Cut off have been My people for lack of knowledge,
Because thou knowledge hast rejected,
I reject thee from being priest to Me,
And thou forgettest the law of thy God,
I forget thy sons, I also!
According to their abundance so they sinned against Me,
Their honour into shame I change. (Hosea 4:6,7, YLTHB)On the contrary, he charges them with gross and voluntary ignorance, as if he had said that, by their madness, they brought down destruction on themselves. The meaning therefore is, that the people perished because they despised instruction . . . .
Hence we draw a useful doctrine; namely, that the source of all our calamities is, that we do not allow ourselves to be taught by the word of God, and this is what the Prophet chiefly intended that we should observe. . . .
So then it is a true statement, that the reason why the people endure such a variety of afflictions is, that they are ignorant of God, and will not allow themselves to be taught by him. -- John Calvin commenting on Isaiah 5:13
Whereas, in regard to the Enemy's subtle warfare, My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. (Hosea 4:6), (1)
Whereas, The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever. (Psalm 111:10)
Whereas, knowledge of the truth is interconnected with absolute truth, sovereign authority, life (both temporal and eternal), loving obedience, sanctification, moral behavior, justice, freedom (political, economic, and individual), social stability, and real progress,
Whereas, the main strategy of the Enemy, The Father of Lies, is to deceive, rob, and destroy,
Whereas, in order to deceive, the Enemy must suppress and repress knowledge of the truth,
Whereas, the discourses and sayings of our Lord Jesus Christ are repressed and suppressed,
Whereas, knowledge of the Covenanted Reformation, the highest attainment of Christianity in history to date, is repressed and suppressed,
Whereas, the Westminster Standards and other great creeds and catechisms are repressed and suppressed,
Whereas, the Christian classics are repressed and suppressed,
Whereas, we have been duped into giving the schooling of our children over to the secular state,
Whereas, "Not since the Middle Ages has there been such a spiritual famine in the West." (2)
Whereas, lack of knowledge of truth makes individuals, no matter how powerful, wealthy, strong, intelligent, and well-educated, and no matter what their social standing, vulnerable to deception, mind control, manipulation, bondage, and exploitation (3)
Whereas, whatever we hear or read exclusively we begin to believe is true, and mind control takes over,
Whereas, we receive a secular message that denies God from radio, television, advertising, newspapers, magazines, popular music, Hollywood, the theater, from the book trade, corporate America, the World Wide Web, the secular government, and so forth,
Whereas, because we all live in a society that is saturated with the relative values of secular humanism, values that deny God and Absolute Truth, therefore we are all victims of mind control,
Whereas, our nation is in bondage to the deceit of The Father of Lies,
Whereas, after compiling GREAT BOOKS OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION, Mortimer Adler concluded that more problems are caused by the denial of God than by anything else -- it changes the whole tenure of life,
Whereas, one of the attributes of God is absolute truth,
Whereas, central to the secular humanistic worldview is the denial of God and, consequently, denial of absolute truth and moral absolutes, for relativistic values, situation ethics, values clarification, and so forth,
Whereas, the secular humanistic worldview, therefore, suppresses and represses the absolute truth of the Bible which are associated with the Triune God and eternal life,
Whereas, one definition of faith is "that which we give our attention to,"
Whereas, if our minds are saturated with the relative values of secular humanism, then logically there can be no faith in the absolute truths of the Bible,
Whereas, the natural consequence of lack of faith is apathy,
Whereas, apathy leads to fatalism,
Whereas, regarding the consequences of mind control, bondage, exploitation, lack of faith, apathy, and fatalism, in American today there is a lack of knowledge of Biblical truth, a lack of faith, and an indifference toward the Biblical principles that can restore love of truth, life, lawfulness, freedom, and social stability,
Whereas, consequently, America has been experiencing an occult revival since the early 1960s, and the associated neo-pagan confusion and social decline has penetrated all levels of society (4)
Whereas, the occult is associated with drug use and sexual immorality, and lawlessness, and
Whereas, these behaviors contribute to the breakdown of the family, the basic unit of society, and to violent crime,
Whereas, violent adult crime and violent juvenile crime in America is rapidly escalating out of control,
Whereas, the social indicators show that American society is now in a state of crisis (6)
