America is in distress…and America is in desperate need of people who have “understanding of their times” as did the men of I Chronicles 12:32. To understand our times, one must have a grasp of Marxism and Socialism—godless, violent philosophies that are producing a great part of America’s distress.

Marxism is the political-economic theories of Karl Marx, a German, who lived from 1818-1883. Marx was a revolutionary, a radical, an atheist and by most measures, a loser. Yet his ideas live on, and have created as much hatred, suffering and death as perhaps any in history.

The most basic characteristic of Marxism is that it divides people into groups: the oppressors (bourgeoisie) and the oppressed (proletariat). Marx believed the cause of all social ills was an imbalance of power between these groups. So the goal of Marxism is to redistribute power in society—to take power from the oppressors and redistribute it to the oppressed. Marx believed if power were equally distributed, social problems would be solved and the result would be utopia—a “worker’s paradise.” To achieve this utopia, the oppressed must rise up and overthrow their oppressors. Thus, Marx introduced “class warfare.” This class conflict between classes and groups of people is at the heart of Marxist doctrine. Hatred, violence, rebellion and revolution always accompany Marxist movements, as we are seeing in America today.

The ultimate goal of Marxism is a global communist state. Marx dreamed of a world with no borders and only one flag—the Hammer & Sickle. However, before communism can be achieved, capitalist societies must pass through an intermediate stage called “socialism.” Socialism exists when the state assumes ownership of the “means of production” (land, factories, farming, mines, minerals, banks, transportation and distribution systems). Communism does away with all ownership of personal and private property. Marx believed socialism would evolve into communism where “You will own nothing, but you will be happy.”

In a socialist state, everyone would theoretically experience equity: “From each according to his ability; to each according to his need.” But don’t confuse equity with equality. They are not the same. The goal of the Civil Rights Movement of the 60’s was equal opportunity: equal opportunity to vote, to get an education or a job. But this is not the goal of today’s socialists. Their goal is equity—not equality. Their goal is a complete redistribution of wealth and power. They are not interested in equal opportunity; they are demanding equal result.

To achieve this new world order, the old order must go. It must be thoroughly discredited and destroyed. Several things are being done to bring down the old order. First, people must come to see their country as evil. We have been seeing this hatred of America for many years. We hear the constant criticism of our country by liberal politicians, the media, liberal academics and celebrities, ceaselessly focusing on every sin of the past. We all know America is not perfect—it is made up of imperfect people. We know that slavery was a great evil, and that America has, at times, broken its promises. We know there is corruption—that justice is not always done. But we also know that there has never been a nation where there has been as much freedom and prosperity for so many as in America. We know that until recently, America was friendly to Christianity, as well as other religions. It has been the beacon of freedom to the world. France even gave us the Statute of Liberty because the entire world appreciated the liberty America modeled. Consider our southern border right now. If this is the evil place we are being told it is, why are all these people coming here? Why have immigrants dreamed of coming to America ever since its founding?

Under Marxism, patriotism and love of country must be destroyed. History must be erased, the flag, traditions, holidays, slogans, symbols and anthems must be removed. Heroes must be discredited and cancelled, monuments and statues destroyed. We have seen this before when Castro took over in Cuba. History repeats itself and, sadly, we are seeing the same things happening right here in America today.

In Marxist ideology, even the family must be replaced. In the summer of 2020, the Black Lives Matter Movement openly boasted of being a socialist movement. In the past, Russia, China and Cuba experimented with communal living. Each time it failed miserably. Sadly, we are hearing those calls again in such slogans as, “It takes a village to raise a child.”

Above all else, Marxism hates religion—especially Christianity. Marxism is not only atheistic, it is aggressively antagonistic to all religions. Marx referred to it as the “opiate of the people.” In most Marxist countries, Bibles, religious symbols and religious books are banned.

In Marxist states, the educational system is the propaganda arm of the state. Children are indoctrinated in the “glories of socialism” from their earliest years. The National Education Association (NEA, the teachers’ union) issued a statement recently that they would teach Critical Race Theory in all 50 states. Their aim is clearly to indoctrinate public school children in socialist principles. Adults who criticize the government or fail to cooperate, are “reeducated.” Increasingly, America has its own version of the reeducation camps. They are the mandated “diversity training” seminars required of federal government workers, the military and workers in corporations doing business with the government. Never before has our government so openly attempted to control the thinking of its people as it is doing today—and doing it in the name of diversity.

The socialist movement knows that to achieve these goals, First Amendment liberties must be restricted or removed. During the Covid pandemic, we have seen the Left take advantage of the public health threat to impose more and more government control. Churches were closed, while bars remained open, speech was censored, businesses locked down and other basic freedoms restricted. President Biden has now proposed legislation that would further limit 2nd Amendment liberties.

Lastly, Marxism produces a society of fear. Under Marxism, fear is pervasive—everyone is spied on; suspicious neighbors turn in their neighbors to authorities, hatred and division flourish. Instead of the promised utopia, Marxism produces a “hell on earth.” Everywhere it has been tried (USSR, China, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, Africa), the result is the same: loss of personal freedom, poverty, division, hatred and death.

 

bmonroe@fbt.org