Biblical Reasons NOT To Join
America’s Volunteer Army
Should Christians join the volunteer army or any other branch of the U.S. military? Patrick Henry’s two speeches on the war powers granted Congress raise legitimate questions about the advisability of such a decision.
I don't mean from the standpoint of pacifism -- I was an artillery officer in a former life so I'm not inherently pacifistic. I don’t think you can make a case for pacifism from the Bible, particularly in light of Jesus’ instructions and dealings with the Roman Centurians. Constitutional Reasons
Not To Volunteer I’m talking about motives for enlisting in the volunteer army and the advisability of volunteering to support under arms the kind of government and nation that America has become. This is the kind of government that Patrick Henry warned against under the proposed Constitution. Hear him now:
The American spirit has fled from hence: it has gone to regions where it has never been expected; it has gone to the people of France, in search of a splendid government — a strong, energetic government. What can make an adequate satisfaction to them for the loss they have suffered in attaining such a government — for the loss of their liberty? If we admit this consolidated government, it will be because we like a great, splendid one. Some way or other we must be a great and mighty empire; we must have an army, and a navy, and a number of things. When the American spirit was in its youth, the language of America was different: liberty, sir, was then the primary object. We are descended from a people whose government was founded on liberty: our glorious forefathers of Great Britain made liberty the foundation {54} of every thing. That country is become a great, mighty, and splendid nation; not because their government is strong and energetic, but, sir, because liberty is its direct end and foundation. We drew the spirit of liberty from our British ancestors: by that spirit we have triumphed over every difficulty. But now, sir, the American spirit, assisted by the ropes and chains of consolidation, is about to convert this country into a powerful and mighty empire. Over 200 years later, Presidential candidate Ron Paul raised some related points in the 2008 campaign. What justification does America have for maintaining at enormous expense 1,000 military bases overseas? Even our founding federalists (George Washington) advised against such foreign entanglements. How does America differ from the Roman Empire? Pax Romana -- Pax Americana? Did Christians volunteer to join the Roman Army during the time of the emperors or were they discouraged from doing so -- it's worth studying out I think. Granted we know that military service, per se, is not inherently evil, but is it always advisable, especially to volunteer? Why do young Christian men join the volunteer army? Nothing else to do? Job Training? Glory? Patriotism? Gain maturity? Martial instinct? Free education? Need the money? Is it worth risking one's life to support the Empire that America has become? As Patrick Henry noted above,
Is this really serving the cause of liberty?
Biblical Reasons
Not To Volunteer We need to think carefully about the Biblical basis for joining the volunteer army? The kings of Israel were forbidden from multiplying horses, the most potent engines of offensive warfare in the ancient world. The rebellion against God in I Samuel 8 was centered on the desire for a king who “may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”
Should we be joining the volunteer army to support and defend a nation that consciously
broke covenant with God
in 1787? There is an oath required of every new recruit to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, the very document by which America broke covenant with God. How can a Christian in good conscience volunteer to take this oath of rebellion? Ignorance alone. I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God. Those who think they are enlisting to follow in the footsteps of George Washington's Revolutionary Army of patriots should think more carefully. Washington fought against the despotic mercantilism of the British Empire with its freedom-crushing taxes, tariffs and trade restrictions. America has long since (1865) been recaptured by a virulent form of that very mercantilism with tyranny 100-fold or 1000-fold as great as Britain ever was. It has spread its tentacles everywhere with 1,000 military bases worldwide. Those who enlist to support this regime are playing the part of the British Redcoats during the American Revolution. What but blind patriotism can keep a Christian from grasping this reality. Can I take up arms to defend a nation that now murders babies by the millions? Can I take up arms to defend a nation that is robbing its citizens blind to support its delusions of grandeur? Is it wise to voluntarily place oneself under our current commander in chief? These are questions that should be considered carefully? If you really want to defend freedom, why not participate in a true local militia or police force rather than lock arms with the American Empire? Why not become a foreign missionary?
Patrick Henry revealed his fear and hatred (yes hatred) of the proposed U.S. Constitution
in the Virginia Ratifying Convention in 1788. Those speeches are well worth revisiting. Although unfortunately he wasn't arguing from the covenant standpoint like other of the Anti-Federalists, he foretold with incredible foresight what America would become if she chose to consolidate power under the Constitution, "that paper" as he sneered at it. Apparently they had it laid out on a table at the front of the assembly hall. The American founders were driven by exactly the same motivation that prompted Israel to set up a king in I Samuel 8. They wanted a king who would ride in splendor before them and "fight our battles." Just like modern Americans who glory in their patriotic hymns and displays of military power. God condoned it, but warned that it would tend toward slavery, especially since they were rejecting him as King and defender.The resultant military state was a form of judgment, as God reveals in Hosea 13:11 -- "I gave you a king in my anger, and took him away in my wrath." If America were practicing righteousness and relying on God, she would not need legions of soldiers stationed all over the world like the Roman Empire. Israel went from a loose confederation of tribes to a consolidated kingdom under a king, rejecting God. Exactly what America did in 1787, minus the titles of nobility. There is a need for more discussion or instruction with Christian young men before they go blindly marching off to war because they think the Marines are cool. Are they following the Word of God or military recruitment propaganda for the volunteer army? Being drafted is one thing, but joining the volunteer army of your own volition is quite another. Why volunteer to be cannon fodder for the humanistic state? A state that has way overstepped its Biblical bounds and seeks to usurp the very throne of God.
Return From Volunteer Army to America Betrayed 1787
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