Recently, Gail and I had the pleasure of attending the Jericho March in Washington, DC. It was a great honor for us to meet several good and decent patriots. I am presently gathering my thoughts about this event which we plan on publishing shortly. For now however, I want to convey to you my thoughts about the capital of our nation, it’s ambience and character, as it were.
Washington, DC is a great city as capital cities go. While standing at the Mall, I looked directly at the Washington Monument. Directly behind us was the Capitol building. Truly magnificent buildings abound, literally everywhere. To the left of us was the “Castle” (as the Smithsonian is also known); a dark, lumbering structure straight out of Harry Potter, somewhat out of place because of its gothic architecture. All other buildings opposite it were domed structures with Ionic columns; a veritable explosion of Greco-Roman architecture on a proud, gargantuan scale.
The predominant color that struck me was their gleaming whiteness or, more accurately, a triumphant alabaster. By all indications, the entire Mall and the various government buildings that were nearby bespoke the glory of a great empire.
I should have been taken in by all the splendor before me. And why not? The America of today bestrides the world like a colossus. We are at the pinnacle of our power throughout the world. Were I a younger man, I could easily be seduced by what I saw. And had I been so inclined, would have loved to have worked within the engine rooms of the American Empire. Had I been a younger, more naïve man, that is. One captivated by the beauty of this world.
Today, such enthrallment escapes me. I felt no pride in the accomplishments of America over the last few decades. Mainly because there aren’t any (unless you think exporting homosexuality, abortion, and pornography are accomplishments.) My chest therefore, did not swell with pride. Mind you this is not because of the tumult we are presently engaged in. Far from it. In fact, the tumult is a symptom of something far darker. You see, I no longer believe that the engines of the bureaucracy work for the people. That’s pretty much obvious now. Don’t get me wrong –DC is lovely but it is lovely in the way that Versailles was lovely in its heyday. Or St Petersburg before the Great War. But like those two seats of government, they came to exist for themselves and not the nations which they served. As in pre-revolutionary France and Russia, the servants became the masters. This is abundantly clear to most anybody who works in the private sector.
What I saw instead were what Jesus called “whited sepulchres”.
That’s the vibe I picked up. That and nothing more. The Empire at its end-stage. I sensed no goodness or productivity there. I hesitate to say that it’s irredeemable because that would be unchristian. Nevertheless, I can’t help but feel the coming collapse. It’s baked in the cake at this point, thanks to the manifest corruption and an inability to reform. The bureaucracy works on inertia; there is no ability to do anything positive. Things like the Apollo space program are all but impossible now. There is no comparison between the America of my youth and the lumbering stasis that abounds.
I ask you: what is it that all these people who work in these massive buildings do? Oh, don’t get me wrong, the truly nefarious agents work overtime to subvert the democratic process. They’re pretty darn good at that. The CIA is probably installing a Dominion voting machine in Upper Volta as we speak. Not exactly teaching irrigation to Third-world peasants or combating malaria, but what the heck? But even here, malefactors like Peter Strzok and Lisa Page have time to carry on a torrid love affair during office hours, for months on end. When not entwined in each others’ limbs, they spill tons of digital ink planning their little escapades (amorous or otherwise). Try doing that in the productive sector. Not possible.
As for those who are not actively subverting the government (or making life miserable for those working in the private sector), I have to wonder what all those worker bees at the Department of Whatever are doing? What exactly is a Deputy Undersecretary of State for Diversity? And why does xim/xur need an administrative assistant? I sense a lot of mediocrity. Not a bad thing all things being equal, but is it productive? At one time, men like Lewis and Clark worked for the Federal government and at great personal cost to themselves, they blazed the trails that made our destiny manifest. Others dug the Panama Canal. Still others designed and built the Hoover Dam.
Nothing this momentous springs to mind today. Obama found out what obstacles lay in wait for him when he fancied himself the next FDR. The “shovel-ready jobs” he promised were aborted as the words flew out of his mouth. Why? It’s not because they didn’t like him, it’s because the Federal bureaucracy exists to do silly things, like protecting snail-darters or red squirrels. Now, don’t get me wrong, it would have been nice had he succeeded, after all, the best answer for idleness is work, but he was not an unstoppable force, whereas the bureaucracy arrayed against him was an immovable object. And I won’t even get into our military, what with transvestite shows on aircraft carriers. Oh sure, we can bomb a Third-world kleptocracy like Libya to smithereens but that’s about it. If we had the military on December 7, 1941 that we have now, we’d all be speaking Japanese.