Whereas, since 1963 [writing in 1994]: violent crime has increased 500 percent, illegitimate births have increased 400 percent, divorces have increased 400 percent, children living in single parent homes are up by 300 percent, child abuse has increased 340 percent (since 1976), teenage suicide has increased 200 percent, and S.A.T. scores have dropped almost 80 points. (5)
Whereas, law enforcement has broken down in America and only 2 percent of violent crimes result in convictions, and there is an 80 percent recidivism rate among those convicted ("U.S. News and World Report," January 17, 1994 issue),
Whereas, the Bible regards the sole function of government to be the punishment of wrongdoers (7)
Whereas, Christianity is the highest ethical standard known to mankind,
Whereas, when God is denied, then there is no "source or correction or ultimate justice,"
Whereas, because the truth is suppressed, repressed, and regulated many of the best books in Christian literature, even the Christian classics, go out of print and are lost in the dusty archives and classification systems of big libraries, (8)
Whereas, consequently, the general public lacks Biblical knowledge of how to solve problems, and knowledge of the sources of true freedom in Christ which alone is the foundation of self-government,
Whereas, the roots of freedom and limited government are to be found in the Covenanting struggle in Scotland,
Whereas, knowledge of the roots of freedom and limited government have been suppressed and repressed,
Whereas, the liberty of the America nation is being sold out through manifold ungodly alliances,
Whereas, the decline of American society is in a rapid downward spiral,
Whereas, denial of the Sanctity of Life, the foundation of Western Civilization, is not the least evidence of our decline,
Whereas, therefore, our nation is being destroyed for a lack of knowledge,
Whereas, regarding a solution to the dilemma of the repression, suppression, and regulation of the absolute truth of the Bible and the denial of God, deception, mind control, lack of knowledge, lack of faith, apathy, fatalism, and the manipulation and destruction of our nation, the encouraging facts are that the absolute truths we need to reclaim our society have already been published, and some individuals respond to the truth,
Whereas, all the knowledge of the truth needed by Christians, politicians, and lawmakers to solve our social, economic, and spiritual problems has already been articulated and published by Christian scholars, but is not generally known because it has been repressed, suppressed, and regulated,
Whereas, Christianity is diminished when it is viewed in part, instead of being viewed as a whole and interconnected with all spheres of life,
Whereas, if God (the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Triune God of the Bible, the God of historic, orthodox Christianity), is in fact absolute truth, and Truth is one of his attributes, then political polytheism, pluralism, and political correctness are a myth,
Whereas, historic, orthodox Christianity reveals the interconnectedness of absolute truth, sovereign authority, life (both temporal and eternal), loving obedience, sanctification, moral behavior, justice, freedom (political, economic, and individual), social stability, and real progress,
Whereas, the denial of God by secular humanism inevitable produces deceit, decline, and death, typified by man becoming the measure of all things, pluralism, polytheism, vain, finite human knowledge, pagan confusion, lack of balance between "the one and the many," deterioration of education, moral decline, loss of the sanctity of life, abortion, infanticide, child abuse, euthanasia, genocide, and suicide, law based on relative values and non-duality, permissiveness, egalitarianism, lawlessness, lack of justice, violent crime, suffering of the innocent, loss of freedoms, growing tyranny, governmental oppression, diplomacy by treason, the betrayal of national independence and sovereignty, economic decline, serfdom, slavery, a society becoming subject to the will of its enemies, globalism, and so forth, and so on, and finally the dissolution of society,
Whereas, we have no choice but to stand for the truth, because to do otherwise is to forfeit the battle and to loose our society,
Whereas, truth is more valuable than all the riches of the world, because it leads to life eternal (9)
Therefore, Be it Resolved that readers educate themselves about the truths of historic, orthodox, Protestant, Reformed Christianity (all things whatsoever I have commanded you [Matthew 28:20]), and about the Covenanted Reformation, and that they then conduct family worship, catechize their children with the Shorter Catechism, associate with people who are godly and upright, practice intercessory prayer, influence this generation with the Gospel, work to select covenant heads for positions of authority in society, and so forth, and so on.
