord’s…but he took care of the handling fees! Offerings were taken up on a regular basis and they were expected to contribute deeply…until it hurt…was the ministers admonishment! There was an old teaching in their fellowship that there would be only 144 thousand members off the Bride of Christ and that to attain this lofty and elite position…you would have to abstain from marital relationship with your spouse. Alvin and Amy had been endeavoring to be a part of the 144 thousand for many years…with some failures… The assembly was captivated by the story of king David of the Old Testament. They read with amazement that according to the scriptures he was a man after God’s own heart! Yet David had observed Bathsheba as she bathed on the roof of her dwelling and had lusted after her and subsequently had her husband put in the forefront of the battle and killed in order that he could posses her! This was an object lesson that they would not forget when their chosen president the United States was elected.

The new president said the right things according to their fundamentalist teachings. He spoke of locking the borders to America…and ignored the cry of Emma Lazarus poem that is inscribed on the Statue of Liberty which exhorts us to…’Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masse yearning to breath free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!’ He spoke against religions that were not christian. He railed against people who were not white. He demeaned and denigrated women who were not subservient to their husbands. He called nations of color…’shit hole countries!’ He specifically order the separation and lock up of minor children from their immigrant parents…as a methodology of fear for their families seeking sanctuary in the United States which is know as the melting pot of the world! Their ‘chosen one’ and their John the Baptist was making the path clear for the return of ‘their messiah!’ He recognized that the God that they understood was not interested in democracy or inclusivity or ‘Jesus loves the little children…all the little children of the world…red, yellow, black, and white…all are precious in his sight…Jesus loves the little children of the world…’ Alvin and Amy had been waiting on a Theocracy…not a Democracy! They had not sought an African American president and had been incensed when one held the office of the presidency for 8 years.

There are a large group of people in American that do not participate in the vision of the founding fathers. They believe that being Gay is a sin…yet many of them are Gay. They know that alcoholic beverages are wrong…yet many are alcoholics! They have never set down to break bead with a person from another race…yet they admire many black sport stars! They seek the approval of their religious leaders and their faith community peers…and yet do not really like or appreciate either… They seek a theocratic kingdom on he earth and our current president is the harbinger of their long awaited dream…