News Intelligence Analysis
From KSLA-TV
SHREVEPORT, LA
Homeland Security Enlists Clergy
to Quell Public Unrest if Martial Law Ever Declared
Aug 23, 2007 07:38 PM PDT
By Jeff Ferrell
[Yurica Report Editor's Note: Another step has been taken in the merging of the church with the state: The following article is alarming precisely because the clergy selected by the government are already citing Romans 13 as authority for requiring Christians to submit to the government's edicts--no matter what they are. The ideas in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution--that the people are sovereign--and in the first amendment that require the separation of the church from the state are being set aside and subordinated, as government agencies foster anti-democratic and church-state concepts. Romans 13 asserts that all government authority is derived from God--and therefore civil disobedience of any kind is unlawful. This is a Christian Reconstructionist and Dominionist view. For a more comprehensive reading of this religio/political doctrine see Katherine Yurica's essay, "The Despoiling of America" at the portion linked here and here for a discussion of Justice Scalia's use of Romans 13. ] And see the responses we have received from our readers regarding Romans 13 below and on our Letters to the Editor page.
Click Here for the KSLA-TV Video Report
Could martial law ever become a reality in America? Some fear
any nuclear, biological or chemical attack on U.S. soil might
trigger just that. KSLA News 12 has discovered that the clergy
would help the government with potentially their biggest problem:
Us.
Charleton Heston's now-famous speech before the National Rifle
Association at a convention back in 2000 will forever be remembered
as a stirring moment for all 2nd Amendment advocates. At the
end of his remarks, Heston held up his antique rifle and told
the crowd in his Moses-like voice, "over my cold, dead hands."
While Heston, then serving as the NRA President, made those remarks
in response to calls for more gun control laws at the time, those
words live on. Heston's declaration captured a truly American
value: An over-arching desire to protect our freedoms.
But gun confiscation is exactly what happened during the state
of emergency following Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, along
with forced relocation. U.S. Troops also arrived, something far
easier to do now, thanks to last year's elimination of the 1878
Posse Comitatus act, which had forbid regular U.S. Army troops
from policing on American soil.
If martial law were enacted here at home, like depicted in the
movie "The Siege", easing public fears and quelling
dissent would be critical. And that's exactly what the 'Clergy
Response Team' helped accomplish in the wake of Katrina.
Dr. Durell Tuberville serves as chaplain for the Shreveport Fire
Department and the Caddo Sheriff's Office. Tuberville said of
the clergy team's mission, "the primary thing that we say
to anybody is, 'let's cooperate and get this thing over with
and then we'll settle the differences once the crisis is over.'"
Such clergy response teams would walk a tight-rope during martial
law between the demands of the government on the one side, versus
the wishes of the public on the other. "In a lot of cases,
these clergy would already be known in the neighborhoods in which
they're helping to diffuse that situation," assured Sandy
Davis. He serves as the director of the Caddo-Bossier Office
of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.
For the clergy team, one of the biggest tools that they will
have in helping calm the public down or to obey the law is the
bible itself, specifically Romans 13. Dr. Tuberville elaborated,
"because the government's established by the Lord, you know.
And, that's what we believe in the Christian faith. That's what's
stated in the scripture."
Civil rights advocates believe the amount of public cooperation
during such a time of unrest may ultimately depend on how long
they expect a suspension of rights might last.
Story by Jeff Ferrell
To the Editor:
Romans 13 Is Not Accepted By Catholics
Romans 13 is not accepted by Catholics as a primary doctrine
that governs their response to government. Catholic groups frequently
contest government policies based on conscience.
In fact, it was Martin Luther's late "doctrine of the two
kingdoms" that mandated Christian passivity in the face
of the authoritarian state. This is what you might bring to
the attention of your readers, since Luther resorted to this
doctrine only after the peasant and sectarian rebellions led
to social uprisings and disorders. Karl Barth, the 20th century
Protestant theologian criticized Luther's doctrine as having
led to the submission of the state church in Germany to the Nazi
regime.
In fact, giving clergy this role in a state response to disaster,
amounts to "domesticating" the church in America, and
savvy clerics are aware of this. Unfortunately, this plan to
co-opt religion in service of the state will fool many clerics
who see it only as a chance to serve the unfortunate in a critical
situation and to be heard (initially) by the state.
It's a bad bargain for the churches and the people. Religion
has been described as a "culture of dissent" by prominent
scholars who study it. Catholic dissidents--most recently in
the new sanctuary movement--do not inherit Luther's solution
to the political disorder spawned by this theological reformation.
He told his followers that they belong to "the kingdom
of God" and "the kingdom on earth." They should
obey the rulers who rule by God's choice, but they should lead
exemplary lives because their souls would find ultimate rest
and redemption in the kingdom of God.
Jean Rosenfeld, Ph.D.
Historian of religion (and violence)
For additional letters on Romans 13 click here.
And for a letter to the editor on Justice Scalia's Position on Romans 13 and our response, click here.
Send a letter
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Separation of Church and State Directory
Directory of Law and Legal Issues
See Also:
An Evangelical Coup in America's Military
We are facing a national
security threat in this country
that is every bit as significant in magnitude, width and
breadth internally as that presented externally by the
now-resurgent Taliban
and Al Qaeda.
Infiltrating the U.S. Military
Gen. Boykin’s “Kingdom Warriors”
On the Road to Abu Ghraib and Beyond
By Katherine Yurica
First the hard right dominionists
took over the Southern
Baptist Convention with its 16 million members and a
fortune in corporate businesses. Then they took over
the Republican Party. Now there is evidence dominionists
are trying to take over the U. S. military. The article
examines several new questions: Is there a direct
connection between the Southern Baptist Convention
and Pentecostal churches like John Ashcroft's Assemblies
of God to General Boykin, Stephen Cambone and
Donald Rumsfeld? Is it true that U.S. taxpayers are
paying the seminary bills to educate chaplains who
are planning to supplant the U.S. government?
Do
not miss this solid article.
Air Force to Examine Fundraising
E-Mail Sent by a General
Message Praised Candidate's Christianity
By Alan Cooperman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, May 6, 2006
The Air Force is investigating
whether a two-star
general violated military regulations by urging fellow
Air Force Academy graduates to make campaign
contributions to a Republican candidate for Congress
in Colorado, Pentagon
officials said yesterday.
America's Holy Warriors
By Chris Hedges
The radical Christian right
is coming
dangerously close to its goal of co-opting
the country’s military and
law enforcement.
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