2. John W. Robbins, The Trinity Foundation, in a letter to members dated October 1993
3. Hosea 4:6,7. See also: Modern Myths and Fallacies
4. See:
Pseudo-Christian Movements: A Selection of Works, and
Gelet, James, Eric Holmberg, Jerry Johnson, and Apologetics Group, The Marks of a Cult: A Biblical Analysis, DVD, ISBN: 1573411507 9781573411509.
"In today's religiously diverse and relativistic culture, labelling a group a cult may seem extreme to many people, not to mention rude. Even people who believe in absolute Truth and further believe that Jesus is the only way to eternal life can get confused about just what constitutes real Christianity. Just why are Baptists properly considered Christians, but Mormons are not? Or why is the Jehovah's Witness religion classified as an anti-Christian cult while Presbyterians or Wesleyans or Pentecostals are simply seen as denominations within the Christian faith?
"With the explosion of different sects that claim to honor and follow Jesus, how does one differentiate between true Biblical Christianity and an aberrant religious movement? Just what are 'the marks of a cult?'
"Join us for a journey into the heart of Biblical revelation and the constant struggle of truth against lies, the apostolic faith against the 'doctrines of demons.'
"This documentary from ApologeticsGroup.com does more than simply point fingers. It explains in great detail the absolute essentials of the Faith, and just how and why Christians can properly and necessarily refer to certain sects as 'cults.' Not only a tool for recognizing and understanding false teaching -- and for reaching people held captive to it -- The Marks of a Cult is also a powerful apologetic on the need for Christians to become more rooted in the Biblical historic faith, with its creeds and confessions, and to be better prepared to give 'a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you'." (1 Peter 3:15) -- Publisher
5. William J. Bennett, THE INDEX OF LEADING CULTURAL INDICATORS.
6. See: Bennett, William, THE INDEX OF LEADING CULTURAL INDICATORS; Fowler, Richard A., and H. Wayne House, Fowler, Richard A., and H. Wayne House, CIVILIZATION IN CRISIS: A CHRISTIAN RESPONSE TO HOMOSEXUALITY, FEMINISM, EUTHANASIA, AND ABORTION, ISBN: 0801035481 9780801035487. Alternate title: THE CHRISTIAN CONFRONTS HIS CULTURE, revised edition of c1983.
7. *Robbins, John W., (1949-2008), Money, Freedom and the Bible.
"Paul does not regard government as provider of income, health care, education, national parks, money, or any of the other services common to our modern welfare states; its function is quite simple: to punish wrongdoers." A lecture given at the Gold Standard Corporation Conference, August 1989.
8. "The good books do not sell."
9. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)
See also: The sovereignty of god, The doctrine of man (human nature, total depravity), Church and state, The sovereign grace of god: his everlasting mercy and lovingkindness, Selection of covenant heads for positions of leadership, The attributes of god, Trusting god, Repentance the key to salvation and change, Justifing faith, The free offer of the gospel message of salvation and the life to come: the means of grace, the covenant of eternal salvation, Book-length presentations of the free offer of the gospel message of salvation and the life to come: the means of grace, The all-sufficiency of christ, Christ our example, Affliction, adversity, trials, suffering, chastisement, Sanctification, Holiness, Immanuel, christ's presence, christ in you, Wisdom, Books considered to be among the ten greatest in the english language,
The inspiration and infallibility of scripture (the doctrine of revelation, the doctrine of plenary inspiration, the doctrine of divine inspiration, the doctrine of verbal inspiration, theopneustia, sufficiency of scripture), The Holy Spirit, Christian scholarship, The healing of the mind, Works of saint augustine, Works of john calvin, Works of martin luther, Works of john knox, Works of c.h. spurgeon, Works of c. gregg singer, Spiritual discernment, False gospels, The protestant reformation, The history of reformation of the church, Calvinism, The covenanted reformation of scotland background and history, "The westminster confession of faith (1646), (the westminster standards) and related works: a study guide," The covenanted reformation of scotland, Christ's influence on western civilization, The one and the many, Church and state, Corporate faithfulness and sanctification,
