The great Abraham Lincoln once likened a hypocrite to "a man who murdered both his parents and then pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan." What is the difference between a man who murders the laws and values handed down by God and then pleads mercy on the grounds that the law is arbitrary? Think about it. Doesn't our current president Bill Clinton come to mind? Does it strike you as odd and a twist of irony that most likely Clinton is going to once again pull the wool over the eyes of the senators and go scot-free, despite overwhelming evidence that he lives by the lie? We say this on the day we honor the man to which a lie would be worse than death: Abraham Lincoln. It was also this humble sixteenth President of the United States who coined the words, "You can fool some of the people all of the time, all of the people some of the time, but never all of the people all of the time." Evidently he never envisioned the office he held so dear being so demeaned and trivialized as it is today when all respect for the highest ideals and moral values, which Lincoln exemplified, have been rebuffed as being out of tune with modern thinking. In fact, the only regular mention Honest Abe gets these days is about his bedroom where scores of Hollywood types, who perpetuate the same amoral attitude, slept during the past seven years.
Speaking of sleeping, that's what we've been doing as a nation. We've fallen into a stupor where right and goodness are weaknesses and immorality is the norm. More than some of the people have been duped most of the time. Over and over, Clinton has fooled the people and they just keep coming back for more lies, more cover ups, more of the same disregard for morals and values. This, folks, is a proud man who spits in the eye of God's virtues and gives lip service to platitudes only when it is politically expedient with nary a hint of sincerity or true contrition. Lincoln once said, "If once you forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem." Are you listening, Bill Clinton?
There was a big brouhaha last week over the article in People magazine which carried an eight-page feature on Chelsea Clinton and her relationship with her mother Hillary. The Clintons were upset that their daughter was being exploited, that she deserved to be protected from the media glare. They were quite concerned over protecting their child. Did it ever occur to them that what's good for the goose is good for the gander, or should we say what's bad for the goose is equally bad for the gander? While Bill Clinton is so concerned for his daughter, that didn't seem to phase him throughout all of his affairs dating back to his good ol' boy days in Arkansas right up through his tryst with Miss Monica. His being upset over Chelsea's innocence being exploited is merely a touch of tough touche! The results of his "playing around" caused not only scandal to our children, but, in fact, has done untold damage to all of God's children. Again, it was Lincoln who said, "Knavery and flattery are blood relations." Yet the more we listen to Clinton's lies, the more we condone his licentiousness. The more we flatter his lifestyle, the more we diminish our own value system while perpetuating the fraud. The accounts we have been subjected to because of the obscene, suggestive prurient details of the affairs and the lifestyle of this amoral man have immeasurably weakened the soul of America and, as Lincoln predicted, "we cannot escape history."
The real problem lies in the lack of our being upset. To quote Bob Dole who ran a weak, losing campaign the last time around, "Where is the outrage?" That's what we would like to know. Not just from the senators who have been appointed to try him, most of whom side with whichever way the political winds are blowing, but also from parents, preachers and promoters of goodness. We fear too few priests have tackled this issue, prefering to stay clear of it because, one it is a political issue; and two, it might rock the boat regarding the "economy issue." Ah the great economy issue. Here, too, is where so many have been fooled. They think Clinton is responsible for the economy. How wrong can they be? A country's economy is not forged overnight or instantly with the change of an administration, but is something that takes years, even a decade to materialize. Without getting political, the good fortune of today's economy in America began during the Reagan administration and then Bush. Clinton is just reaping the spoils.
Speaking of spoils, are we ever! Through the leadership of men like Clinton, we have dissected the laws and moral code to fit our whims. Clinton lives by the polls and his popularity; the hell with what is right. He would be wise to take the advice of his predecessor Honest Abe who counseled, "Avoid popularity if you would have peace." Clinton may think peace can be achieved by dispatching scud missiles on Iraq, but he would be even wiser to heed Lincoln's words, "Force is all-conquering, but its victories are short-lived." Looking at history we can see the shallowness of victories that do not have meaning. We gage victories today on how much we can get out of it. Greed has become the standard bearer on the front lines. We have become so complacent in our faith that we worship the almighty dollar and no amount of natural disaster omens or pleading has been able to stir the cold, hard, selfish hearts of a nation reveling in riches while much of the rest of the world experiences poverty. The Blessed Mother has said over and over and over again that this life is fleeting, that our economy will collapse and our nation will experience what Third World countries have suffered. Despite these warnings, we kowtow to satan's "pie-in-the-sky" platitudes and plow on out of stubborn pride as the Dow continues to rise skyward, dispelling any doubts that God knows what He's talking about in Sacred Scripture and through His Church. Only one voice speaks out clearly; albeit an aging, rasping voice that commands respect but, sadly, is considered out of touch by many of the duped ones. That voice is Pope John Paul II, the wisest, most widely known, most understanding, most trusted, most respected and most compassionate soul this century has known. Still only a handful of bishops and priests take up his clarion, only a few echo Christ's words in a sea of serpents slithering into our homes and our hearts. That is why the Holy Father has an accomplice, God's chosen messenger in His very Own Mother whom He has sent to set us straight. Still we snicker and continue on the path of destruction. When will we learn?!?
It surely will not be through the banality of the media and Washington D.C. where once we looked for guidance and right, but now is only a shallow replica of what the constitution intended. It is time for the priests and laity to stand and be counted, if not for us, then for the children. Isn't that the axiom spewed forth by the Clintons and Democrats who, in the depths of their hearts, are living the lie? If they were so concerned with "the children" would they condone abortion?!? No way, Jose! There is a double standard so evident that it duplicates the devil's desires. And we've all been willing pawns in this charade that cries out to Heaven for vengeance. Isn't it time we wake up and realize the lies? Isn't it time we realize the fact the emperor isn't wearing any clothes is a vice, not a virtue? Isn't it time we live up to what Abraham Lincoln envisioned for his people, what God expects of His children? If we can't answer "yes" to those last three questions, then we might as well continue to enjoy the good life and block out the inevitable that lies ahead, continuing blindly on this self-destructive course.
We leave you with another quote from Lincoln, "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us finish the work we are in." We echo his words for God has given us the signs to see the right and now it is up to the few who still exalt virtue and values to finish the work in which we are embroiled on this temporary territory called earth. Catholics must be united in this crusade to win back souls, to retrieve the darkened soul of our nation and to return our country and peoples to their rightful stature with God. Our lives depend on it. But we need the unified effort of all priests, bishops, religious and laity solidly behind the Vicar of Christ in this fight to the finish. They must be willing to speak out, to stand up for what is right and proper before God, to interlock arms of truth and love in this great battle to win back our "house of honor" for, besides the Word of God and Our Lady's constant admonitions, we have Lincoln's warning that "a house divided against itself cannot stand."