It is not merely a different city, it is a different culture. At one time, people came to Washington to make things happen. Now, no one operates in that town under such delusions; hence, the be-all and end-all of government service is now reduced to virtue signaling. It’s specious, it’s tedious but at least one gets a decent salary for doing nothing. And short of being an axe-murderer, it’s almost impossible to get fired. I can’t say that I blame them.
Could all this be turned around? Sure, anything is possible. But as we are seeing, the tentacles of the Deep State make things like reform next to impossible. Truth be told, I don’t see how President Trump accomplished anything at all (and he accomplished a lot), so entrenched is the inertia. To my mind, the machinery of the government can only be revved up for propaganda purposes. Rather than do something dangerous, like infiltrating MS-13 or bringing Al Sharpton up on charges, the FBI gins up its paramilitary machinery to investigate obvious hoaxes instead. Or arrest septuagenarians in the wee hours of the morning. Something tells me that piss-ant things like that are nowhere near anything like the high-octane legends that animated the original G-men.
I have been to D.C. twice before: when I was a teenager and once, about 16 years ago. Back then, it was the repository of Americana –all of Americana if you ask me. Statues abounded back then. Last Saturday, I only saw one: General Meade and I had to wonder why that one wasn’t torn down by the new iconoclasts. I don’t imagine that the statue of Ronald Reagan standing outside Reagan National will be long for this world. After all, both men fit all the criteria of all that is demonic in our new, national religion; being a dead, white male and all.
So, where are we? What’s in our future? Perhaps we should turn our attention to another would-be reformer: President John F Kennedy, who famously said “those who make reform impossible, make revolution inevitable”. These were wise words.
Will they be heeded? Perhaps the better question is can they be heeded?
“When a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce the people under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government…” (Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson)
I am not totally discouraged because God is good. And… the American people have a lot of spirit and do not want to be totally subjugated. Refusal of many to wear masks proves this. But I fear we have tough times ahead. How are we to pay for the trillions of bail-out money? How many cities and states will be bankrupted by the continuous shut-downs? How many more jobs will be lost? A good friend pointed out to me that we have learned this year how many more jobs can successfully be done remotely – so what will stop those jobs from being exported to places like India?
Very good points indeed, CS.
I for one, am not discouraged. Why? Because we know that Trump won –and handily at that. That being said, unless something miraculous happens between now and January 20, we are in for 12 years of absolute, Obamaesque crapitude with continued economic decline. Remember the “stagflation” of the 70s? Secession, civil war or martial law are the optimistic scenarios.
Why do I say twelve years? Because Biden’s fall before the bus is being orchestrated as we speak. Kamasutra Harris will be be installed and puppeteered by globalists forces who will inject John Kerry into the veep role. He will be her handler. Her ethnicity will be used as a prop which will insulate the MIC from charges of racism.
In the meantime, the floodgates of illegal immigration will be opened and the continued “diversification” of America will proceed apace. Eventually, the system will go bankrupt since the majority of illegal aliens take more welfare, which because they will drive down the economy, will be the fate of more black and poor whites.
This should be a recipe for future GOP successes in 2022, 2024 and beyond but there will never be another GOP candidate of Trump’s popularity who will be able to overcome the electoral algorithms, so that’s why I see America being a national California.
Think of California. It’s a one-party state turning into Third-world status. People are leaving by the tens of thousands. Yet, the remaining demographic is so incapable of making things turn around that they go ahead and vote liberal. And why not? As long as Sacramento keeps on incentivizing profligacy, there’s no reason to become productive. In fact, it’s counter-productive.
Think also of Cuba: the Type A demographic that is so successful in the United States has left that country, leaving the lower classes to fend for themselves, basically accepting the few crumbs that their communist oligarchs give them. Remember: Aristotle said that “some men are born slaves”. As long as they get their “three hots and a cot” they’ll be docile.
The silver lining is the hardening of the Red States. A quasi-secession/incipient nationalism will continue apace. The immediate question is can they fend off the neo-fascism of the Obamaesque Deep State? The weaponization of the IRS, DOJ, and even the military already happened under Obama. Will the Biden Administration be as successful? I don’t know.