Reform of the church, Unfaithful reformed ministries, Absolute truth and relativism, Epistemology, Public education, Apologetics, Authority, Liberalism and neo-liberalism, Lies and deceit, Modern myths and fallacies, Hypocrisy, Pluralism and neutrality, Toleration and enemy of truth, Separation, Questions and answers,
Adoption into god's family, Believer's position in christ and sonship, Assurance and perseverance of the saints, The priesthood of believers, Reconciliation of relationships, Neighbors, Christian liberty,
Idolatry, Carnality and flesh pleasing, Secret societies, ungodly alliances, voluntary alliances, Oaths, ensnaring vows, promises, and covenants, bonds with the ungodly, Arminianism, Antinomianism, Spiritual warfare, Spiritual discernment, Soul-violence, Spiritual bondage, Priestcraft, pharisaism, soul-stealing, False gospels, Sexual relationship, Spiritual adultery (spiritual whoredom/harlotry), Effeminacy, the effeminate, Feminism, Sorcery, Soul-violence, Conspiracy, corruption, organized crime, Cowardice, The religion of secular humanism: man as god, human autonomy, Politics, Pseudo-christian movements: a selection of works, The counter-reformation, Antichrist, Machiavellianism, The decline of american society, irrationality, the decline of western thought, Male role and responsibility, gender equality, suffrage, reproductive rights, and the decline of american society, Biblical economics, The federal reserve, The banking system, Meltdown: the depression of 2008, Bible magistracy turns back the wrath of god, The doctrine of the lesser magistrates, God's deliverance of nations, Justice, judgment, god's final judgment, the great white throne judgment, the day of the lord, and so forth and so on . . . .
Will and recalcitrance, Fatalism, Sin and its consequence: physical and spiritual death, Signs of a destructive cult, Priestcraft, Occultism, Soul-violence, Persecution, Liberty of conscience, Legalism, Loving your enemies, Pacifism, Gratuitous sex, a cause of violence, Homosexuality, lesbianism, gay, bisexual, transvestite, queer (lgbtq), Child abuse and pedophilia, Rebellion and lawlessness: wickedness, demonic possession, substance abuse, abnormal behavior, insanity, mental illness, mental retardation, Pride, ambition, self-aggrandizement, arrogance, ego, Appendix c "psychology and psychiatry," Friendly fascism, Tyranny, Christian scholarship, Unfaithful reformed ministries, Blasphemy, The occult, The new age, Women and the new age, Public schools, public education, Home schooling, Protecting your children from dangers, and so forth, and so on.
John Ankerberg and John Weldon have written over 70 books on pseudo-Christian movements. Uris Library at Cornell University has a large collection on witchcraft and freemasonry.
Books Considered to be Among the ten Greatest in the English Language
http://www.lettermen2.com/tengreat.html
Combined Interactive Contents for The Web Edition of Biblical Counsel: Resources for Renewal
http://www.lettermen2.com/combtoc.html
Gelet, James, Eric Holmberg, Jerry Johnson, and the Apologetics Group, The Marks of a Cult: A Biblical Analysis, DVD (Draper, VA: The Apologetics Group, 2006), ISBN: 1573411507 9781573411509.
"Just why are Baptists properly considered Christians, but Mormons are not? Or why is the Jehovah's Witness religion classified as an anti-Christian cult, while Presbyterians, Wesleyans and Pentecostals are simply seen as denominations within the Christian faith? With the explosion of different sects that claim to honor and follow Jesus, how does one differentiate between true Biblical Christianity and an aberrant religious movement? Just what are the marks of a cult? . . . The video gives clear guidelines on how to distinguish truth from error in principle as well as carefully documented instructions on the particular errors of prominent cults." -- Publisher
*Hassan, Steven, Combating Cult Mind Control: The #1 Best-selling Guide to Protection, Rescue and Recovery From Destructive Cults, ISBN: 0892814225 9780892814220.
Recognize the signs of destructive organizations and protect yourself from psychological manipulation.
"Remarkably useful and important. I heartily recommend this book to anyone affected by the cult experience. Hassan's work will be valuable to health professionals, clergy, attorneys, and all those involved with cults, their members, and the families whose lives they touch." -- Louis Jolyon West, M.D., Chairman, Department of Psychiatry, UCLA School of Medicine.
