Congress needs to stop appeasing and start atonement

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
March 16, 2023

It started as a spiritual battle to give hope of healing to a man so he could pass it on to the world. That was what The Scribe Of Salem was all about. Each one of the people had their own struggles until someone came into their lives to help them heal spiritually. Each of them had given up on the hope they would find the answers in a church. The truth is, far too many churches in this country are far from what Christ preached. We may dismiss all this by saying "to each their own" referring to choices, but that created our blindness to what is going on in this country.

13th Minister Of Salem

By the 3rd book, 13th Minister Of Salem, they realize the battle is far from over. Too many have used faith as a political weapon to destroy those with different beliefs. None of this is new. It happened throughout history all over the world. It happened in this country when people hid behind the church to seek retribution and retaliate against anyone they hated. The Salem Witchcraft Trials were not because the leaders actually believed the accused were witches and wizards. They only used what they caused the people to believe was true. They made use of what was done in Scotland, England, and other countries, paying people to hunt down the accused, and torture them into confessions that were only said to end the torture while knowing it would also result in their deaths.

The Salem Witch Trials were a continuation of the abuse of faith. Men and women did horrible things to innocent people and blamed God for all the terrible things they did.

"As years passed, apologies were offered, and restitution was made to some of victims and their families. In 1697, the Massachusetts General Court ordered a day of fasting and prayer in atonement for errors made by the colony, including the witchcraft trials. On this day one judge, Samuel Sewall, and 12 jurors, came forward to apologize for their roles in the Salem witch trials. The other magistrates never admitted there had been a miscarriage of justice, going to their graves believing they did what was best for the colony." (Salem Witch Museum)

The question is, did they apologize because they saw themselves for what they became, or did they do it because they carried so much guilt that every calamity became viewed as God's judgment against them?

On the morning of December 25—no holiday for the Puritans—Sewall buried his little daughter Sarah. That afternoon he sat in the family tomb and contemplated the coffins of his mother, father, cousin, and six dead children. In these gloomy surroundings he must have meditated on the Bible verses his son had read the previous day, especially Matthew 12:7 (“And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless”), which “did awfully bring to mind the Salem Tragedie.” Over the next three weeks Sewall prayed fervently for help, and by the time of the appointed fast day, he knew what he had to do. (American Heritage)

Let the words "and  if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,' you would have not condemned the gutless." (Matthew 12:7)

By most accounts, the trials played a major role in the 1st Amendment.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;"

We are all supposed to have our rights protected equally, no matter what faith we choose as well as the freedom to not participate in any form of religious affiliation. Some want to blame others for trying to take away their rights simply because they do not agree with them, while no one is trying to stop them from believing what they choose. The truth is, those screaming the loudest about are the ones trying to empower their faith to rule over everyone else. Not much different than what happened during the witch trials. Is it?

This is why no member of Congress, no court, and no law enforcement agency should assume the power to prevent citizens from making their own choices. There are plenty of choices for all of us. There are many different faiths, and even within Christianity for us to decide for ourselves. I choose the spiritual path and practice it daily and devotedly. I judge no one for what they believe because I can only judge what they do.

To me, it is less reprehensible for someone to be selfish, evil, power-hungry, and lie about it than it is for someone to claim to be a follower of Jesus while condemning others and spewing contempt for the Son of God they claim to follow and all He taught.

When we allow politicians to make laws because of what they claim they believe, we are no longer free to make our own choices. When we allow our rights to be eroded one by one, we are no longer the country we were meant to be.

The freedom to choose for ourselves what is right for our own families is being taken away from us. It is no longer our decision to raise our children with love and acceptance of their uniqueness. It is no longer acceptable for us, or anyone else, to value the souls of others above the bodies those souls live in. When I hear someone claim to be "pro-life" referring to the unborn, yet they support everything else that destroys the living, they become liars, proving they are pro-birth. Many different faiths in this country believe it is the living, those born with the soul from God within them, that should matter more. 

They condemn people for being "woke" when in fact they want to simply rectify the harm done to others because of the color of their skin. They condemn those who were born into a biological body that does not reflect who they are inside that body. It no longer matters to the "judges" if they are good, loving people treating others with respect and kindness, when they can turn around seeking the power to control them out of hatred.

Politicians use faith like a weapon and then when they cannot find support for their deeds among voters, they seek to remove the ability to vote against them.

Maybe it is time for Congress to have "a day of fasting and prayer in atonement for errors," made by Congress and all leaders in every state who have forgotten they are supposed to be representing all their citizens and not just the ones they seek to appease by abusing the power they were given.