February 2001 Vol.4, No. 2

Contents Quake in Gujarat: Foretaste of the Future?    by Matthew Fenchel Germany and Russia-Shifting Balance of Power    by Melvin Rhodes When the Angel Leaves the Storm    by Darris McNeely In Brief...World News Review    by Cecil E. Maranville This is the Way...Sharing the Front Porch    by Robin Webber When the Angel Leaves the Storm In his inauguration, George W. Bush referred to an observation by a founding father that an angel was directing the storm surrounding the United States. Today, the storm is here, but is the angel? by Darris McNeely Historians would record that the day dawned cold and bleak that January morning. The black limousines carrying the president and president-elect crept slowly through the wet streets with headlights on at midday. Along the route protestors registered their complaints over the election outcome. According to law, at noon the peaceful transfer of power took place and George W. Bush became the 42nd successor to George Washington. His speech contained a pledge to unify the fractured country and drew appropriate applause. Near the end, he referred to an observation from a founding father at the time of the American Revolution. Virginia statesman John Page wrote to Thomas Jefferson soon after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, "We know the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong. Do you not think an angel rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm?" The new president concluded, "This work continues. This story goes on. And an angel still rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm." Some thought the quote seemed lost and little noticed at the end of the speech. By four o'clock, it was dark again. For two hundred years, America has been blessed by the presence of that metaphorical angel watching over its growth into the most powerful and prosperous single nation in world history. Has it come to the time when the angel's presence might vanish, leaving the country to the violent winds of time and history? How can one know the outcome of this critical period in history? Does history provide a parallel to help see the future outcome? The context for understanding America in the 21st century is found in the story of its ancient forefathers, the nation of Israel-specifically Israel and Judah of the middle eighth century B.C. The similarities between Israel of that period, split into two countries, and America today are both striking and instructive. The story is best understood as it is told in the words and through the eyes of the prophets sent by God to waken the nation from its sins and transgression of the covenant. The context The united nation of Israel had been split into separate sister nations after the death of Solomon. The northern 10 tribes had formed a separatist government in the north with its capital at Samaria. Jerusalem, the traditional capital since the days of David, remained the seat of power for the nation of Judah. Israel had existed for roughly five hundred years in its land. Though she had suffered internal strife, periodic incursions from smaller nations and a civil war that split the nation, she continued to survive. "No empire had existed that had been in a position to trouble her deeply and permanently. As a result, she had never known an emergency that she had not in some way been able to master, and so to survive" (A History of Israel, John Bright, p. 269). Israel in the mid-eighth century B.C. survived in a Middle East power vacuum. Babylon had yet to pull itself together into the great empire to come. Assyria was still a small cloud on the horizon and Egypt had relinquished its influence this far from its homeland. Israel and Judah still stood as a regional influence in a pivotal geographic spot. Jeroboam II In 786 B.C., a new king, Jeroboam II, came to the throne of Israel. He reigned for 41 years. During his time, Israel saw a resurgence of power and wealth that bear striking similarities to 21st century America. We have a brief record of him in the book of 2 Kings. "In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, became king in Samaria, and reigned forty-one years. And he did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. He restored the territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath (today in Syria) to the Sea of the Arabah (the Dead Sea), according to the word of the LORD God of Israel, which He had spoken through His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from Gath Hepher. For the LORD saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter; and whether bond or free, there was no helper for Israel" (2Kings 14:23-26). Jeroboam was a strong leader whose campaigns extended the borders of Israel to match that of Solomon's reign. He ejected the Moabites and Ammonites from the territory and kept others at bay to restore Israel to a point of regional dominance. Similarly, to the south, Uzziah, the king of Judah, brought Judah to a position of strength that further stabilized the region, allowing trade to flow throughout the Middle East. Taken together, the two nations achieved a level of power, peace and prosperity unknown since the time of Solomon. Ancient period of globalization During this period, the major trade routes up and down the Mediterranean coast were opened and allowed freedom of transport for goods to flow from Africa into the Middle East and Asia. As caravans passed through Israel, tolls were exacted, which poured wealth into the country. It is likely that oceangoing trade again played a major role in the creation of wealth. Ships from Tyre and beyond could go through the Mediterranean. The Red Sea opened possibilities of trade further south into Africa. In Judah, the cities grew with wealth and people. Archaeological evidence shows that citizens overflowed the walls of their cities, and the population spread southward into the desert. Uzziah, Judah's king at this time, replicated the advances of the north. He opened trade routes to the south, expanded the frontier boundaries to the west and as far south as Elath on the Red Sea (2Kings 14:22). The middle-class citizen of Israel and Judah was better off than he had ever been at any time before. It was a euphoric period of optimism. "All this resulted in a prosperity such as no living Israelite could remember" (Bright, p. 259). With this economic boom, new and bigger buildings arose. The finest of furnishings filled these homes and businesses. It is likely that Israel was trading with every significant nation on earth at that time. A rich merchant class developed. Venture capitalists