Episode 434: From Commerce to The Christian Republic – Part 4 – Ezra Stiles

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This week in From Commerce to The Christian Republic, Ezra Stiles gives us details of foundational government, government lead by idolaters, deist or Christians. I finish off this part of ‘Church and State Theological Polity Muddle, by ending Dr. Stiles sermon in which he gives a deep study regarding international history and the great potential positive effects of the full extensibility of Christianity in every aspect of governance. Most Christians or pastors have never heard of any of this.

I am opening this program with a question form a listener and Board Member regarding the third Segment of Episode 429. As it turns out, this is a perfect segue into this weeks program regarding the second section that Stiles is emphasizing, The Christian Republic. Yes, this sermon is a detailed account of American and international history regarding what we now hear as ‘Christian Nationalism.’

Before I get into the opening, It is most important that you hear from the Editor of ‘Pulpits Of The Revolution.’ Dr. Thornton, in his 1876 Preface states:

THE true alliance between Politics and Religion is the lesson inculcated in this volume of Sermons, and apparent in its title, “THE PULPIT OF THE REVOLUTION.” It is the voice of the Fathers of the Republic, enforced by their example. They invoked God in their civil assemblies, called upon their chosen teachers of religion for counsel from the Bible, and recognized its precepts as the law of their public conduct. The Fathers did not divorce politics and religion, but they denounced the separation as ungodly. They prepared for the struggle, and went into battle, not as soldiers of fortune, but, like Cromwell and the soldiers of the Commonwealth, with the Word of God in their hearts, and trusting in him. This was the secret of that moral energy which sustained the Republic in its material weakness against superior numbers, and discipline, and all the power of England. To these Sermons – the responses from the Pulpit – the State affixed its imprimatur, and thus they were handed down to future generations with a two-fold claim to respect.

Therefore, in our Founding Era Christian principled leadership prevailed. Now, at best, deist humanism prevails, even with the Evangelicals in politics, bureaucracies, judiciary and business.

I wonder, how many pulpits are really full of deist¹ masquerading as Evangelicals? Worse, for the most part, modern pulpits are not even a clouded remote reflection of the comments by Dr. Thornton regarding ‘The Pulpit Of The Revolution.

Opening ‘Comments

Continuing with the Referenced Sermon pdf, starting on page 19 and then after detailing the economic value, growth and abilities of the newly formed States, Stiles goes on to give great homage to George Washington and other foundational leaders, including Samuel Adams. He even gives details on American inventions and inventors.

Then, as Dr. Stiles moves into Section II of the sermon, he sets the presupposition for the best form of government, that is even beneficial for secularists. He knows the unregenerate human heart and mind in governing as with:

A general spirit reigns against the most liberal and generous establishments in religion; against the civil magistrates encouraging or having anything more to do about religion than to keep the civil peace among contending sects: as if this was all that is to be done for religion by the friends of Jesus.

This is a timely description of modern politicians, bureaucrats and business leaders. Yet Stiles goes on to express how most use religion in their mechanisms of governing, which hold true at this very hour with our elected:

Politicians, indeed, usually consider religion only as it may affect and subserve civil purposes, and hence it is mighty indifferent to them what the state of religion be, provided they can ride in the whirlwind and direct the storm. Nothing is more common than to see them in every country making use of sects, for their own ends, whom they in their hearts despise and ridicule with supreme contempt.

Let me make a dig into your belief system with that last quote, in how all perversions, which are religions, are used by the modern politicians and bureaucrats to fulfill their ideologies.

I’m finishing my opening comments with how the general citizenry is manipulated and fooled by soothe sayers looking to have what they can only pretend to posses.

There is a glory in thy disinterested benevolence which the greatest characters would purchase, if possible, at the expense of worlds, and which may excite indeed their emulation, but cannot be felt by the venal great, who think everything, even virtue and true glory, may be bought and sold, and trace our every action to motives terminating in self–

The Rest of The Story

Consider this quote from page 47 of the Referenced Sermon pdf, just to set the tone and to validate what I have spoken about for years regarding Christians in government.

If men, not merely nominally Christians, but of real religion and sincere piety, joined with abilities, were advanced and called up to office in every civil department, how would it countenance and recommend virtue! But, alas! Is there not too much Laodiceanism in this land? Is not Jesus in danger of being wounded in the house of His friends? No, have we gone already [to] such lengths in declension that, if even the Holy Redeemer Himself and His apostles were to reappear among us, while unknown to be such, and importune the public government and magistracy of these states to become nursing fathers to the church, is it not to be feared that some of the states, through timidity and fearfulness of touching religion, would excuse themselves, and dismiss the holy messengers, the heavenly visitants, with coldness and neglect, [….]?