Chapter 4, "Understanding Mind Control," explains how to recognize mind control activities.
Includes bibliography, bibliographical footnotes, index, and an appendix of resource organizations. Recommended as a valuable reference work. A secular author.
An Understanding of Cult Mind Control
http://www.shassan.com/
Hassan, Steven, Releasing The Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves, ISBN: 0967068800 9780967068800.
"Help People to Recover from Abusive Relationships and Cults! My second book, RELEASING THE BONDS: EMPOWERING PEOPLE TO THINK FOR THEMSELVES, is the culmination of over twenty-five years of first-hand experience. I became interested in the issue of cults after being rescued by my family from the Moonies in 1976. I had dropped out of college and was indoctrinated to believe that Sun Myung Moon was the Messiah and that Armageddon was about to take place.
"Once liberated, I have gone on to spend twenty-three years working full-time in the area of cult mind control. I am a licensed mental health counselor with a Master's degree in counseling psychology from Cambridge College. I have helped thousands of people who have been hurt by cult groups and destructive relationships. I have appeared as an expert on television shows such as 60 Minutes, Nightline, Dateline, Oprah Winfrey, Larry King Live and have been appeared in innumerable publications and media.
"This book describes in detail my Strategic Interaction Approach. It involves a family-centered, goal-oriented communications method that systematically neutralizes phobias and empowers people to think independently. The book was written especially for concerned family and friends, mental health professionals, clergy and for anyone who wants to understand how intelligent, educated people can become dependent, obedient slaves." -- Steven Hassan
"Cults are rapidly spreading around the globe like viruses -- changing constantly, adapting easily to new cultures, destroying hundreds of thousands of lives each year, by radically altering people's identities through mind control, brainwashing, hypnosis, and less subtle mind control techniques. What compels bright, energetic and idealistic people of all ages to give up their individuality, their freedom of mind, and oftentimes their jobs, wealth, and families to become a slave to a self-proclaimed master? Why do well-educated, highly intelligent people even offer their lives in mass suicides for what appear to be 'nutty' beliefs? Once enslaved, how can victims of cults regain their freedom and begin to think for themselves again?
"In his new book, RELEASING THE BONDS: Empowering People to Think for Themselves, one of the world's foremost authorities on cult mind control, Steven Hassan, reveals the astonishingly effective behavior, information, thought and emotion control techniques (B.I.T.E.), at the root of all cult powers. With dozens of examples from real-life cases, Hassan presents a new, more refined, non-coercive, and totally legal Strategic Interaction Approach (S.I.A.), to freeing oneself from the terrible grip of life-threatening cults, enabling cult victims to think independently again.
"Hassan's revolutionary Strategic Interaction Approach replaces crude deprogramming and kidnapping rescue attempts with an in-depth process of evaluating the situation;interacting with dual identities;communication strategies for phone calls, letter writing and visits;understanding and utilizing cult beliefs and tactics; techniques to reality-test and promote freedom of mind;planning and instituting effective interventions.
"The extent to which cults have invaded the social infrastructures is a truly staggering phenomenon in the modern world. RELEASING THE BONDS: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan is a profoundly insightful probe into a vast, expanding secret world in our everyday midst, offering hope for those lost in misery and freedom of mind for those who have the courage to overcome their fears." -- Publisher
Jacobson, Steven, Mind Control in the United States, ISBN: 0911485007 9780911485004.
The Law of a Sound Mind, Peter Masters
"By discarding the law of a sound mind (the protection provided by the reasoning faculty), Charismatics have rendered themselves highly gullible in the face of false teaching, exaggeration, and lies. They have become notably vulnerable to religious charlatans and rogues, as the 1987 crisis in American religious television (which is predominantly Charismatic), has demonstrated. Emotionalism is rampant among them, and because all are free to do whatever seems right in their own eyes, serious spiritual lawlessness is widespread. These things are the inevitable result of laying aside the objective standard of God's Word, the faculty of judgment, and the power of self-control, all of which are brought into play by the sound mind." -- Peter Masters
http://www.trinityfoundation.org/PDF/Review_272_masters.pdf
*Luther, Martin (1483-1546), Commentary on Galatians, English translation by Erasmus Middleton, B.D., edited by John Prince Fallowes, M.A., Pembroke College, Cambridge, ISBN: 0825431247. A Christian classic. Considered to be among the ten greatest books in the English language. Available on the Puritan Hard Drive.
