A Virtual Church

Western Imperialism

Yesterday

Imperialism is system of colonization in which stronger nations – those with money and armies -  invade smaller, weaker nations for the purpose of exploitation,  like land and mineral resources.  

Great Britian colonized the western hemisphere for vast land, agricultural, and other resources previously untapped by the Spanish conquistadors who had come to places like Saint Augustine and California.

Indigenous people who inhabited this continent, like the Native Americans, were displaced in what was called, the “Trail of Tears,” forcing them to relocate to places west of the Mississippi and the plains of the Midwest. 

Many inhabitants of Minnesota still bear the physical characteristics of the American Native people. They continue to be harassed and killed as if they weren’t here first. 

Self-determination, free will and personal choice are hallmarks of the democratic way of life. Rounding people up the way the Trump Administration is gleefully doing, is not only cruel and wrong, but also is most assuredly un-American.

King George, in Hamilton, sings to the discontented colonists, “I will send a fully armed battalion to remind you of my love.” So much for the love part. So much for truth and the American way. 

We have seen the video. Administration leaders, like Kristi Noem, are asking us not to believe with our own eyes, just like we saw on January 6th. Ms. Good was shot in cold blood. Everybody who has a cell phone has a camera today. Even the ICE agent who shot Ms. Good was filming the event. 

It is interesting that some in the Senate are getting a little squishy in their support of Trump. The fawning is fraying, and the end is beginning. 

This Administration must think we are stupid or not paying attention to what is going on in front of our eyes. What we are seeing is the strongman exercise of power to suppress First Amendment rights and the American way.  Misogyny and racism played a part in this horrific event. A brown life had lower value than did the white officer who shot her.

Martin Luther King, from the steps of the reflection pool at the Lincoln Memorial, spoke words forever etched in the American ethos. “The arc of the moral universe bends toward justice.” We are located somewhere along that arc.

It seems a little slippery today.

When I posted a picture on social media of the NO KINGS rally we attended, people were divided in their responses. We apparently are not one nation under God.

Some people still have a mis-guided faith that believes God is fine with this hate and division. Scripture from the Old Testament Prophets criticizes those who treat the aliens and foreigners with harm and disdain as being outside right relationship with God. I am not making that up. Read it yourself.

The Christian faith, as does Islam and Buddhism, calls for love of God and love of neighbor. Full Stop.

We live on a very small and endangered planet. If we cannot recognize our need to be one people in the struggle to survive the existential crises of climate change, pandemics, the threat of AI, and political upheavals we are in deeper trouble than we might think. 

Pope Leo, from the Vatican, spoke of the life of Brother Lawrence and the lessons of incarnational faith that call us to embody the life and witness of Christ in our actions in the world. Welcome the stranger and those who are different from us. Greet them with goodness and hospitality. 

Sadly, our President is morally bankrupt. His sadistic narcissism makes him believe only he is right. Even more sad is the witness of a Congress that is too timid and scared to stop him.

There are ways to stop him. Impeachment. The 25th Amendment. The mid-terms. Trump has put pressure on state legislatures like Texas and North Carolina to digitally gerrymander largely minority communities out of their voting power. Hours for early voting are being cut. Voting sites on college campuses are being eliminated.

I carry a copy of the US Constitution in my purse. I also carry my Star ID on my Driver’s License. I carry my voter registration card. I can prove I am a citizen. When I registered to vote, I registered as a Democrat. I remain a Democrat today.

The witness of the progressive voice, a voice of reason in an increasingly dystopian landscape, seems our greatest hope.

Part of the good news is Donald Trump’s age. I am that same age and recognize my own increasing limitations and mobility. I have retired twice. Knowing when to say when is a gift. 

America is facing a wake-up call like nothing we have seen since Hitler in Germany.

You may be ready to let America go to the billionaires but Autocracy and Plutocracy are not desirable outcomes of the American experiment in my view.  

Lib Campbell is a retired Methodist pastor, retreat leader, columnist and host of the blogsite www.avirtualchurch.com. She can be contacted at libcam05@gmail.com  

 

 

 

 

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