As for the aforementioned Red States, I believe that they can still pull it off if for no other reason that the blinders are off and we no longer believe in the innate “goodness” of the other side. We learned the lessons of the so-called Resistance well: now there are hundreds of counties in the Red States (and even some Blue States like New Mexico and Virginia) that have declared themselves to be “Sanctuary Counties” in regards to the Second Amendment. Look for more things like that.
That’s important. Plus the fact that the coalition that makes up the Obama restoration is horribly inept. I can easily see them screw things up as they try to make America North Venezuela. The BLM religion will burn itself out but not before taking more victims in the public and private sectors.
Things never work out according to a neat trajectory. Even evil tends to mitigate its awfulness after awhile.
Still, it’s gonna suck.
George,
Older than you, I dream of an America more beautiful than the one you recall. No longer heard,”America First,” the nightmare begins. Even though God is good, I am discouraged.
It is simple. One side consists of patriots who are clinging to American ideals of bygone days. The other side consists of venomous Marxists.
I think civil war is inevitable.
Patriarch Kirill congratulates venomous Marxist on election victory:
https://mospat.ru/en/2020/12/15/news189134/
“Patriarch Kirill congratulates venomous Marxist on election victory:”
The word “congratulations” is indeed used, but reading between the lines, it is “please don’t persecute Russians and Russian Orthodox in your country” and “please don’t nuke us, bro.” In fact, read carefully, and you’ll notice the English idiom, “damning with faint praise” applies, or in this case, zero praise.
He is badly advised.
“Mr. Biden appears to be a devout Roman Catholic, but he advocates for positions that deviate from the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. In particular, he is in favor of abortion, sex reassignment surgery, including for children. This, of course, can not provoke in us, the faithful of the Orthodox Church, neither support nor sympathy. That is why we want to hope that, if he presents himself as a Christian of the first or second confession, he will follow those moral rules, which are established in this religious confession. In his very first speech at the swearing-in ceremony, Donald Trump clearly defined their priorities. He never hid his religious identity and in his rhetoric he always used Christian terminology. But it is very important that words do not deviate from actions, so that this commitment to Christian values is reflected in the actions of man during his life.”
– The Spokesman for the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow, Head of the Department for Foreign Relations of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow, Orthodox Metropolitan of Volokolamsk Hillarion.
The opening line should have been : “Although Mr. Biden may claim to be a devout Roman Catholic … “
Advocating abominations like abortion and sex reassignment surgery, including for children , makes Biden appear to be a devout Satanist.
Ugh.
Disappointing to read a PC congratulations to an elected official with a profoundly anti-Orthodox agenda. Less sickeningly obsequious than AE’s and PB’s at least.
Comparing the subtle shifts of language between the letter Patriarch Kyrill sent to Donald Trump on his election in 2016 versus Joe Biden in 2020 is interesting. As hierarch of a large religion he does have a diplomatic obligation to let the U.S. President know he’s praying for him, and what the hopes are for a relationship. While the templates are similar and are likely used for every election around the world, I found nuanced differences in the two letters. There was genuine goodwill and friendly openness in the letter to President Trump, but really kind of a diplomatic almost secular drawing of the line for Biden, making it clear that the Orthodox in America are Patriarch Kyrill’s people and America had better be nice to them. Here are both letters.
