The Conscience of a Nation

Some forty-five hundred miles east of West Virginia, preserved forever in the concrete lock at Belomorsk are the bones of those innocent ones, who, without voice, became the hands and feet of a nation bent on the wicked ambition of its ruthless leader. 

The incredible canal connecting Lake Onega to the White Sea, was a dream of Stalin and became the brutal work arena and burial ground for tens of thousands of prisoners due to extreme exertion and starvation.  The propaganda, like a constant rhythmic drum, proclaimed to the free ones, 'the result is what counts’, but to the prisoner, the one who may have been arrested because of his thought crimes, learned differently:

“It is not the result that counts! It is not the result—but the spirit! Not what— but how.  Not what has been attained— but at what price.” — Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

From the gulags of Soviet Russia during the turn of the twentieth century, Americans have much wisdom to glean. Not only in understanding the enormous organized chaos made possible where communism is unleashed, but, like a prism breaking light, providing a window of exploration into the depths of the human spirit.

After the Bolshevik Revolution, where all human passions, such as greed, malice, jealousy and pride were unchained, the contemptible values rose to the top of the ruling class like a slime layer of oil pulsating on the open sea.  Thieves became the authorities.  Avarice and debauchery became principles of merit and cruelty never lags far behind to secure both.

When the Bolsheviks supplanted the dynasty of the Tsars, royalty was murdered, churches were destroyed, families were separated, loyalists were hunted and there followed a continual stream of arrests of persons from every walk of life.  Priests, doctors, engineers, professors, peasants, businessmen, …mothers… children.  Paranoia, a chief characteristic of communists, means constant vigilance and suspicion of anyone and everyone...especially those who show some despicable act of kindness.

These unfortunate prisoners, who numbered in the millions, were labeled an enemy of the state, if it was discovered, for example, that they had ever said anything in agreement with the church, or the Tsar, or a Western nation.  They could be arrested for cutting stalks of grain or ears of corn to satiate their hunger.  They might be arrested for refusing to applaud long enough for a political figure or related to one who acted in such an appalling way.  Many from the Red Army who fought alongside the Allies against Nazi Germany would return home only to be arrested for the crime of having become a prisoner of war …and liberated by the Americans.

The list of reasons for arrest is lengthy and grotesque— in short, if you were deemed to be bold and resistant to the party line- the approved narrative of lies from Stalin— you were an enemy of the state, worthy of arrest and deportation to labor camps.   The camps became a torch of “progress” to those who had descended into barbarism.

One of the most striking features of communism is the speed and order of its expansion. As it turns out, when people are incentivized by authority to betray their neighbor, two things happen— the system itself spreads like wildfire and the depraved nature of man is amplified. 

Communism relies on exploiting base qualities of mankind such as pride, greed and malice, in order to gain and stay adherents.  The complex apparatus is sustained by a bedrock of lies citizens are compelled to adopt through fear.   It encourages thieves, rewards the deceitful and breeds arrogance while at the same time, punishing mercy and annihilating compassion.  The intrinsic qualities of the religious minded would force some to choose between forfeiting their life or conscience. 

Only three years ago, in May of 2021, mass graves were still being located near Moscow from the purges of Stalin.  Loved ones across the ocean are still seeking out their dead, hanging memorial wreaths on trees for those who were deemed an enemy of the state.  Meanwhile, Americans under the hypnotic charm of socialist ideals from the radical left concede ascendance to the same perverted values of Stalin’s elite.

This is easy to see with truth seeking eyes but may become clouded by fear and the great human need of being accepted by the herd; groupthink inevitably begets intellectual laziness and moral cowardice. The most explicit arena to view this playing out is on our college and university campuses.  Under the banner of diversity and inclusion, there are no holds barred when it comes to fiercely ridiculing those who hold a differing opinion from the approved narrative.   

You can find the evidence even within mainstream media, but one of the best channels documenting this behavior is TFP Student Action, a pro-life, pro-marriage and pro-God organization that peacefully promotes moral values on these same college campuses. In their videos, you’ll witness the nation’s “brightest” at Yale, Harvard, Brown University, Boston University, Georgetown University… even Notre Dame displaying their self-proclaimed “tolerance” via verbal and physical violence towards those with an opposing viewpoint. Some are willing to calmly hold discussions while others would rather assault the messenger, as was the case for Riley Gaines at SFSU in April of 2023 when she spoke out about men invading women’s sports.

The university, the hallmark of Western civilization’s quest for higher learning, for rigorous academic study, scientific exploration, thorough debate scrutinizing a variety of perspectives can now, in twenty-first century America, only be discerned through the wake of its demise.  What do advanced degrees mean crowned on the arrogant, the greedy, the self-guarding recipient?  Engineers, doctors and attorneys too, are buried in mass graves beneath the gulag archipelago; their bones line the White Sea-Baltic Canal.

Academia means nothing in cold hearts, but only provides the knowledge for pursuing selfish, calculated endeavors.   What truly matters is the essence, the heart and spirit of a man.  M.A. Voichenko, a prisoner who spent time in Soviet labor camps said:

“In camp, existence did not determine consciousness, but just the opposite: consciousness and steadfast faith in the human essence decided whether you became an animal or remained a human being.”

I don’t have to tell you, dear reader, that America is in the death throes of our culture because of the unraveling of moral fabric.  The signs are everywhere— propaganda in our healthcare systems, corporate interests dictating the newsfeeds, the battle over our language and redefining words.  Identity politics, libraries and schools hosting pornography made for children, men invading women’s spaces...these are the items on the agendas of our state legislatures over the past three years. The labels and lies attached to those who oppose the party line are unceasing, much like the heresies emanating from our churches.

It is to this last group that I make an appeal—to the Church.  The Christians, the shining city on a hill that shall not be hidden, from the Gospel of Matthew in chapter five.  I am speaking to the remnant, the Catholics, the Orthodox, the Protestants who hold fast to the truth once delivered to them, to those who claim Jesus Christ as their Savior and follow His commandments.  To those who are undaunted to call out evil, to name sin, to love their neighbors and to pray for them.  We have a role to serve in this world.  It may not be on the public stage or in the political arena, but it is our duty to be true Christians in America. To stand for the sanctity of life, the protection of children, the holiness of marriage and God’s order in the world.  We are here to bear witness of Christ, the Creator of the universe and mankind while we await His glorious return.

We affect the conscience of our nation. WE do.  We the people, …we the Church.  It is essential that whistleblowers appeal to a public with a moral conscience in the same way that prisoners who escaped the gulags were bereft of hope in a society without it. Together, as the magnificent Body of Christ, our words, our deeds (or lack of both) either promote the ambitions of the evil one or reflect the Light of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom to come. 

We influence our households, our communities, our states— our nation— by being true Christians...by speaking truth out loud, in love, and refusing to endorse lies.  We do it by advocating for the vulnerable, showing hospitality to others, worshipping at church, visiting the sick and imprisoned and relentlessly pursuing the path of Truth.  We do it by showing compassion, loving and praying for our enemies, giving to the poor and sheltering the orphans. 

These are precisely the virtues that should be ascendant. These are the virtues that make great nations and provide the remedy for an inverted, decaying society;  this is the balm on the soul of an ailing nation ….and an invitation to every person to know God.

If we will just take a moment to read and consider the history of communism in Soviet Russia in the early twentieth century.  If we contemplate how people were forced to live on lies, encouraged to betray one another, and choose between the death of the body or conscience, we may greatly be encouraged to live exclusively by Truth— no matter the cost.