Godless Conspiracy

                    The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday concerns the fact that millions of Americans do not believe in God and seek to replace God with government.  Their plan has been in place and slowly progressing since before World War II.

Ezra Taft Benson, former Secretary of Agriculture and late President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, addressed a meeting sponsored by the American Wake Up Committee, on February 28, 1966, in St. Louis, Missouri.  (See "Chapter 6.  It Can Happen Here," An Enemy Hath Done This, pp. 87-112.)

"… I shall speak to you frankly and honestly.  Some of you may not agree with everything I say.  Thank God in this blessed land we can still speak our convictions.  I pray it may ever be so.  I have been in nations where this blessed privilege is no longer enjoyed.

"What I say are my personal convictions born out of an active life which has taken me into forty-five nations and brought me close to the insidious forces which would destroy our way of life….

"I speak then of the greatest single evil in the world - a vicious, godless conspiracy.

"For a quarter of a century I have seen, at close range, on both sides of the iron curtain the insidious forward march of creeping socialism and its ruthless companion godless communism.  It is a shocking record of bluff, bluster, deception, intrigue, bondage, and mass murder.  Never in recorded history has any movement spread itself so far and so fast as has socialistic-communism in the past few years.  The facts are not pleasant to review.  Communist leaders are jubilant with their success.  They are driving freedom back on almost every front….

"In less than half a century this evil system has gained control over one-third of mankind, and it is steadily pursuing its vicious goal of control over all the rest of the world, while we as Americans cry all is well in our passive complacency….

"Our greatest need in American today is to be alerted and informed.  When we have become alerted and informed, we will soberly sense the need for a reversal of the present trends.  We will realize that the laws of economics are immutable.  We will be convinced that we must return to a spirit of humility, faith in God and the basic concepts upon which this great Christian nation has been established under the direction of Divine Providence….

"Today we are at war.  It is not enough to be against communism.  We must shed our complacency and aggressively meet this challenge….  There can be no compromise with the communists.  They are at war with us - with the entire cause of freedom….

It is a real war.  The lines are tightly drawn….

                    "The socialist-communist philosophy is devastatingly evil - destructive of all that is good, uplifting, and beautiful.  It strikes at the very foundation of all we hold dear….

                    "We believe in religion as a mode of life resulting from our faith in God.  Communism contends that all religion must be overthrown because it inhibits the spirit of world revolution…."

                    President Benson explained that Lenin outlined his strategy to take over the world.  Lenin died in 1924, but his "brilliant, far-seeing, realistic, and majestically simple" plan lives on and moves forward:  "First, we will take Eastern Europe, then the masses of Asia; then we will encircle the United States, which will be the last bastion of capitalism.  We will not have to attack.   It will fall like an overripe fruit into our hands."

                    As explained by President Benson, the "first real great break for the communist society came in 1933" when the United States "extended diplomatic relations to atheistic Russia" - "Stalin's godless, murderous regime."  World War II was their "second great break."  Poland was betrayed in August 1939; Finland was taken over in 1940, followed by Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.  Albania, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania, and Bulgaria were taken over in 1946.  When the USSR broke apart, these nations regained control of their own governments - but did they throw off communism?  The communists enslaved the whole mainland of China by 1950, and then they seized Tibet.  The truce in Korea took place in 1953 followed by the conquest of Indochina in 1954.  The Communist plan moved on with Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore - and continues to move forward.  Communists took over Cuba (1963), invaded Latin America, and have infiltrated every important organization in the United States - government, labor, education, etc.   President John F. Kennedy was assassinated by a confirmed communist within the borders of the United States!

                    The socialists/communists were beaten back in the 1980's while Ronald Reagan was the President.  They merely went underground and continued to move their plan forward as they took over numerous parts of our nation.  A good example of just how far they have moved took place at the 2012 Democratic National Convention.  When the Democratic Party platform was written, the words "God" and "Jerusalem" were omitted.  The Republicans pounced on the omissions and broadcast the information widely.  When the Democrats realized that they were out of step with the majority of American people, they called for a two-thirds vote by delegates to approve language invoking God and affirming that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.  Supposedly by request of Barack Obama, the vote was made; it was passed after voting three times - each time sounding like the "Yea's" and the "Nay's" were about evenly divided.  After the third such vote, the chairman of the convention said the change in rules had passed.  Many of the delegates obviously disagreed with the chairman and made their voices heard, but the change was made.  The fact remains that approximately half of the delegates present did not want any mention of God or Jerusalem in the party platform and even booed and jeered when the announcement was made to include the word "God." The platform was not the only place where God was replaced:  at least one vendor sold posters and other items depicting Barack Obama as Jesus Christ.  Throughout their convention, the Democrats seemed to be more interested in making government their god rather than worshipping the God of our land, even Jesus Christ!  

                    If we want God to stand up and protect us, we must stand up for God in this fight against the godless conspiracy.  The residents of AntrimTownship in Pennsylvania gave us a good example of standing up for God; we would do to follow them. "For as long as there has been a school board …, members have begun their meetings by reciting the Lord's Prayer.  This action attracted the attention of several atheists, who have threatened legal action against the board.   At their last meeting, the board refrained from saying the prayer, so without missing a beat, the crowd recited it on its own."  These people clearly demanded that their school board meetings start with prayer!

                    President Benson said that America needs "men and women who possess the moral strength and courage of our forefathers - modern-day patriots, with pride in our country and faith in freedom…

                    "The only thing which can possibly stop the communists is for the American people to learn the truth in time - to become alerted and informed, to join with neighbors in effective programs of exposure and opposition.  The one effective weapon is truth.  It is the truth they fear.  It is the truth that can defeat this godless conspiracy.  That is the reason why the communists, their dupes and fellow-travelers smear, vilify and attack….  The socialist-communist conspiracy cannot stand the light of truth.  And so they direct their lying, venomous attacks at our most loyal and courageous patriots who are determined to spread the truth about the greatest evil in this world today…."

                    J. Edgar Hoover, the late Director of the FBI, said on February 22, 1962, "What we desperately need today is patriotism founded on a real understanding of the American ideal - a dedicated belief in our principles of freedom and a determination to perpetuate America's heritage.  … There must be in America a rebirth of the spirit of Valley Forge…."

                    First of all, we must realize that our nation could also fall to the godless conspiracy that President Benson warned about 46 years ago.  Second, we must become informed about the dangers facing us.  Then we must become true patriots, ready to protect and preserve our freedoms by making our voices heard.   We can no longer sit on the sidelines and let someone else fight the battle.  We must enter the war ourselves by making sure that Mitt Romney is elected as the next President of the United States of America on November 6!  Even then we cannot fully step down; we must continue to insist that our political leaders uphold the U.S. Constitution.