Joseph Herrin (06-14-09)

As I write this the 39th General Assembly of the Organization of American States has recently concluded their meetings in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. I am grateful for Randy and Kathy Furman having directed my attention to this event, and circumstances surrounding it. Much of the information shared here is the result of their own research and consideration of this matter.

The Organization of American States… is an international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States. Its members are the thirty-five independent states of the Americas…
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organization_of_American_States]

A document describing the aims of the OAS includes the following information:

Democracy is the cornerstone of the OAS — a necessary condition for countries’ participation and a foundation for all of its activities. The Inter-American Democratic Charter sets out a simple, clear declaration: “The peoples of the Americas have a right to democracy and their governments have an obligation to promote and defend it.”

This landmark document—adopted on September 11, 2001—defines the essential elements of democracy, indicates ways in which it can and should be promoted, and specifies how it should be defended when it is under threat. It gives the governments of the Western Hemisphere a framework to guide their collective action when democracy faces challenges.
[Source: http://www.oas.org/key_issues/eng/KeyIssue_Detail.asp?kis_sec=1]

It is quite interesting to note that the Inter-American Democratic Charter was adopted on the very day that the United States was experiencing terrorist attacks on her soil. It was the same day that the World Trade Centers were struck and collapsed, and the Pentagon was also struck and damaged. This document contains the following statement:

Any unconstitutional alteration or interruption of the democratic order in a state of the Hemisphere constitutes an insurmountable obstacle to the participation of that state’s government in the Summits of the Americas process…

The Spirit is testifying that there is coming severe alterations and interruptions of the democratic order that has been observed in the United States for generations. The Constitution of the United States will be suspended in coming days. Martial law will replace the Constitutional freedoms Americans have known, and freedom and liberty will be unknown in the land.

A remarkable event occurred just prior to the convening of the 39th General Assembly of the OAS. The member states had scheduled their meeting in San Pedro Sula, Honduras for June 2-3, 2009. On Thursday, May 28th, 2009, less than a week before the meeting was to be held, an earthquake struck in the Caribbean 80 miles offshore from Honduras. The earthquake was a major one, registering 7.1 on the Richter scale. It collapsed one of the major bridges leading across the Ulua River, the largest river in Honduras. The name of the bridge that collapsed is Democracy Bridge. Democracy Bridge is located in the city of El Progreso and connects San Pedro Sula, Hinduras’ second largest city, to the rest of the country. The earthquake also caused the collapse of a water tower in the town of Independence.

http://dailymail.com/News/NationandWorld/200905280808

Democracy Bridge – Center Section Fell Into the River

One of the key aims of the OAS is to promote democracy in the Americas. In their own words they have stated, “Any unconstitutional alteration or interruption of the democratic order in a state of the Hemisphere constitutes an insurmountable obstacle…” What is pictured in the collapse of the Democracy Bridge is an alteration, and interruption which constitutes an insurmountable obstacle. The Progress (El Progreso) of Democracy in the Americas will be interrupted as the central force in the spread of this democracy, the United States, falls into the chaotic state that has been prophesied through many signs, visions, and dreams.

One of the things that will certainly be curtailed, is freedom of movement. The Democracy Bridge was designed to facilitate free movement of the people, but when a bridge is out there can be no movement across it. The OAS also has linked the promotion of basic human rights to the promotion of democracy. One document that has come forth from the OAS is the American Convention on Human Rights.

Chapter I establishes the general obligation of the states parties to uphold the rights set forth in the Convention to all persons under their jurisdiction, and to adapt their domestic laws to bring them into line with the Convention. The 23 articles of Chapter II give a list of individual civil and political rights due to all persons, including the right to life “in general, from the moment of conception,” to humane treatment, to a fair trial, to privacy, to freedom of conscience, freedom of assembly, freedom of movement, etc.
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Convention_on_Human_Rights]

One reason the United States and Canada have not adopted this convention is due to its declaration that life should be protected “from the moment of conception.” Many of the OAS member states are Catholic, and therefore they included this statement recognizing the life of the unborn as part of the Convention.

It seems incredible to many that the United States, which has long been considered the central promoter of democracy, has now become the scourge of basic human rights. The United States has led the world in the promotion of abortion, failing to protect the rights of the weakest members of society. More recently we have seen the United States act in an egregious fashion by imprisoning men without giving them any legal recourse. They have been denied trial and defense, and are being held indefinitely. This action has been tolerated by many Americans for they were told that it was being done on their behalf, to safeguard their own lives. Yet the same action is now being contemplated and voiced by the President as a necessary action to be taken against the citizens of this nation.

Following is an excerpt from New York Times Article Dated May 21, 2009

Obama Is Said to Consider Preventive Detention Plan
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG

WASHINGTON — President Obama told human rights advocates at the White House on Wednesday that he was mulling the need for a “preventive detention” system that would establish a legal basis for the United States to incarcerate terrorism suspects who are deemed a threat to national security but cannot be tried, two participants in the private session said…

They said Mr. Obama told them he was thinking about “the long game” — how to establish a legal system that would endure for future presidents. He raised the issue of preventive detention himself, but made clear that he had not made a decision on it. Several senior White House officials did not respond to requests for comment on the outsiders’ accounts.

