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Elian Gonzalez: The Bible has the
Answer
Because our Declaration of Independence bases our claim
to freedom on "the
Laws of Nature and of Nature's God," the first place all
Americans ought to look for guidance with any question is
the Bible.
We've seen a lot ink spilled about whether Elian Gonzalez
ought to be shipped back to Cuba, but nobody, it appears,
has looked to scripture to see what principle ought to apply
in this case. The folks who've actually lived in Cuba say
the mother's desire to bring Elian to freedom in America
should be honored. Surprisingly, the folks who support
legalized abortion, Clinton and the liberals in his
Department of Justice, tout family values, claiming Elian
belongs with his biological father.
Which side is right? The answer appears in the beautiful
story of the birth and dedication of Samuel, a prophet and
judge of Israel who lived in the 11th Century, B.C. The
biblical citation is 1 Samuel 1-4.
If you don't know the story, here's a quick summary.
Samuel's mother Hannah was married to a man named Elkanah,
who loved her very much, but she had no children. One day,
on the family's annual visit to worship at the tabernacle is
Shiloh, Hannah wept and prayed for a child. God answered her
prayer, giving her a son whom she named Samuel, which means
"heard of God." Before Samuel was born, Hannah dedicated him
to the Lord's service. She raised Samuel until he was three
years old and then brought him to Eli, the chief priest, to
be raised and educated in Shiloh so he could do the Lord's
work. She lovingly made him a robe every year.
While still a boy, the Lord called Samuel to be a
prophet. Samuel led Israel to repentance, called on God to
defeat the Philistines with a great thunderstorm, and
anointed both King Saul and King David.
The biblical principle at work in the lives of both
Samuel and Elian is this: The Lord desires children to be
dedicated to His service, and in order to serve Him, those
children must be where they can learn about the Lord.
Elian's remarkable journey to the United States, kept
safe from drowning by the protection of dolphins, reveals
the Hand of God at work. By contrast, implicit in Clinton's
order to deport the boy is the idea that communist Cuba -
where the state controls the raising and education of
children - is just as good a place as America for a child to
grow up.
But communism is the very opposite of the Bible. As
regular readers of CS know, politics and law reflect the
spiritual warfare in man's heart. At any point in time,
there is a set of political ideas that is close to God's
ideas, and one that is far away. In our time, the ideas that
oppose God are labeled "leftist" or "liberal" and include
communism. The labels really don't matter, 100 years ago the
word "liberal" meant one who followed God's ideas, but the
very word has been stolen and its meaning changed.
It is little wonder that the most left-leaning president
in our nation's history wants to send Elian back to Cuba. If
President Clinton really wanted to stand for God and family
values, he ought to be asking Castro why Elian's father,
along with his new wife and child (Elian's parents were
divorced, his father has remarried and had another son), are
not free to immigrate to the U.S.
CS urges all citizens to contact
their Senators and Congressmen and urge them to support
S. 1999 and H.R. 3531, legislation that would grant
citizenship to Elian. The Capitol Switchboard phone number
is (202) 224-3121.
Here are some red herrings that Congressmen who want to
send Elian back will throw at you - and how to get around
them
- The U.S. has a treaty with Cuba requiring return of
abducted children - Elian was not abducted, his mother
was the legal custodial parent.
- Clinton made a deal with Cuba allowing Cuba to
totally control all emigration. In exchange for Castro
thinking about letting any one leave, Clinton promised to
return those who try to leave without Castro's
permission. This Clinton agreement is the heart of the
problem - communist countries build fences to keep their
people in. Remember, Reagan told the Soviets "tear down
this wall."
- Elain must go back because his father has a right to
see him - if this rule was applied in all cases, we'd
have to send anyone who ever left Cuba, or anywhere else,
back to where they came from if they had either a child
or a parent. Why can't Elian's father be allowed to
choose where he wants to live, the U.S. or Cuba?
- It is better for the child - to live under Communism?
Get real.
As U.S. military officers, we at CS also urge our brother
officers in the U.S. Marshal's Service - who share our oath
to America's Biblical founding principles embodied in our
Constitution - to disregard Clinton's deportation order.
Citizens can help the marshals by surrounding Elian's home
and passively resisting attempts to get to him.
Remember, nonviolent civil disobedience was needed to
force repeal of segregation laws, the last vestige of the
sin of pride which lay at the heart of slavery. The Clintons
cannot rightly claim that their desire to force Elian to
live under communism, rather than pry open the wall around
Cuba, is any less sinful.
Of interest: Who's the lawyer representing Elian's father
in the U.S.? None other than Clinton's own Gregory Craig.
Full
story at CNS.
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