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Who Are The
RIGHTEOUS?
Who Are The
RIGHTEOUS?
Proverbs 10 & 14
The date wasJune 14, 1942
The world was plunged into a
war that spanned the nations and geography
Into that muck and mire, Franklin D. Roosevelt
spoke these words...
“The belief in the four
freedoms of common
humanity—the belief in man,
created free, in the image of God-is the crucial…
…difference between
ourselves and the enemies we face today. In it lies the absolute
unity of our alliance,
opposed to the oneness…
…of the evil we hate. Here is our strength,
the source and promise of
victory. We ask the German people, still
dominated by their Nazi…
…whipmasters, whether they would rather
have the mechanized hell of Hitler's ‘New’
Order or—in place of that,
freedom…
…of speech and religion,
freedom from want and from
fear.
We ask the Japanese people,
trampled…
…by their savage lords of
slaughter, whether they would rather
continue slavery and blood or—in place of them,
freedom…
… of speech and religion, freedom from want and from
fear.
We ask the brave,
unconquered people of the…
…nations the Axis invaders
have dishonored and
despoiled whether they would rather
yield to conquerors or—have freedom of
speech and…
…religion, freedom from want and from
fear.
We know the answer. They
know the answer. We know that
man…
…born to freedom in the image of God, will not forever
suffer the oppressors’
sword.
Then FDR offered this
prayer!
On this Memorial Day
weekend, as we remember those
who have perished
fighting for the virtues and nobility of
freedom and truth…
…let us pause to remember the source of such freedom
and truth.
Proverbs 14:33-34
“Wisdom rests in the heart of him who has
understanding, but
what is in the heart of fools…
…is made known.
Righteousness exalts a nation,
but sin is a reproach to any
people.”
Our effort is not to
celebrate war, but to
understand its purpose when
absolutely needed.
To be clear, war is the
ultimate failure of mankind
and, perhaps, the highest
example of our fallen nature.
We Must Be a Righteous
People
Accountableto God
Romans 13:4
“For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in
vain…
…for he is God’s minister, an avenger to
execute wrath on him who
practices evil.”
St Augustine asserted,
peacefulness in the face of a grave wrong
that could only be stopped by violence would
be a sin.
Defense of one’s self or
others could be a necessity, especially
when authorized by a
legitimate authority
“They who have waged
war in obedience to
the divine command, or in conformity with His laws,
have represented in their persons…
…the public justice or the
wisdom of government, and in this
capacity have put to death wicked men; such persons
have by…
…no means violated the
commandment, ‘Thou shalt
not kill.’”Augustine in the
‘City of God’
We Must Be a Forgiving
People
HumilityBefore God
Thomas Aquinas used the
authority of Augustine’s
arguments as he laid out three
conditions under which a war
could be considered ‘just’.
‘Just’ War
Must be waged
by a Properly Instituted Authority
‘Just’ War
Must occur for a Good and Just Purpose
rather than for Self-Gain
‘Just’ War
Peace must be a Central
Motive even in the Midst of
Violence
England, Germany,
Japan, Mexico, Canada are but
a few of our
former enemies that we now count
as our greatest allies!
God establishes the deep moral
order whereby
righteous is defined!
“The memory of the
righteous is blessed...”Proverbs 10:7a