Over the last one hundred years and to the present, we have had mostly Nominal Christians serving at every level of government and as business leaders. You will read in the sermon that we have the same problems now that were at the foundation of the nation, Weak Pulpits.

The focus of this program is Stiles Point II which begins on page 46.

Having shown wherein consists the prosperity of a state, and what reason we have to anticipate the glory of the American empire, I proceed to show,

II. That her system of dominion must receive its finishing from religion; or, that from the diffusion of virtue among the people of any community would arise their greatest secular happiness; all which will terminate in this conclusion: that holiness ought to be the end of all civil government–“that thou mayest be an holy people unto the Lord thy God.”

With that root established, consider this from Stiles in respect to church and state, my emphasis in italics:

Whenever religion is erected on the ruins of civil government, and when civil government is built on the ruins of religion, both are so far essentially wrong. The church has never been of any political detriment here, for it never has been vested with any civil or secular power in New England, although it is certain that civil dominion was but the second motive, religion the primary one, with our ancestors in coming hither and settling this land. It was not so much their design to establish religion for the benefit of the state, as civil government for the benefit of religion, and as subservient and even necessary towards the peaceable enjoyment and unmolested exercise of religion — of that religion for which they fled to these ends of the earth. An institution is not made for the laws, but the laws for the institution. I am narrating a historical fact, not giving a position or principle which by shrewd politicians may be abused to justify spiritual tyranny, and to support the claims of the pontificate over all the civil states, kingdoms, and empires in Christendom.

Sam Adams Wisdom

Defers to Dr. Rev. Stiles’ sermon.

Thank you to all who are subscribers to the program. Please share the newsletter and subscribe to the Rumble or YouTube channel.

References:

1. Ezra Stiles, The United States Elevated to Glory and Honor (1783) – Belcher Foundation

2. Don’t Let The ‘Christian Nationalist’ Slur Shame You Into Hiding Your Faith

3. Anti-christian Idolatry: Not Content To Topple Monuments, The Left Erects Anti-Monuments

4. What Is Deism? Ligonier Editorial

5. Deism – the Basics of Philosophy

This Weeks News Articles Resources

1. Presidents Day: 5 Presidents Who Warned Against Mass Immigration

2. Appeals Court Upholds Ruling Striking Down NYC Voting Rights for Foreigners

3. Joe Biden Cancels Student Loan Debt for ~153K Borrowers

4. Hemingway: Biden’s Senility Has Been A Problem Since At Least 2017, According To Special Counsel

5. How Leftists Neuter Religious Conservatives With The ‘Christian Nationalist’ Smear

6. The CBO Revised The Cost Of Biden’s Energy Policies Up By $466 Billion

7. GOP Lawmaker Demands Congress Must “Take Action” Against NGOs Facilitating Border Invasion

8. Elon Musk Is Right And The NY Times Is Wrong About Illegal Voting By Non-Citizens

9. At Signal, A Revolution in Messaging by Camille François, Thomas Rid

10. “What A Racist Douchenozzle!”: Musk Blasts Woke AI Gemini’s Product Head As Google Halts Image Generation Over Inaccuracies

11. Biden’s $1.7 trillion spending bill passed by Democrats in 2022 is unconstitutional, Texas federal judge rules, opening door to stopping billions in spending.

Referenced in Program:

1. Politico investigative reporter Heidi Przybyla said Thursday on MSNBC’s “All In” that Christian nationalists, not Christians, believe rights come from God. | Clips

2. In Which Heidi Przybyla Shows Us the Way | Doug Wilson

3. Nolte: Man in Rob Reiner’s ‘Christian Nationalist’ Film Isn’t a Christian Nationalist

4. Catholic League: Christian Nationalism Is an Invention of ‘Christian Bashers’

5. Christian Nationalists – Loving Their Neighbor and Loving Their Country Since 1776

Definitions:

MORTGAGE, noun mor’gage.

1. Literally, a dead pledge; the grant of an estate in fee as security for the payment of money, and on the condition that if the money shall be paid according to the contract, the grant shall be void, and the mortgagee shall re-convey the estate to the mortgager. Formerly the condition was, that if the mortgager should repay the money at the day specified, he might then re-enter on the estate granted in pledge; but the modern practice is for the mortgagee, on receiving payment, to reconvey the land to the mortgager. Before the time specified for payment, that is, between the time of contract and the time limited for payment, the estate is conditional, and the mortgagee is called tenant in mortgage; but on failure of payment at the time limited, the estate becomes absolute in the mortgagee. But in this case, courts of equity interpose, and if the estate is of more value than the debt, they will on application grant a reasonable time for the mortgager to redeem the estate. This is called the equity of redemption.