made a lot of money, and made it very quickly. What we see is an ancient form of "globalization." Israel outwardly professed belief in God, but there remained at the core the pagan cult of Baal. The name Baal was so prevalent that records show many men took the name Baal to form part of their own. "A great gulf separated the rich and the poor. Trade was good; architecture and the arts flourished; but fundamentally the revival was unsound and could not last" (Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, "Jeroboam II," p. 842). In Israel there was great confidence in God and the future of the nation. This prosperity was interpreted, wrongly, as a sign of God's favor. They failed to understand their duty and obligation to God under the covenant. Instead of using a period of freedom and prosperity to acknowledge God, examine their way and repent of transgressions, Israel drifted further from the true faith and corrupted the worship practices God had given them. The same situation exists today. While America experiences unrivaled prosperity and freedom, it fails to understand the true source of its blessings. Americans think that their wisdom and ingenuity have achieved greatness. But in truth, the United States inherited the birthright, as God promised to Abraham and his descendants. In walks Amos Yet all was not so good for affluent Israel. Just as we can look around us today and see beyond the outward signs of prosperity, so it was in Israel. The northern nation was in a state of decay. The good times were about to end. What was thought to be unending wealth was but a final revival before the fall. It was during this prosperous period that the prophet Amos strode into Israel's capital city, Samaria, with a warning message that goes to the seat of political and religious power. Amos finds a nation awash in a sea of lies. Everywhere he looks, he finds untruth, injustice and inequity. Under the veneer of stability and prosperity, he finds a decaying structure on the verge of collapse. Amos was not a traditional religious figure. Like his contemporary Hosea and others, he felt a unique and divine call to deliver a message to the nation. Because he was outside the mainstream, he could speak to the heart of the problem without feeling defensive about any previous experience. He was not defending a position, but rather merely speaking the truth. Spiritual truth was gone. Jezebel had introduced the cult of Baal and its corrupting influence remained. It transformed the truth of God into a system that hid Israel's identity as God's special covenant people. "Thus says the LORD: 'For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept His commandments. Their lies lead them astray, lies which their fathers followed'" (Amos 2:4). Those who spoke the truth were ridiculed and marginalized within society. "They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks uprightly. Therefore, because you tread down the poor and take grain taxes from him, though you have built houses of hewn stone, yet you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink wine from them. For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: afflicting the just and taking bribes; diverting the poor from justice at the gate" (Amos 5:10-12). Let's look more closely at the problems he addressed. Disparity between the rich and poor The wealth produced by the strong economy was not evenly distributed. The economic tide tends to lift all boats, but some boats displace more water than others. There was a gap between rich and poor with its attendant social problems. "Thus says the LORD: 'For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals. They pant after the dust of the earth which is on the head of the poor, and pervert the way of the humble. A man and his father go in to the same girl, to defile My holy name'" (Amos 2:6-7). The state did not properly address the social inequity and provide for the basic needs of people. Periodic and localized drought could throw many off the farms and into bankruptcy from which there was no hope of redress. "'Also I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities. And lack of bread in all your places; yet you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD. 'I also withheld rain from you, when there were still three months to the harvest. I made it rain on one city, I withheld rain from another city. One part was rained upon, and where it did not rain the part withered. So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water, but they were not satisfied; yet you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD. "'I blasted you with blight and mildew. When your gardens increased, your vineyards, your fig trees, and your olive trees, the locust devoured them; yet you have not returned to Me,' says the LORD" (Amos 4:6-9). Here are described times of drought which might put a farmer into bankruptcy. Over the past 20 years, America has seen a decline in small family farms. Witness the popularity of "Farm Aid," a series of musical concerts that raised money for farmers who lost their land. American agriculture has been transformed in the past 75 years. Mega-farms utilize modern technology to keep supermarket shelves abundantly supplied. But it is not just a question of the food supply-it is important to understand what the system has spawned. Amos understood that the basis of the nation was broken and changed beyond repair. They had rejected God's way of life. Originally, God had placed within Israel a system and way of life that would preserve His law and truth from generation to generation. There was strength in the core family unit. Society would grow with the family, and families would take care of one another within their ability. The key to this was the law of the Jubilee (Leviticus 25), a 50-year reset button designed to keep families intact along with the inherent values that come from properly functioning units of a nuclear family. Amos understood that in the homes of the farmers, tradesmen and small town merchants, the truth of God was preserved and passed on from one generation to another. This was the major change from the earlier period of the judges. At that time, the social structure had been more unified. Now, it had broken up and been reformed into a more urban, class-differentiated system. "The rise of the monarchy, with the attendant organization of life under the crown, had transferred the effective basis of social obligation to the state and, together with the burgeoning of commercial activity, had created a privileged class, weakened (family) ties and destroyed the solidarity