The lessons of history

Mr. Mackey is right when he states that history is a good teacher (The Nugget, Letters to the Editor, January 5). Hopefully, he’s read the history of the rise of fascism in the 1930s and sees the parallels to what is going on in our country and parts of the world

today.

I disagree, however, in his laying the blame for the beginning of evil on Adam and Eve. For one thing, nobody really knows what happened in Eden; the real truth is lost in antiquity. The rest is just rumors.

I think the belligerent, sometimes viscous nature of our species is a survival instinct developed through evolution. Even though it doesn’t seem like it at times, we are much less viscous than in the past. If you study history, you’ll see that the atrocities (with a few exceptions — notably, the Holocaust) of modern times are nothing compared to the atrocities of the past. The very fact that the Holocaust is so infamous in history shows that, up until then, people thought those sort of things only happened in the distant past. I also think Adam and Eve weren’t the first human animals on earth.

I think they were the first human beings on earth. The trouble is, there are too many human animals still here.

I think the whole idea of sending a Son of God to Earth was to try and get us to rise above some of our animal tendencies, and to move past the old ways, and to take the next step in our spiritual evolution. In those days, the Torah (which we know as the Old Testament) was the law and history of the Hebrew people. It allowed you to stone someone for just about anything. Jesus tried to teach a more evolved way of the brotherhood of man, with a much more simple set of rules.

I don’t believe that God sent a great flood to punish sinner man.

I don’t think he works that way.

I think that many of the “plagues” that affect us we do to ourselves.

We’re starting to find out, for instance, that not treating the Earth with respect is a bad idea.

Other “plagues” are just nature being nature.

I think he does put us to the test all our lives both individually and as the human race.

I think that when we have a pandemic such as this one it tests us in many ways.

Like how you deal with the knowledge that if you, as an individual, don’t take certain precautions, you could jeopardize the health or even lives of other people.

Are you really letting other people die for your freedom? Suffering the small sacrifice of wearing a mask and taking a vaccine to try and save other people is exactly what Jesus would do.

Helping the poorer people and poorer countries in the world during these times is exactly what Jesus would do.

Sowing unfounded doubt in our leaders, in our institutions, and in our God-given science is exactly what Satan

would do.

Christian teachings state: “ God helps those who help themselves.” Isn’t coming up with an effective vaccine in record time helping ourselves?

Jesus said: “ There will be many false prophets. You will know them by their deeds, not their words.” Wouldn’t a person that became a Christian right before he threw his hat in the ring and then caused a mob to attempt to overthrow a legal election by violent means because he couldn’t stand being a loser be called a false prophet?

Moses’ ninth commandment says: “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Isn’t claiming an election was stolen when the overwhelming evidence shows otherwise, bearing false witness against all your neighbors in the entire country?

I guess my point in all this rambling is, if you’re going to loudly claim to be a Christian, you should act like it. Otherwise, you would be using the Lord’s name in vain.