9/11/2016, Patriarch Kyrill to President-elect Donald TrumpDear Mr. Trump,Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on your election as President of the United States of America. The choice made by the American people is a sign of their great trust in you and of the hope they pin on you for the development of the country and for the changes both in domestic policy and foreign affairs.Over many years of your intensive work you have gained wide experience that will help you deal with the matters pertaining to the life of the state and society, as well as to the cooperation with other countries.The world is facing serious challenges today, and the United States of America have an important role to play in responding to them. It is only through the concerted efforts that people can oppose extremism and terrorism and defend the fundamental values of the lofty moral ideals, upon which the human rights and dignity are based.It is my hope that the long-standing relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the United States of America will continue to develop for the benefit of our peoples united by the common history and by the Christian values.I wish you strength, God’s help and every success in your future lofty and important ministry.Yours faithfully, +KIRILL 12/15/20, Patriarch Kyrill to Joe BidenDear Mr. Biden,Please accept my congratulations on your election as President of the United States of America.The world today is in greater need of stability and security, as well as the constructive interstate cooperation aimed at tackling various problems of extremism and terrorism, regional armed conflicts, economic justice, and environmental protection. I believe that the interaction between our countries and peoples, based on historical experience, can make a significant contribution to seeking effective responses to the present-day global challenges.The Russian Orthodox Church considers interfaith and intercultural dialogue to be an important instrument for promoting mutual respect, neighbourliness, and accord in society. We express our willingness to work together with the authorities of the United States of America in this sphere.For a long time now, emigrants from the countries of the Moscow Patriarchate’s canonical responsibility have been living and working in the United States. Many of them are Orthodox Christians who receive pastoral care from our Church’s Patriarchal parishes in your country, as well as the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. I hope that the American authorities will be attentive to the religious needs of the Russian-speaking flock.I wish you good health and wisdom in decision-making, and I wish peace and welfare to the citizens of the United States of America.Yours respectfully, +KIRILL
Dear Ms. Hall:
Thank you for posting. I do appreciate the nuances and agree about the difference in tone and it is helpful to see them side by side!
Nonetheless it is disappointing to see the PC nature of this post which reads more like a politician and less like an Orthodox spiritual leader.
“Congratulations” as if presumptive President-Elect Biden (PPEB) has won fairly and squarely? Surely there is another word or phrase that carries an implicit message about the honor and responsibility of the office he is assuming (through whatever means).
Patriarch Kyrill (PK) wishes for the PPEB (as opposed to “prays for”?) “good health and wisdom in decision-making” and for our citizens “ peace and welfare to the citizens of the United States of America”.
I personally pray that PK will extend his “hope that the American authorities will be attentive to the religious needs of the Russian-speaking flock” of the Orthodox Church to his “prayer that the American authorities will be attentive to the religious needs of all Orthodox Christians” at a bare minimum. As one of those English-speaking folks now in ROCOR and not covered by PK’s “hope”!
Given PB’s sad state, PK’s words are most important now for our Church and religious freedom worldwide. However, perhaps now is the time I am supposed to learn not to put my trust in men of any rank but in the All Holy Trinity and the Holy Fathers and our Tradition and all who live and teach it courageously. Thank you for prompting that realization Ms. Hall.
??☦️
Nicole
Well, not quite. Venomous Marxists there are, but even they hate Joe Biden. Do not forget the third side that benefits from the left vs right narrative. People like our alien overlord himself, Mark Zuckerburg, who evidently spent a half billion dollars buying election officials this past election.
Well, then there should be a fourth side to counter the first three.
Support the interests of those who support Orthodoxy and Orthodox nations.
America doesn’t do that—and never really has if we want to be honest with ourselves.
The Orthodox Church has, for the most part, been a little known entity in the United States. It has been more of a chaplaincy for immigrants. When it gets past this stage and begins to be a missionary church it might make a difference. Part of the problem is that where the immigrants came from it was the only church not one among many.
That’s America’s problem–not the problem of those of us whose forebears hail from one of those countries.
Let’s take situations where the numbers are comparable in terms of the number of American adherents. Let’s see how those interests compare…
The US has no problem advocating–almost unconditionally–for Israeli (read: Jewish) interests, to the point of undermining the interests of her own.
The US has no problem advocating extremist Muslim movements in countries where Orthodox suffer because of it–to pacify terrorists in order to have some kind of evidence that allows us to say, “We’re on your side.” That always seems to bite this country in the ass 10 or 20 years down the road.
Let’s face it, the Orthodox occupy the lowest tier of the totem pole. And you take any situation where the Orthodox are involved and the Americans intervene…they always advocate for those whose interests collide with the safety and security of our people.
Sadly concur, Johann Sebastian. The Ukraine is one area in which both Republicans and Democrats have utterly the wrong response. If DJT were to resume office in 2021, that travesty might be corrected. It’s a humbling time. I am grateful for Fr Seraphim Rose’s Orthodox Survival Course recordings from the 1970’s. He analyzes trends from the beginning of Christianity to the present with brilliance and faithfulness to the Patristic tradition. And at least it is good to understand how we “got here”, as sad as “here” is. Better than blindly suffering in the dark. Lots to pray for for healing and enlightenment and lots to repent for individually and collectively. Your prayers please.
