Principles in Government?

Around the world at this time, Christians everywhere are being reminded of the spiritual and physical power of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Given many recent events, I find this to be the perfect opportunity for relating what a religious devotion, such as the Sacred Heart, has taught me about my role in the current trends of the world. As usual with any uplifting belief, it is certain to be difficult, and hard to accept, however, that is usually a good indication that you are on the right track. A truth, after all, is always a truth, no matter how ancient or out of date it may seem to be by current standards.

Not long ago, a case from the State of Texas was taken to the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the homosexual practice of sodomy. As you

probably know, the resulting decision by the Justices was that the entire concept of government regulation of sexual behavior was deemed to be unconstitutional. Naturally Gay-Rights groups hailed this as a landmark victory, encouraged all the more by the recent recognition of Her Majesty?s government in Canada of Gay marriages. This certainly came as no surprise to me; however, I was greatly disturbed by a certain segment of those celebrating the verdict, namely the conservatives.

It is this response that probably saddened me even more than the verdict itself. After all, not all people agree with my standards of what is right and wrong, and everyone is certainly entitled to their own opinion on the subject; the Lord gave us all free will after all. However, I was extremely shocked by the number of conservatives who applauded the decision, specifically, those who applauded it as a victory for liberty while simultaneously condemning the practice of sodomy itself. These were not homosexuals, eagerly awaiting the repeal of rarely-if-ever enforced laws so they could sodomize each other with the blessing of the federal government, these were supposedly social conservatives who found homosexuality abhorrent and wrong in their own opinion, but who nevertheless celebrated the victory of those they disagreed with to legally commit a practice they found abhorrent.

Now, is where I draw the connection with the Sacred Heart. To put it into a single word, the Sacred Heart symbolizes the most pure love imaginable. The wound, the thorny crown, the cross, all symbolize the pure, selfless and divine love that Jesus had to take on the sins of the world so that even His most unworthy of subjects might have eternal salvation with Him.

As few people, I think, would argue, love is a virtue that is totally absolutist. Love cannot have restrictions, it must exist totally or it does not exist at all. Saint Paul was clear on this subject, saying that love was even greater than hope, even greater than faith and that love cannot fail. If you love someone, you love them completely, and that comes with certain joys and certain responsibilities.

During the darkest days of the French Revolution, loyal Christian monarchists of the Vendee rose up against their republican tormentors and fought to restore their Church and their Crown. Their only uniform was a simple woolen badge sewn to their clothes bearing the Sacred Heart of Jesus and sometimes the motto ?Dieu & Roi?, French for ?God & King?. They loved their cause totally with the love symbolized by their Sacred Heart badges, for their God, their King and their country. For them, there could be no negotiation with the revolutionaries, no acceptance of the current trend. Because of their devotion they were driven to resist the Reign of Terror even to the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives.

This, I can perfectly understand and endlessly admire. The Vendee Counter-Revolutionaries were fighting for what they loved, what they believed in, and were willing to stand against even the most terrible odds because their love for Christ and the traditional Christian monarchy could not be reconciled with the atheistic forces of the Reign of Terror. What I cannot understand is people who will fight to defend a practice, not a belief mind you, but a practice, they claim to find morally reprehensible.

In my mind, if you love something, you should fight for it endlessly and never cease to defend it, even more so if it is something like virtue and your own principles of right and wrong. I do not deny others the right to defend their own beliefs in the same way, even if they should conflict with mine. Love cannot be reasoned with after all. However, if you find a certain practice, be it sodomy, drug abuse or abortion, to be morally wrong, I think you have a duty to your own soul and your own conscience, to fight against it as fiercely as you possibly can.

As for myself, such an attitude as that adopted by many conservatives is no different that the attitude of many liberal Christians who claim to be personally opposed to abortion but will champion legislation to extend the right to have an abortion to anyone in any case. If you truly love life as these people claim to, how can you participate in an act that will make it easier for others to take life away even if you personally do not? If you truly believe that sodomy and the homosexual lifestyle is wrong, how can you work to protect something you profess to be incorrect?

Jesus said, ?If you love Me, keep My commandments?. If you believe stealing is wrong, does that mean you still think other people should have the right to steal? Would you try to influence legislation that would make theft a legal choice? If that is true, you cannot truly love the law that you profess. A principle should be as absolute and unwavering as the love of virtue that causes you to honor that principle. Government today, it seems, is sadly lacking in principles of virtually any kind, as well as anyone to honor them. Politicians who are concerned primarily with gain and power will try to give the majority of people whatever they want, regardless of whether they believe it will actually benefit them or not, simply to purchase their support for the next election.

In brief, the Sacred Heart symbolizes perfect love, and love does not compromise. If you love something, and truly believe in your own heart that it is right, you would have no option except to protect what you believe, advance what you believe, and try your best to convince others of what you believe as well. Such actions remind me of the much maligned Comte de Chambord, who is often mistakenly accused of throwing away the monarchy for the white flag. The Comte de Chambord was much deeper than that, he was making a statement about his principles: he had a true love that could not be compromised, any government he would lead would be the traditional, Christian monarchy symbolized by the white flag and not the liberal, revolutionary, imperial, collaborationist government symbolized by the tricolor. He refused to be a figurehead for corrupt politicians; the white flag was merely a symbol of this attitude.

The Sacred Heart is pure love, and our love for our beliefs, whatever they may be, should be equally as pure. If you love something, fight for it, if you disapprove of something, struggle to stop it, but do not betray yourself by fighting for what you profess to be wrong. Remember well the fate of those who are neither hot nor cold but are lukewarm and you will be well advised.