...Even if There is a Virus

We are endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights and among these are life liberty and the pursuit of happiness… even if there is a virus

Our government was established to protect the individual from the overreach of government…. even if there is a virus

When power is divested to the individual he or she has the maximum opportunity to do good within his own circle but his or her ability to do harm to society as a whole is minimized… even if there is a virus

When power is centralized into the hands of a “mastermind” or other government agency the ability to make proper decisions for the individual is minimized but the ability to do great harm is maximized… even if there is a virus

All the way back to Biblical sources the economic bedrock to a free and sustainable economy is the protection of private property… even if there is a virus

Congress shall make no law regarding the establishment of religion nor prohibiting the free exercise thereof… even if there is a virus

Government’s power to help is extremely limited but its power to destroy boundless… even if there is a virus

The greatest threat to American freedom is a government that ignores the constitution (Jefferson) … even if there is a virus

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.(Reagan)…ESPECIALLY IF THERE IS A VIRUS.

Either Government of the people by the people and for the people is proper and right and should not be allowed to perish from this earth now when there is a pandemic, or it never is. Either we stand up and defend freedom now and that the best way forward is through the courage and ingenuity of the individual acting as his own sovereign making his own decisions based on his faith and instinct and the best knowledge he can acquire, or we should just forget the whole thing and declare Dr. Fauci Anthony the First ruler of all the land. If liberty is not right and proper now it never is.

Why I oppose the Mask Mandates as Christian

One question no one has asked me, but that I have asked myself should a Christian resist the mandate to wear a mask in public? It is accepted and correct doctrine that Christians should follow “every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake” except where those laws compel us to violate the doctrines and commandments of Scripture. Since there is no 11^th commandment specifying that Christians should not wear a mask then is it not reasonable to accept that mandate? If the Governor says that everyone should wear a funny hat and speak with a Scottish accent shouldn’t we obey that as well?

As an American It is easy to find sundry and compelling reasons to resist all forms of Government overreach but as strongly and as I stand to support the principles of American founding I kneel only at the Cross of Christ. I recognize as I review my Facebook postings and scroll through my on again off again blogging that I have spent more time and energy speaking to liberty and patriotic causes than speaking to spiritual matters but that is not because I value country above faith it is because I entered these mediums primarily to plead for what I perceive to be the nation’s best and founding principles.

I do not think I can lay out a case on this matter in a way that would sway theologians and scholars but I can lay out my heart.  I am not opposing wearing a mask; I am opposing mandating masks because it is a direct threat to religious liberty. Freedom of worship in the US is based on the basic idea of individual sovereignty. The entirety of our founding document is structured to define the limits of government and protect the rights of the individual. When the government infringes on any right it infringes on all rights, but this isn’t an intellectual or theoretical debate. For my own good the same governor using the same executive fiat has determined that I must wear a mask and has also decided that he has the right to decide if I can go to Church who I can sit with, how the order of worship is to be conducted and how sacraments are to be handled.  Other states are even worse than my own. I resist the mask mandate because it is part of the order attempting to control the Church.

I resist the mandate because it dehumanizes people. To compel an individual to behave in a manor contrary to their own perceived best interest is to make the individual subservient. The basic tenant of Christianity is that God made man a living breathing individual endowed with free will and that God so loved the individual human so greatly and so passionately that He preferred to send His only begotten Son to bring salvation to whosoever would receive this free gift. We cannot devalue the individual without devaluing the faith that gives the individual his or her value in the first place.

I reject mask mandates because they promote fear. It is necessary to create a panic in order to compel people to behave in a self-destructive manner and give up liberty. By rejecting the mask mandate I reject the destructive panic that is far more dangerous than Covid 19. I will probably address this more at a later time.

I do not believe that in any way civil disobedience should be the default position of any Christian, but in some cases it is essential. Was Rosa Parks right or wrong to refuse to move to the back of the bus? No specific commandment was violated by the law and the back of the bus goes to the same place as the front. I suspect some felt that she was in the wrong but the stand she took for the dignity of all individuals has proven to be right.  I believe rejecting the mask mandate will as well.

Why I Support S Marshall Wison

First off let’s be clear S Marshall Wilson will not and cannot save West Virginia. I support him because he knows that is not the governor’s job in the first place.

Jim Justice wants to shelter and protect West Virginians, he wants to feed us and clothe us and keep anyone from ever getting sick. Marshall Wilson knows the difference between an elected public servant and a messiah.

 Jim Justice believes that by making a disaster declaration he has no limits to his power as long as it’s for the public good as designated by his office. S Marshall Wilson understands that the US and state constitutions exist to limit the power of government to specific enumerated powers that do not include ordering the worship services in individual churches, seizing the rights of individuals to govern the use of their own property and make  personal and intimate decisions about health on behalf of 1.7 million WV citizens.

Jim Justice believes that he alone has authority to make law and impose penalties and that executive orders have the full weight of law and therefore refuses to call the legislature into session to give the people’s representatives a voice in the state’s policies related to covid response, restrictions, and spending.  S Marshall Wilson respects the legislative process and understands the importance of oversight especially in a time of crisis.

Jim Justice wants absolute rule, he prefers a velvet glove but will readily use the iron fist if necessary.

S Marshall Wilson understands and believes that the purpose of government is as stated in the Declaration of Independence: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. 

Perhaps you live in a different state but I urge you judge what your governor has done during this pandemic and see how it measures up to the fundamental truth that the declaration states, if health and safety (ie the greater good) has supplanted the protection of inalienable rights as the primary function of government, you need a new governor as badly as WV does. 

Keep on the firing line.