2. The state of being pledged; as lands given in mortgage

3. A pledge of goods or chattels by a debtor to a creditor, as security for the debt.

MORTGAGE, verb transitive mor’gage. To grant an estate in fee as security for money lent or contracted to be paid at a certain time, on condition that if the debt shall be discharged according to the contract, the grant shall be void, otherwise to remain in full force. It is customary to give a mortgage for securing the repayment of money lent, or the payment of the purchase money of an estate, or for any other debt.

1. To pledge; to make liable to the payment of any debt or expenditure.

Already a portion of the entire capital of the nation is mortgaged for the support of drunkards.

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REMIT’TANCE, noun

1. In commerce, the act of transmitting money, bills or the like, to a distant place, in return or payment for goods purchased.

2. The sum or thing remitted in payment.

EFFICA’CIOUS, adjective [Latin efficax, from efficio. See Effect.]

Effectual; productive of effects; producing the effect intended; having power adequate to the purpose intended; powerful

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VIRTUE, noun vur’tu. [Latin virtus, from vireo, or its root. See Worth.] The radical sense is strength, from straining, stretching, extending. This is the primary sense of Latin vir, a man.]

1. Strength; that substance or quality of physical bodies, by which they act and produce effects on other bodies. In this literal and proper sense, we speak of the virtue or virtues of plants in medicine, and the virtues of drugs. In decoctions, the virtues of plants are extracted. By long standing in the open air, the virtues are lost.

2. Bravery valor. This was the predominant signification of virtus among the Romans.

Trust to thy single virtue

[This sense is nearly or quite obsolete.]

3. Moral goodness; the practice of moral duties and the abstaining from vice, or a conformity of life and conversation to the moral law. In this sense, virtue may be, and in many instances must be, distinguished from religion. The practice of moral duties merely from motives of convenience, or from compulsion, or from regard to reputation, is virtue as distinct from religion. The practice of moral duties from sincere love to God and his laws, is virtue and religion. In this sense it is true,

That virtue only makes our bliss below.

VIRTUE is nothing but voluntary obedience to truth.

4. A particular moral excellence; as the virtue of temperance, of chastity, of charity.

Remember all his virtues.

5. Acting power; something efficacious.

Jesus, knowing that virtue had gone out of him, turned – Mark 3:1.

6. Secret agency; efficacy without visible or material action.

She moves the body which she doth possess,

Yet no part toucheth, but by virtue’s touch.

7. Excellence; or that which constitutes value and merit.

– Terence, who thought the sole grace and virtue of their fable, the sticking in of sentences.

8. One of the orders of the celestial hierarchy.

Thrones, dominations, princedoms, virtues, powers.

9. Efficacy; power.

He used to travel through Greece by virtue of this fable, which procured him reception in all the towns.

10. Legal efficacy or power; authority. A man administers the laws by virtue of a commission.

In virtue in consequence; by the efficacy or authority.

This they shall attain, partly in virtue of the promise of God, and partly in virtue of piety.

POL’ITY, noun [Gr.]

The form or constitution of civil government of a nation or state; and in free states, the frame or fundamental system by which the several branches of government are established, and the powers and duties or each designated and defined.

Every branch of our civil polity supports and is supported, regulates and is regulated by the rest.

With respect to their interior polity our colonies are properly of three sorts; provincial establishments, proprietary governments, and charter governments.

This word seems also to embrace legislation and administration of government.

1. The constitution or general fundamental principles of government of any class of citizens, considered in an appropriate character, or as a subordinate state.

Were the whole christian world to revert back to the original model, how far more simple, uniform and beautiful would the church appear, and how far more agreeable to the ecclesiastical polity instituted by the holy apostles.

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LIBID’INOUS, adjective [Latin libidinosus, from libido, lubido, lust, from libeo, libet, lubet, to please, it pleaseth; Eng. love, which see. The root is lib or lub.]

Lustful; lewd; having an eager appetite for venereal pleasure.

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BON’ZE, noun bon’zy.

An Indian priest; a name used in China, Tunkin and the neighboring countries. In China, the Bonzes are the priests of the Fohists, or sect of Fohi. They are distinguished from the laity by their dress. In Japan, they are gentlemen of family. In Tunkin, every pagoda has at least two bonzes belonging to it, and some have thirty or forty. In China, the number of bonzes is estimated at fifty thousand, and they are represented as idle dissolute men.

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DEISM, noun [Latin God.]

The doctrine or creed of a deist; the belief or system of religious opinions of those who acknowledge the existence of one God, but deny revelation: or deism is the belief in natural religion only, or those truths, in doctrine and practice, which man is to discover by the light of reason, independent and exclusive of any revelation from God. Hence deism implies infidelity or a disbelief in the divine origin of the scriptures.