One of the sad facts of our time is that when it comes to calling out evil in society the church is so often strangely silent. There is a curious reticence to get involved, fearing being dragged into some political dogfight and cornered in a dead end of moral equivalence. Behind this, it has to be said, is the worry over being unpopular, disliked or even ridiculed. The pull to be well thought off and held in good standing by the world is very seductive and there is a seldom admitted dread of being called names or made guilty by association with the lunatic fringe. It’s easier to keep the head down, the mouth shut and duck the straight question with a less than convincing appeal to complications and nuance.
True, in the ecclesiastical echo chamber, things are much sharper. We are confident on where we stand and clear about what is right and wrong, but outside that safe zone we become suddenly diffident, hesitant and almost timid so as not to offend and harm the cause. So often the issues are met with a shrug of the shoulders and a “This has nothing to do with me”, when it has everything to do with me. No one wants to ruffle feathers or rock the boat and so we keep quiet. I am speaking of the church, the people of God the followers of Jesus, of course, not the clergy not the ministers and pastors with whom she is often confused.
In our local church we have one of the finest preachers I have ever known. His devotion and solid commitment to his calling to preach the Gospel is astonishing, so that he won’t get diverted or side tracked into any side alley and jealously protects the time he needs to prepare. There is a doggedness to get to the bones of the matter which is remarkable and through which we are greatly blessed and indebted. His task is to make clear the Word of God and let others work out what that means in the all the different strands of society, where we find themselves. But it is up to us, the people, to make our voices heard and actions seen. The sad fact is that in the market place of ideas these voices are seldom heard and actions barely visible.
Into this vacuum others have stepped up to the mark and it is not necessarily those we would expect. Time and time again it is the outliers, those who have come from atheistic, non-religious, backgrounds, onetime Marxists, radicals and feminists who speak up, who stand against the tide, put their heads above the parapet and shout for the truth. Because in the end, the truth is the truth and no amount of lies, fabrications deceptions and deceit will ever be able to silence or deny what is true. So many would never claim to be believers, yet they will often use spiritual language in a unashamed forthright way. Kelly Jay keen says she is not a religious person but describes the state sponsored mutilation of young girl’s bodies as “demonic”[1]. Eva Vlaardingerbroek the political firebrand and scourge of the Dutch government is defiant in bringing God into almost all her conversations “We need something greater than globalism, something greater than transhumanism we need God”[2]. Laurence Fox one time actor, politician and broadcaster calls the transgender crusade “satanic”[3]. Neil Oliver and James Delingpole come to the same conclusion[4]. Tucker Carlson describes Transgenderism as a theological not a political phenomenon, which when fully exposed is evil and he calls, astonishingly, for people to take time out each day to pray for the future.[5] Mary Harrington says much the same of Progressivism and Transhumanism, calling them cyborg theologies with their own priest class.[6]
Then there is Louise Perry on the sexual revolution[7], which was a disaster for women and for men and for children- especially children. Her chapter headings alone, which might sound, at one time as sensible and wise advice, would, today, read like a catalogue of prudish stuffy fiats from out-of-touch parents – titles like “Sex must be taken seriously”, ”Men and women are different”, “Some desires are bad”, “Consent is not enough”, “Violence is not love”, ”Marriage is good” and “Listen to your mother”.
And then there is Abigail Shrier[1] with her horrific revelations on where the transgender capture has led. She exposes the sinister latent ideology masquerading as love and respect. “Where a measure taken to fix a problem goes so far in excess of remedy, it becomes clear that a simple remedy was not primarily what the fixer wanted” and she gives this devastating critiqueon the institutions “Which were built up to keep young people from making irreparable mistakes have failed them. The universities, the schools, the doctors, the therapists, and even the churches have been won over by a dogged ideology that claims to speak for a more important class of victim.”
I was brought up sharp, when I read that last quote and I immediately thought of the sailors caught in that terrifying biblical storm when they discover that God was behind it and the guilty man Jonah, was one of their passengers on board with them. “Who are you and what have you done?” they scream. If it takes those who claim to have no faith to inculpate the church, then we know we are in trouble.
Like the sailors, what this motley crew seem to be screaming for is not a religious war, or a return to some ideal of the past that never was, but a simple acknowledgment of what it is that we are watching. “Look” they all seem to be saying, “it is super obvious this is not a political debate, an argument over ideas, where reason and rational can bring us to some resolution, this is not left v right, this is a battle with spiritual forces with the powers of darkness whose aim and sole aim is destruction.”
In a spiritual battle we need spiritual weapons. This is why it is so revealing that it takes a sacked TV chat show host to call for prayer “Maybe we should all take ten minutes a day to pray about the future… I am serious…take time out of your busy schedule to say a pray for the future…and I hope you do”
[1] In conversation with Winston Marshall Spectator TV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8e83KoJb00&t=2166s (from 33.34)
[1] Address at the Brussels National Conservatism conference 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7HUpc-jIiY&t=703s(from11.23)
[1] GB News https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmQdCm37Hfc&t=114s (from 2.58)
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0Y24Kw_dqo&t=3826s (from1.03.00)
[1] Address to the heritage Foundation days before (and possibly why) he was sacked by Fox news https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N32UPXGChgo&list=PPSV (from24.35)
[1] Mary Harrington “Feminists against progress” 2023 Forum [1] Louise Perry, “The case against the sexual revolution, a new guide to sex in the 21st century” 2022 Polity
[1] Abigail Shrier, “Irreversible damage, teenager girls and the transgender craze” 2021 Swift press
Restless Spirit 