"I prefer this book of Martin Luther's (except the Bible), before all the books I have ever seen, as most fit for a wounded soul." -- John Bunyan
"This is a great, historic work, and is beyond criticism on account of its great usefulness. As a comment its accuracy might be questioned; but for emphatic utterances and clear statements of the great doctrine of the Epistle it remains altogether by itself, and must be judged per se." -- C.H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)
"The reissue of a famous series of lectures delivered at Wittenberg University in 1553." -- Cyril J. Barber
Commentary on Galatians, Martin Luther
http://archive.org/details/cu31924029294133
Luther's Commentary on Galatians, That He might deliver us from the present evil world. (Galatians 1:4 excerpt), English translation by Erasmus Middleton, B.D., edited by John Prince Fallowes, M.A., Pembroke College, Cambridge
http://www.lettermen2.com/luther2.html
Luther's Commentary on Galatians, Who hath bewitched you, that you should not obey the truth. (Galatians 3:1 excerpt), English translation by Erasmus Middleton, B.D., edited by John Prince Fallowes, M.A., Pembroke College, Cambridge
http://www.lettermen2.com/luther1.html
Resources for the Autodidact (Self-taught)
http://www.lettermen2.com/autodidact.html
Rockstad, Ernest B., The Healing of the Mind (Andover, KS: Faith and Life Publications). Available in The Mind: Satan's Base of Operations (2 Cor. 11:3), [2 Corinthians 11:3], 4 audio cassettes [audio file].
A booklet explaining how to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:2). Filled with references to Scripture.
*Singer, C. Gregg (1910-1999), From Rationalism to Irrationality: The Decline of the Western Mind From the Renaissance to the Present, ISBN: 0875524281 9780875524283 and a reprint of the P&R Publishing edition of 1979 (Wipf and Stock, 2006), 479 pp.
"Now, frankly students, this course is presented from obviously the Reformed Theology. I hold unabashedly, unashamedly to the whole of Reformed Theology as we find it specifically in the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms.
"At the same time I hold to a position in regard to Apologetics generally known as Presuppositionalism, and particularly that view held by Cornelius Van Til.
"This book is an attempt to enlarge and to broaden the scope of Van Til's own Apologetical system, and also his Epistemology. By that I mean, and I worked this book with him, so anything that I say is not to be construed as a criticism of Cornelius Van Til. I might add he wrote me a letter. He is delighted with this book. But what I did was to take his principles, both of Apologetics and of Epistemology, and apply them to all realms of modern thought.
"Dr. Van Til, for good and sufficient reason, sought to limit to the main stream of what we might call pure Philosophy, that is from Saint Thomas, well even before them, back to the Greeks, but particularly in the more modern period, from Saint Thomas Aquinas, William of Ockham (Occam), down through Descartes, the Rationalists, the Empiricists, down to Kant and Hegel, and of course Modern Philosophy and Modern Theology. Very seldom has he gone into what we might call the arena of Political Philosophy, or the arena of Social Thought, or the arena of Psychology and Psychiatry, the realm of Educational Philosophy, and into Art, Music, and so on, to the Fine Arts.
"This book is an attempt to apply his system, and show what happens when the Western mind has forsaken his principles, or the principles which he has espoused, and turned into its own way. And thus the book called FROM RATIONALISM TO IRRATIONALITY. The thesis being that the Rationalism inherent in Saint Thomas and the post-Thomists, and more particularly, and more openly, in the Philosophy of the Renaissance, and Descartes, and Spinosa, and Leibniz has, as it's gained momentum in the modern world, brought Western Culture to its knees. We are living, as I would think, in the death throws of the Western Cultures, the Western Civilization." -- Dr. C. Gregg Singer, in the introductory address to his course in Apologetics soon after FROM RATIONALISM TO IRRATIONALITY came off the press in 1979
Apologetics: #01: Classical and Medieval Thought #1 [audio file]
Dr. C. Gregg Singer, Apologetics, 56 min.
