Remember, Remember the 5th of November (to Vote like a Christian)
Remember, remember, the 5th of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, 'twas his intent
To blow up the King and the Parliament
Three score barrels of powder below
Poor old England to overthrow
By God's providence he was catch'd
With a dark lantern and burning match
Holler boys, holler boys, let the bells ring
Holler boys, holler boys
God save the King!
On November 5th, 1605, Guy Fawkes was caught guarding explosives under the House of Lords. He, along with his other conspirators, were Roman Catholics planning to assassinate the Protestant King James I. But, as John Milton wrote in his poem, In Quintum Novembris (above), God spared the life of the king.
Four centuries later, and I can’t help but find myself praying once more for God to intervene and save a nation from almost certain disaster.
November 5th, 2024, millions of Americans will go to the ballot box to cast their vote for the next president of the United States of America. Many will have already voted prior to the 5th, having participated in early voting. Likely, many won’t even read this until after they’ve voted, but I’d encourage you stick around, no matter when you’re reading this. What I’m about to write to you is applicable, so long as Christ has not yet returned.
Desiring a Christian Nation
America is atop multiple combustible elements, Guy Fawkes moments are everywhere we turn, and no one seems to care. But I want more than to see the explosive elements put away; I want to see peace and prosperity covering America. I want to see nothing less than a Christian Nation.
Of course, this means we need to recognize the explosives, wherever they may be. Some are easier to spot than others.
The LGBTQ+ agenda has attacked the sanctity of God-ordained marriage between one man and one woman, has encouraged a demonic type of gender-dysphoria among young people which we have not seen on such a grand scale before, and has blurred the distinction of the sexes. This, of course, has merely built upon the sinful foundation laid by the sexual revolution and the rise of feminism, which has sought to tear down the patriarchy and destroy human life, especially in the womb.
Tracing this even further back, we can actually see that all of this was built upon the lies of atheism and Darwinian evolution, which sought to undermine and destroy Christianity.
And, today, one political party stands upon this twisted foundation, fighting against all that is good and holy, right and true, admirable and beautiful: the Democrat party.
What we have before us, in the Democratic party, is more than just a ticking time bomb threatening to destroy our constitutional republic. What we have is an anti-Christ party, effectively worse than a Jezebel and Ahab combo. This, unfortunately, has basically been the Democrat platform for a while now. And, amazingly enough, a large percentage of the country actually wants this. Even more amazingly, certain Christians are making their allegiance to the Democrat party known.
No doubt about it, America is in danger. If we have any hope at all of stopping Guy Fawkes this time around, then we need to stop playing around. Politics is not a “game of thrones.” It’s not entertainment. It’s serious business. And, so long as this nation is a constitutional republic, our vote counts. But we need to make sure it counts for the right thing—that is to say, we need to vote for the Christian thing.
No More Christless Conservatism
At this point, there should be no doubt in the reader’s mind how I’m voting (or voted, depending on when you read this): I’m going Republican, straight down. This isn’t because I believe the Republicans can save the nation, nor do I think that Trump is somehow the second coming. In fact, I’m pretty fed up with the Republican party as it exists currently, since they’re acting like slightly more moderate liberals with their favorable stances on certain LGBTQ+ and abortion issues.
In fact, I recognize that what I’m doing this election is just putting a band-aid over a festering wound. The rot is spreading and we need a cure. The Republican party, as it exists now, is not that cure. Only Christ can save this nation.
Now, I recognize many of my friends refuse to vote for Trump due to his stance on abortion being a state’s choice, and so forth. I think that’s commendable and I respect their decision to not vote for him due to their own convictions. So long as they’re not voting for Harris, I can’t fault them for their choice.
Personally, however, I think that it will be easier for Christians to work with the Trump administration than the Harris administration. That said, whatever the results may be, God is still sovereign. He is still enthroned. Our work doesn’t end, no matter who sits in the oval office.
What this means, then, is that this variation of “Christless Conservatism,” which is just a slightly less progressive liberalism, is not going to cut it in the long run. Christless Conservatism is a sham. It is no more Conservative than Guy Fawkes was a Protestant.
What we need is a Conservatism built upon Christ and His Word. Rather than a Christless Conservatism, we need a Christ-filled Conservatism. We need a Conservatism that sees, within Scripture, what is true, good, and beautiful and worth conserving.
Some have called this Paleoconservatism, which has its benefits. Pat Buchanan and Tucker Carlson are notable figures holding to a variation of this type of Conservatism, but what I’m arguing for is a genuinely Christian Conservatism. It will take hard work and dedication, but it is doable. We can see the Word of God govern our land once more.
What does this look like, though? First and foremost, Christ-filled Conservatism seeks the glory of God in all things for our nation and our people. Therefore, it applies the Law of God to our legislative efforts. Holiness, effectively, becomes the law of the land.
Next, it actively views America as a Christian Nation. I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of pretending that America was not founded by Christians. Review the data, read the history, pick up a few biographies, and it becomes very clear, very quickly, that our founding Fathers were, by and far, Christians. The heritage of America is Christian and, if she will have a future, she needs to return to this Christian heritage.
And, of course, a truly Christian Conservatism would seek to conserve and preserve everything that is true, good, and beautiful according to Scripture.
We may need a new party—a Christian Conservative Party, if you will. But, whatever the case, we must work with what we have for the time being, while actively looking forward to what happens in the next four years. We need to start planning now to reform our churches, rebuild our communities, and reclaim our culture for Christ.
I’m writing this not knowing what is going to transpire November 5th, 2024. But I will encourage you all the same: Remember, remember, the 5th November… and vote and live like a Christian.