But do they hate Kamala? Joe is not the main event.
Yes, they hate her. They hated her in California. She is an empty suit. Watch Jimmy Dore or read the Grayzone to see what real leftists actually think. Woke is not left. It is authoritarian.
Dear Ben David:
I believe you! They are the most authoritarian/Marxist/atheist etc.
Would you mind replying to summarize the order in and volume with which they hate the following using > or >> or >>> signs? I am trying to cut down on my upsetting reading time. Many thanks if you will:
Bernie Joe Kamala DJT
What the Establishment did is destroy populism. First, they went after left populism by getting rid of Bernie. Then when he was out of the way, they got rid (?) of right populism by jiggering the election to Joe’s favor.
It’s an effective, but short-sighted strategy. Long term there are problems for the Establishment however.
Don’t be fooled. The venomous Marxists chose Biden very intentionally. He is a puppet for their machinations…unless of course they 25th Amendment him…then they will have one of their very own in the highest office.
I am a civil servant working in the national security sector, and all the federal employees I know are just middle class Americans, who fall all across the religious and political spectrum, struggling to get by. In my line of work, people can still lose life and limb on assignment, and we almost went into foreclosure when I had to change assignments and move the family during the housing market fiasco of 2008. Like most Americans, federal employees in general are sick of the divisiveness and of Americans demonizing each other and are hoping that this nation can find common ground and common sense again. I’m wondering what you thought of our fellow Orthodox Rod Dreher’s coverage of the Jericho March in The American Conservative?
Mrs DK, thank you for your service.
My point is this: while I am sure that there are thousands of good, decent and honest patriots working in the Federal bureaucracy, the fact remains that when organs of that bureaucracy actively subverted the duly elected President, these good, decent and honorable people did and said nothing. Perhaps you couldn’t do or say anything. But that’s the point, the fact that for whatever reason, you and your compatriots could say or do nothing.
What good things has the Federal government done recently? The attack at Waco? Ruby Ridge? The whole WMD thing? The destruction of Libya and Syria? Benghazi? We now have open-air slave markets in Tripoli. How is slavery a good thing? The non-enforcement of our borders so that now ordinary Americans are terrorized by thugs? And I mean, raped, tortured and murdered?
It is through this prism that those of us who are in the private sector view the entire bureaucracy. Is it fair? Probably not, but as Gail wrote several months ago, “the fair is in Pomona”. Unless and until the good people in the bureaucracy stand up and demand an accounting from these malefactors, then all government workers will be tarred with this same brush.
Forgive me. I know there are good people therein. I’m sure that you’re one of them. But unless things change (and pretty quick), more and more ordinary people living in the hinterlands will continue to view the entire Federal apparatus as an enemy.
I know it’s irrelevant, but I’m told Pomona (California) was an exceptionally nice town once-upon-a-time. Then the ’70s came, and it was all downhill from there.
George, who do you think sustains the bureaucracy you rail against–I do, you do, each of us.
Also are you going to address Rod Dreher’s commentary on the Jericho March? A scathing commentary of the Protestant slice (the organisers) that depicted it as unhinged and unChristian.
His description horrified me and, if he was accurate, the March was worse than useless.
Michael, if what you’re saying in your first sentence ia correct (and it is), then isn’t it incumbent upon Christians to make things better?
George, It depends on what you mean by “make things better”. The only way I have ever found to do that is to allow God to change me through repentance, guarding my heart and dealing with the various logismoi that I have. http://anothercity.org/are-you-drowning-in-your-own-stream-of-consciousness-logismoi-and-how-to-cope-with-them/
Political action does not help. It often makes things worse.
When I allow God to change me, everybody to whom I am connected changes too.
That is what I have seen in my own life and in my study of history as well. Have you read Henry Adams’ “The Law of Phase as Applied to History”?
I did not know you are a progressive George.
Pretty accurate observation of the Capital City. End of Empire feel for sure, much like the UK from 1947 on or even Rome at the end.
The problem is their are no pillars left to support the Republic. Schools, churches, family structure, the 3 branches of government, military, law enforcement, the roles of men and women-masculinity and femininity, Boy and Girl Scouts (even), sports at all levels–have been corrupted and eaten by Godless Socialist-Marxist termites. The pillars are collapsing, there are no giant figures currently or on the horizon. Who upholds the Republic and it’s ethos?
