Just before entering the promised land, the children of Israel were encamped beyond the Jordan River in the land of Moab. God had brought Israel out of bitter slavery in Egypt and led them through the wilderness. At Mount Sinai, the Lord had given them his law so that they might know the conduct he required of them. All this time Moses had led the people of Israel, but now Moses’ life neared its end. Before he died, Moses spoke to the Israelites one last time before they crossed over the Jordan and entered into the promised land.
The parting words of Moses essentially became the book of Deuteronomy. Moses reminded Israel of God’s spectacular acts of judgement against Pharaoh and the Egyptians who had enslaved them; he also reminded them of how God had miraculously provided for them during their sojourn in the desert. Then Moses exhorted them of the keep the requirements of the covenant. Israel had been called to worship and serve the one true God. If they obeyed his commands, God would pour out his lavish blessings upon them. But if they rebelled from the Lord, then the curses of the covenant would come crashing down upon their heads.
Moses’ valediction was a momentous occasion. The stakes could not have been higher. “See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed.”
Like Israel, the United States now faces a time of decision. As every citizen ought to know, the mid-term elections are fast approaching. Perhaps more than at any other time in our nation’s history, the two major political parties seek to advance radically different visions for our country’s future. Sadly, the Democratic Party espouses policies which are completely inimical to Christian faith and human flourishing. While by no means perfect, the Republican Party advocates positions which largely remain consonant with Christianity. What will our nation choose? Life and prosperity or death and destruction?
Let’s review some of the issues at stake:
(1) Energy Policy – The entire Democratic Party has fallen under the control of climate radicals, who preach a dystopian doctrine whereby human beings are parasites bringing about the destruction of the earth. These alarmists claim that warming from human activity – primarily the burning of fossil fuels – has brought about catastrophic effects. Now it is true that over the last 170 years (since the dawn of the industrial revolution) the planet has experienced minor warming of about 1 degree C. Yet over that time period, life on earth has dramatically improved in every way. Thanks to the energy provided by fossil fuels, humans are living longer and more fulfilling lives than ever before.
Worryingly, all of this progress is under serious threat. Joe Biden and the Democratic Party have done all they can to impede the use of fossil fuels which continue to provide more than 81% of the energy which powers our nation. Recent democratic legislation allocates an additional $369 billion toward unreliable and expensive solar and wind projects. This money is almost entirely wasted.
The United States has already managed to slash our overall CO2 emissions by 23% (from 6.13 billion metric tons in 2007 to 4.71 billion metric tons in 2020) – more than any other country! But this success has come about primarily because of the fracking revolution, which allowed the United States to transition much of our energy production from coal to natural gas. Natural gas burns much more cleanly than coal and emits only half as much carbon. Even the carbon reductions attributable to wind and solar are only possible because these unreliable sources are backed up by natural gas plants.
Joe Biden and his Democratic allies will continue to destroy the fossil fuel industries which power our prosperity. As the result, American homes and businesses will be further subjected to excruciatingly high gas prices and staggering utility bills. These costs will drive many companies out of business, depriving our society of vital products, services, and jobs. Progressive policies are a disastrous recipe for scarcity, poverty, misery and death.
President Biden could easily resolve our energy crisis by simply taking his foot off the neck of domestic oil and gas companies. The U.S. is blessed with abundant fossil fuel reserves. Instead, Old Joe has bizarrely chosen to beg for more oil production from foreign tyrants. The President has also foolishly released huge quantities of oil from the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The SPR is a matter of national security, intended for use in time of war or severe crisis. Yet Biden has drawn down more than a third of the SPR simply in an effort to improve his political fortunes.
(2) Abortion – The widespread practice of elective abortion is a disgrace for our nation. According to the Guttmacher Institute, there were more than 930,000 abortions in the United States in 2020. The Democrats have become the party of unfettered abortion, for any reason, at any time during pregnancy. They even support terminating pregnancies solely on the basis of the baby’s gender. This radical position has become a litmus test for every member of the Democratic Party. Of the 274 Congressional Democrats, only a single one takes a pro-life position (Rep. Henry Cueller from Texas). All others eagerly support unrestricted abortion.
Long gone are the days when Democrats like Bill Clinton supported abortion as a regrettable but necessary outcome for unwanted pregnancy. Today’s Democratic Party embraces abortion with diabolical enthusiasm. This is quite an odd development, considering that the large majority of Americans support significant restrictions on abortion. Moreover, all the major democracies in Western Europe limit elective abortions to the first 12-20 weeks of pregnancy. By advocating abortion until the moment of birth, the Democratic Party finds themselves in agreement with brutal and repressive regimes such as China and North Korea.
Christians were able to rejoice in June when the Supreme Court released the Dobbs decision, which struck down the dark legacy of Roe v. Wade. For 50 years, Roe had tragically fabricated a constitutional right to abortion. Without a doubt, the overturning of Roe represents a tremendous victory for the pro-life movement. Since then, many conservative states have legislated strong legal protections for unborn children. We should all be thankful to the pro-life activists, politicians and judges whose efforts made this possible.
Yet much work remains to be done. The Democratic Party has vigorously committed itself to re-imposing a national abortion regime. Congressional Democrats like Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer have made it quite clear that “codifying Roe” into federal law has become their top priority. Indeed, abortion has been the dominant theme of Democratic politic campaigns this fall. This is hardly surprising considering their dismal record of failure in every other area.
Equally disconcerting is the vitriol directed at the pro-life community. Since the Dobbs decision, there have been dozens of violent attacks against crisis pregnancy centers and churches. President Biden has refused to even acknowledge this paroxysm of hated and destruction. Moreover, Merrick Garland – the President’s Attorney General – has shown absolutely no interest in bringing the perpetrators to justice. Garland has neither arrested nor prosecuted anyone involved in these crimes.
Instead, Garland has despicably chosen to deploy the force of the Dept. of Justice against pro-life activists such as the Mark Houck. Each Wednesday, Houck drove two hours to Philadelphia in order to offer sidewalk counseling outside abortion centers. Two dozen heavily armed FBI agents recently conducted an early morning raid of Houck’s home – despite the fact that the FBI knew that Houck presented no threat. The armed agents arrested Mark Houck in front of his terrified wife and seven children. The arrest apparently relates to a minor scuffle which took place outside an abortion facility between Houck and an individual who threatened Houck’s son.
Other pro-life activists have been arrested by the FBI when they prayed and peacefully protested outside an abortion center in Tennessee. The DOJ has accused them of “using physical obstruction to intimidate and interfere.” Thus, during a time of surging violent criminal activity which has crippled communities across the nation, Merrick Garland has deliberately elected to utilize scarce law enforcement resources against people who – at worst – have been mildly overzealous in their passion to defend the unborn.
Next week we’ll continue to analyze the issues which lay before voters, so that – like the children of Israel – we might choose life and prosperity rather than death and destruction.