characteristic of tribal society" (Bright, p. 260). God said this would happen when the Israelites wanted to radically alter their government and place a king over themselves. Look at the recent presidential campaign. Social Security was a major issue. Insuring that the nation's retirement program for seniors stays solvent for the coming rush of "baby boomers" is a priority item for the nation. It will continue to be in coming years. Education reform is another major issue facing the new administration. America's public schools need help, but the answer is not just more money. America's families need help too. No amount of money will fix some of the systemic ills afflicting families. Health care and abortion are major problems in the nation to which there are no easy answers. Together, they pose a major challenge-some may even say a threat to the stability of our present culture. The multicultural utopia Israel had another issue that threatened to unravel its society. The problem afflicts its modern descendants, the British and American peoples, as well. It is the issue of multiculturalism-many peoples living within the same borders and under the same flag. Israel had always had within its midst those who were not native born Israelites. When they left Egypt, it appears that even some non-Israelites went with then. When they entered Canaan, they were instructed by God to move out all non-Israelite peoples, but they allowed some to remain and mix with them. There was good reason for God's instruction within the context of His purpose for the nation and His overall plan for mankind. Through the years, there had also been immigration. Ruth is one example. The key to making it all work had been the strict rules that there was one law, one way, one culture for all: "One law shall be for the native-born and for the stranger who dwells among you" (Exodus 12:49). However, over time the immigration of non-Israelites had changed the balance of society. Instead of adopting the culture of their new homeland, they brought with them beliefs and ways that steadily weakened the structures of traditional Israelite society. A mixture of religious beliefs, languages and cultural standards had transformed Israel into a nation of distinctions rather than a unified system. Notice what Hosea described, "Ephraim has mixed himself among the peoples; Ephraim is a cake unturned. Aliens have devoured his strength, but he does not know it; yes, gray hairs are here and there on him, yet he does not know it" (Hosea 7:8-9). Recently released statistics suggest that the United States is losing its historic ability to assimilate people from diverse cultural and political backgrounds into the fabric of its representative republic. Of the 275 million people comprising the current U.S. population, nearly 1 in every 10 was born outside the country. Consider the language issue. Increasingly controversial measures to legislate or to deny bilingual education resound in states with large Hispanic populations. Some 6.5 million people speak little English, while 17.3 million speak exclusively Spanish. The recent U.S. presidential election campaign demonstrably illustrated the need to reach out to and include the sizable block of Hispanic voters. A "Trojan horse" Unnoticed by most people was Executive Order #13166, signed on August 11, 2000, by former President Bill Clinton, which took a significant step toward turning America into a multilingual nation. The order requires all federal programs using federal funds to guarantee that "language barriers" do not "exclude" non-English speakers from "participation" in all "benefits and services." The order applies to any foreign language in America where enough immigrants would petition the government for recognition. This order now places foreign language rights on a par with civil rights, a first for the nation. Columnist Georgie Ann Geyer reported this action in her syndicated column. She called the order "a Trojan horse rolled into the citadel of American Society." Immigration during the years of nation-building for the United States was chiefly from European nations and other Anglo-Saxon peoples. However, a fundamental shift is underway that portends political and cultural changes in years to come. Within the next 50 years, African-Americans, Hispanics and Asian-Americans will become the majority population. Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher labels multicultural efforts as an act of "devolution," which is moving the British and American peoples toward "a system in which the government presides over a number of different social groups, some of which have their own language and type of education. This approach undermines social unity and allows construction of a multicultural society which is the very opposite of America's previous practice" (speech before the Hudson Institute, www.worldtribune.com). America has historically been tolerant of immigrants seeking to join its melting pot. The key to its status, described in the phrase e pluribus unum, was the unified culture built upon one language and a culture of patriotism and loyalty to a unique idea of freedom. Like prophetic Ephraim, America may not see its gray hairs until it is too late. The 2000 election revealed a significant cultural divide. Amos looked at the state of Israel in the mid-eighth century B.C. and saw there was little to salvage. The moral and ethical condition of the state was precarious. In his summation, Amos saw the Lord standing by the altar and pronouncing a fierce judgment from which few would escape. There would be judgment on the nation that turned from the covenant (Amos 9:1-4). Yet, there was hope. Israel would be restored! Israel would not be destroyed. Amos shows that God will again restore Israel to a place among the nations. Waste cites would be rebuilt and captivity and destruction are promised to never happen again (Amos 9:8-15). The promise of Israel, as a nation setting the example of God's way to the world, will be fulfilled. There is a literal angel, Michael, "Öwho stands watch over the sons of your people" (Daniel 12:1). Amos' message applies today to the United States, Britain and other peoples of the world who have sprung from common ancestors. Today's headlines can be found in these prophecies given to Israel more than 2,800 years ago. In part two of this series, we'll look at the divisions confronting America today and the state of its spiritual life. We will see that what Amos said to Israel has come to pass today among the descendants of that ancient people. wnp

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