There is a slight hope in the combat veterans now in office and those seeking office. If they got to a critical mass of 100 or more, they might be an effective protector of our values and institutions. But that’s a long shot and a Hail Mary move. They’d all have to act in concert.
Then, there’s the relentless assault of China, Russia, and most of Islam on all our parts. Since we can’t define and protect ourselves internally, how do we cope with the external threats?
We had one Disrupter, flawed as he is, stand in the way of all this. But the mobs of rats and termites ran him off, so what’s next? Not anything good, I can assure you.
We’re done. China is using CRISPR to engineer super soldiers. China turned on a device hotter than the center of the sun. The gay frogs have been replaced by living robot frogs.
This is not about the US, or China, or Isreal — it’s the technology. It will soon escape the control of whatever international cabal invented it.
Covid has changed everything, not because Covid is particularly dangerous — but because synthetic viruses are real, and as of last year, we’ve got to get used to them.
My.02. Keep fasting. Take good care of the widows and orphans, of each other and of yourselves.
https://americanmilitarynews.com/2020/12/chinas-testing-biologically-enhanced-super-soldiers-on-their-own-troops-says-dni-ratcliffe/?fbclid=IwAR0O2RMAmQP6x2aQZCAn5Savs_a3QSx0cgIUwzLSUxrnjcpTSpmpBhIeiZ8
https://phys.org/news/2020-12-china-nuclear-powered-artificial-sun.html?fbclid=IwAR2UrkCbhFn-eSe20XohBGkZrx7fXk-EHVy_41LGdsK_SH1FhhEfmXDHQPg
https://www.investopedia.com/understanding-chinas-digital-yuan-5090699
https://www.discovermagazine.com/technology/part-robot-part-frog-xenobots-are-the-first-robots-made-from-living-cells?fbclid=IwAR3YqtuVum0LTH392ZSconN4bb1u2TfGL07m9if69CgOEUos-w6St3FYmMo
Michelle, there are a lot of natural substances that strengthen the human body to fight off viruses. Just three I know of: Elderberry, vitamin D, Holy Basil. The elderberry is the most difficult to obtain but (shameless plug) Wyldewood Cellars Winery has the best elderberry juice available call 316-554-9463 x203 you can order it from my wife and my son will ship it to you. Punch in the extension as soon as the phone allows.
The guide Nicole has given links to has many more options.
Our biggest enemy spiritually and culturally is fear.
Thank you for the gentle reminder and for the health tips, Michael. I am clearly still working on being more careful with my words.
I do not know whether it is moral or immoral to share one’s fears with others. It’s probably best to contextualize things if one is to share.
I should clarify that I do not think Covid is a synthetic illness. Rather, I think some governments overreacted because of an awareness that synthetic viruses exist, and because this particular virus escaped from the Wuhan lab, where synthetic viruses are made and stored. It could have been one.
It’s hard to blame China for technology made in the USA. That goes for synthetic viruses, CRISPR, and probably most things we’ll hear about over the next 10 years.
I do indeed think that we are headed toward a global war, with an atheist “East” on the one side and a united Christian / Jewish / Muslim “West” on the other, complete with all the nightmarish tech we’ve seen come to light this year and more. Israel’s Sanhedrin and the 70 Nations will of course replace the UN and there will be “peace.” Who knows how many generations or decades it will take to arrive at this point?
I thought long and hard about what the Church might do if these times of trouble come while we are still alive. I’ve concluded that I really do appreciate the live streaming services. We should probably spend less time recording our words online and more time writing each other letters and calling each other on the phone.
Thank you for the number and for the elderberry suggestion. I do very much appreciate it. It’s on my grocery list 😉
St. Michael … pray to God for us!
Michelle, if we cannot share our fears to some degree, we have no humanity. BUT, fear can become its own virus spreading and infecting others. We have to guard our hearts. By Grace, I made up my mind early on to not fall into fear either about the virus or the politics.
There are good antidotes for fear in the Church that have no bad side effects.
I hope you enjoy the elderberry. A couple of ounces straight from the bottle or shot glass is quite refreshing… and do not forget Psalm 104: “….wine maketh glad the heart of man.”