http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=2250511453
"Locke endeavored to set forth a political philosophy which would anchor his democratic political thought on what he felt were the firm foundations of his empiricism. However, his insistence that nature has bestowed upon mankind certain basic and inalienable rights was an assumption quite contrary to his empiricism. His denial of conscience as an innate possession or quality makes it impossible for men to know that they possess the rights of life, liberty, and property. The very concept of a human right is moral in nature and has its basis of authority in the human conscience. It is thus impossible for men to know through the senses that they have these cherished human rights. Granted that it was far from Locke's intention to undermine or destroy the traditional English concept of personal rights, his empiricism removed from his political thought the necessary foundations on which a government could be built for the protection of these rights. His empiricism supported neither the idea that men have such rights nor that they are inalienable. (p. 61)
"Underlying the secular and naturalistic assumptions of the thought of the Enlightenment was a related and equally serious problem. In their political and economic thought the leaders of this era were passionately devoted to the pursuit of freedom, and yet they seemed to be completely unaware of this incompatibility between their quest for freedom on the one hand and their reliance upon natural law on the other. How can an impersonal and deterministic concept of law produce and sustain a meaningful concept of freedom? Blindly convinced that there was no problem involved in the contradiction, the leaders of the Enlightenment pushed boldly ahead in the quest for political and economic liberty. However, their failure to recognize the issues involved in this quest led not only to the disaster of the French Revolution but to the growth of the totalitarian political and economic philosophies which first appeared in Hegel and Marx during the nineteenth century and reached their culmination in the totalitarianism of the twentieth century." (p. 73) -- quoted at the blog, Imago Veritatis: Post-modern Reformed Paleo-orthodoxy
Singer used this as textbook for his course in Apologetics. Epistemology is a recurring theme throughout the textbook and the course. The series of 24 addresses on Apologetics is available free online. See: "Apologetics" under:
Works of C. Gregg Singer
http://www.lettermen2.com/bcrr3ch.html#cgsinger
*Singer, C. Gregg (1910-1999), A Theological Interpretation of American History, 1994, 354 pages (Greenville, SC: A Press, 1994, 1981, 1975, 1974, 1964), ISBN: 0875524265 9780875524269. A Christian classic.
This book portrays "the influence of theology and the changing doctrines in the life of the church on the pattern of American political, constitutional, social and economic development.
"The author shows that the decline of constitutional government in this country is the result of the departure from historical Christian faith and the resulting rise of alien political philosophies. Particularly does he emphasize the intimate relationship between theological liberalism on the one hand and political, social, and economic liberalism on the other. This theological liberalism has been a major agent in the decline of the Constitution in the political life of the people and in the appearance of a highly centralized government." -- Publisher
"There is between the democratic philosophy and theological liberalism a basic affinity which has placed them in the same camp in many major political struggles.
"This condition exists because theological liberalism shares the basic postulates of the democratic philosophy. . . .
"Theological liberalism at heart has been a continuing protest against Calvinism, particularly against its insistence on the Sovereignty of God and the Total Depravity of the race. These two Biblical doctrines have often proved to be a stumbling block to theologians within the church as well as to the unbelieving world.
"The result of theological liberalism has been the movement away from constitutionalism and away from liberty, and a movement toward collectivistic society and totalitarian regime." -- C. Gregg Singer, A Theological Interpretation of American History, p. 290
See also: John Knox, the Scottish Covenanters, and the Westminster Assembly (tape 3 of 5) [audio file], in a series of addresses History Notes on Presbyterianism, Reformation, and Theology by Dr. C. Gregg Singer on SermonAudio.com
http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=12607114250
Dr. C. Gregg Singer at SermonAudio.com (161 messages), [audio file]
http://www.sermonaudio.com/search.asp?SpeakerOnly=true&currSection=sermonsspeaker&Keyword=Dr.^C.^Gregg^Singer
Spiritual Abuse
Extensive resources.
http://www.apologeticsindex.org/8006-spiritual-abuse
Spiritual Abuse, Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritual_abuse
Warning Signs of Destructive Cults
http://www.lettermen2.com/warncult.html
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Views and opinion expressed at other web sites do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of this webmaster.
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