“He was almost ruminating over the need for statutory change to the laws so that we can deal with individuals who we can’t charge and detain,” one participant said.
[End Excerpt]

Many people fail to be alarmed by such ponderings, for they think that such a curtailing of basic rights would never be used against them. We are constantly told by the media that such actions are only necessary for terrorists and those who are threats to the security of the nation. Yet, the definition of who is a threat to the nation has been re-written to include a great many who are citizens of the United States. Included in this number are now those who are deemed as hate-based because they object to homosexuality and abortion, and those who declare that there is salvation in no other than the God of the Scriptures. Following is an excerpt from a recent (April 7, 2009) publication put out by the government of the United States’ Department of Homeland Security.

Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment
7 April 2009
(U) Prepared by the Extremism and Radicalization Branch, Homeland Environment Threat Analysis Division. Coordinated with the FBI.

* (U) Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration…
[End Excerpt]

It is not hard to discern the trends that are occurring at an ever accelerating pace. There is an erosion of Constitutionally protected freedoms in America, and many of the people of this nation will soon be classified as “rightwing extremists” and threats to the government for nothing more than seeking to defend the unborn or to proclaim what the Scriptures say about behaviors such as homosexuality.

There are at present 35 states that have passed “Tenth Amendment” laws, and those who support such laws are also being classified as “rightwing extremists” for the document above declares, “those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority…”

The Tenth Amendment movement is described in the following Fox News article.

By James Osborne
FOXNews.com
Tuesday, May 26, 2009

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
— U.S. Constitution, Tenth Amendment

Fed up with Washington’s involvement in everything from land use to gun control to education spending, states across the country are fighting back against what they say is the federal government’s growing intrusion on their rights.

At least 35 states have introduced legislation this year asserting their power under the Tenth Amendment to regulate all matters not specifically delegated to the federal government by the Constitution.

“This has been boiling for years, and it’s finally come to a head,” said Utah State Rep. Carl Wimmer. “With TARP and No Child Left Behind, these things that continue to give the federal government more authority, our rights as states and individuals are being turned on their head.”

The power struggle between the states and Washington has cropped up periodically ever since the country was founded. But now some states are sending a simple, forceful message:

The government has gone too far. Enough is enough…

For many state leaders, the degree to which Congress regulates issues within their boundaries, using the interstate commerce clause to regulate just about everything and anything, has become untenable.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry made headlines recently when he made a passing reference to the possibility of the Lone Star State seceding from the U.S., saying, “if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that?”

States rights advocates offer countless examples of what they believe is Washington’s overreach.

In Utah, 67 percent of the state’s land is controlled by the federal government through wilderness preserves, limiting state leaders in their bid to fill government coffers through oil and natural gas drilling after Interior Secretary Ken Salazar cancelled 103,000 acres of leases this year.

In Idaho, ranchers are furious that federal endangered species law prevents them from shooting the wolves that prey on their cattle.

“The balance of power between the states and the federal government is way out of whack,” said Georgia state Senator Chip Pearson.” The effect here is incalculable. Everything you do from the moment you wake up until you get to bed, there is some federal law or restriction.”
[Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/26/tenth-amendment-movement-aims-power-states/]

Those familiar with the writings I post will know that I am not suggesting that any Christian make the reformation of the governments of this world their mission. I am not sharing these things to incite Christians to protest, or to become political activists. Disciples of Christ are citizens of a heavenly kingdom.

John 18:36
Yahshua answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting, that I might not be delivered up to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.”

There were great and grievous injustices and sins among the governments of Christ’s day, yet He was not sent to reform government. Yahshua came to do the will of His Father, and He was directed by the Spirit of His Father in all things. He did not choose for Himself what issues to involve Himself in, and neither should the disciples of Christ.

Christ did warn His disciples of the things they would face at the hands of the government leaders of this fallen world, and this is also my purpose in sharing those things here.

Matthew 10:17-23
“But beware of men; for they will deliver you up to the courts, and scourge you in their synagogues; and you shall even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles… And brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents, and cause them to be put to death. And you will be hated by all on account of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved. But whenever they persecute you in this city, flee to the next…”

At this time we are seeing great changes coming upon the nation. Those who stand in righteousness, speak forth the truth in love, and follow Christ wherever He would lead them, will be hated for His name. They will be characterized as religious extremists, as intolerant and haters. The Spirit is testifying that difficult days lie ahead for the people of God. These difficult days are necessary in order to purge, purify and refine God’s people who have remained fleshly in their ease and comforts.

Look back at the image at the top of this post. The OAS has chosen a dove with an olive branch in its mouth as the symbol of this assembly and the word “Non-violence” is displayed. The passage just quoted from Matthew begins with the words:

Matthew 10:16
“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; therefore be shrewd as serpents, and innocent as doves.”

This series of writings has been titled The Quest, for there is a long and arduous journey that they must make. Those who trust in and obey their God will not walk alone. He will be with them in all things. It is a time to be sober and vigilant. It is a time to be hearing and heeding the voice of the Spirit. If you are still pursuing the things of this world that are passing away, you should immediately end such pursuits and follow after Christ with a whole heart. It is time for His sons and daughters to enter into Sabbath rest.

May you be blessed with peace and understanding in these days.

Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws
Parables Blog: http://www.parablesblog.blogspot.com

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
P.O. Box 804
Montezuma, GA 31063