We have a small stuffed lamb that we have conversations with about all sorts of things. Lambie is an inveterate optimist. She constantly exhorts my wife and me to joy. After our morning prayers she always shouts: “Its a happy Lambie day!”
The Orthodox version of that is: “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”
May the joy of the Lord lift up your heart, heal your soul and give you peace. And so may it be for everyone here.
Hi Michelle,
With you about communication. In addition to snailmail, both Protonmail for encrypted email and the Signal app for encrypted text/cell phone calls/video calls between users are likely wise, especially after January 21.
For Orthodox encouragement (and encouragement about Orthodoxy) I love Abbot Tryphon. His latest especially: “The Light of Christ dispels the Darkness”
https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/morningoffering/2020/12/darkness-and-light-2/
?☦️?
Nicole, I read the Abbot daily. You are right. He always has a word. God grant him many more years.
This the day the Lord has made. Let us tejouce and be glad in it.
Great suggestions, Nicole, thank you.
I sent the AAPS PDF you cited to my mother a few days ago. Thank you for that, too.
I am so glad Michelle. Thanks for sharing…
The cracks in the whitewash that the corporate media and CCP are trying to pull over the country’s eyes are growing.
It’s almost only one month before the “impending inauguration of Biden/Harris” on Jan. 20th, yet the warm, pleasant, female California Senator who honorably earned all of her positions, based on pure merit (wink, wink), still has not resigned her Senate seat. Why not?
Creepy Joe holds a disastrous 10-min “news conference” the other day (where he takes no questions) and during which he whiningly tries to convince half of the country that he is “legitimately elected.” The only ones buying this schtick are the echo chamber of D.C., the corporate media, and its viewers (all of these amount to only 5-10 million people, tops).
Multiple recent intel leaks have occurred in the past couple of days indicating that the intel community knows damn well that the presidential election was compromised by widespread fraud, both with mail-in ballots and with the voting machines being used to achieve a desired result.
Dominion CEO Mr Poulos (sad to say, a Greek-American) blatantly lies on the witness stand in Michigan when he talks about his voting machines. But that’s the point — it’s not like anyone thought he would tell the truth — the goal was to get his official position on the record, to be used later against him and the company.
It seems that the leftists and the corporate media/CCP/Dems may be out-gamed, yet again. We shall see.
Surprisingly, I have been intuiting something along these same lines as yourself. For one thing, I cannot for the life of me wonder why CNN and FOX, now –finally–is seeing fit to talk about the Hunter Biden laptop things. Folks, that’s explosive anyway you cut it.
I see two possibilities: 1) the Trumpist one, in which things will get so bad that on Jan 6, there will be a clamor in the Congress to not certify the electoral votes, or 2) the Deep State option, in which the DS is greasing the skids to get rid of Creepy Joe within 3 months (aneurysm, 25th Amendment, etc.).
In this latter scenario, he will be replaced by Kamala and the Veep spot will go to John Kerry. (Or if “reconciliation” is needed, Mitt Romney.)
There’s also this things being brought up about “Dr” Jill Biden. It makes her look ridiculous and by extension Joe.
You failed to mention another new national religion – that of Gaia worship. Her high feast day is Earth Day and according to Nancy Pelosi – a good Catholic girl – she’s mad at us.
George, you did not merely “attend”, but were a featured speaker!
On my Superbowl question, just found the answer: apparently just the frontline heroes they invite to honor will “have” to be vaccinated…
Even Joe Biden made fun of his wife “doctorate”:
https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/matt-margolis/2020/12/17/flashback-joe-biden-mocked-his-wife-for-wanting-to-be-called-doctor-n1216867
Just a note: St Moses, the Black is one turn to in these times. I just hung an icon of him and I have never experienced the presence through an icon quite like it. Command and peace, strength and love. Blessed, St. Moses the Black pray for us.
http://anothercity.org/orthodox-responses-to-the-nihilism-of-cultural-revolution-self-destruction-and-social-division/
A wonderful and sober antidote.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/teachers-at-posh-nyc-school-release-8-page-anti-racism-manifesto-sparks-uproar-report
Apparently it has almost gotten to the point that if a white person breathes it is racist misappropriation of air. The only way to not be racist is for all white folks to self-terminate.
Schoolicide…