walking after the desires of his own heart

"He did not keep the commandments of God, but he did walk after the desires of his own heart…. And he did cause his people to commit sin, and do that which was abominable in the sight of the Lord…” (Mosiah 11.2).

In my previous blog entitled, “Gadianton Robbers Among Us” (6 November 2019), I quoted Helaman 7.4-6 in which Mormon lamented the destructive corruption that ran rampant in Nephite government in the lifetime of Nephi II. He lamented the existence of “Gadianton robbers” who were “filling the judgment–seats.” These robbers had “usurped the power and authority of the land; laying aside the commandments of God, and not in the least aright before him; doing no justice unto the children of men; condemning the righteous because of their righteousness; letting the guilty and the wicked go unpunished because of their money.” Their objectives were crystal clear to Mormon and, indeed to anyone with the slightest degree of discernment: “that they might get gain and glory of the world, and, moreover, that they might the more easily commit adultery, and steal, and kill, and do according to their own wills.”
 
Obviously, my referencing Mormon’s critique of Nephites society is not happenstance. I believe with the utmost conviction—a conviction that borders on or crosses over to that of testimony—that this Nephite experience is utterly applicable to what we are today witnessing in the administration of America’s Caligula.
 
This conviction has been strengthened as I have heard and read testimony presented during the recent impeachment hearings. All that this administration has done in and to Ukraine has been for the purpose of “get[ting] gain and glory of the world, and, moreover, that they might the more… do according to their own wills,” constitution and morality be damned. Even if there were no moral or physical harm done to the Ukrainian people (who really cares, anyway, that Ukrainian soldiers and civilians almost certainly died in combat against their Russian opponents because Caligula had a personal, not national, interest in withholding needed funding in hopes of seeing a political opponent smeared. Certainly not Americans of the immoral “America First” persuasion) the immoral conduct of this would-be-emperor right here on the American shores should be enough to convince any decent person that he must be removed from the office that he has so thoroughly besmirched. 
 
The moral harm done to an ally, along with the vile and unconstitutional behavior of Caligula and his little band of robbers, would in themselves be enough to fill a book-length blog. In considering Caligula’s infamy, I have been reminded of one of the Book of Mormon’s most notorious and villainous characters: Wicked King Noah. He, too, was guilty of a book-length list of moral harms and “unconstitutional” behavior. Today, I will explore just one evil that these two perverted men—wicked King Noah and America’s Caligula—have in common.
 
The enlightened social critic, Mormon, records that Noah
 
“...changed the affairs of the kingdom. For he put down all the priests that had been consecrated by his father, and consecrated new ones in their stead, such as were lifted up in the pride of their hearts” (Mosiah 11.4-5).
 
Now, we must first understand that in the context of ancient societies and cultures “priest” was not simply a religious title with purely religious functions. Rather, “priest” is indicative of an administrative position that is part of the government. There is no such thing as a “secular” government in the ancient world. This was true right on through the Middle Ages. In fact, it can legitimately be argued that the United States of America is the first secular government ever formed. It was the invention of the “founding fathers.”
 
Anyway, King Noah’s new-fangled public officials primarily served a propagandistic purpose. Their principle function was to act as King Noah’s “yes-men” that “they should speak lying and vain words to his people” (Mosiah 11.11).
 
No doubt, Noah’s criminal innovation was initially met with skepticism in many quarters and was viewed as strange, outside accepted norms—its long-term implications not fully appreciated. However, with time, its dire consequences became ever more apparent. In the end, the destructive nature of the crime became absolute.
 
Since his election, we have witnessed Caligula “put down” experienced, competent, respected, constitution loving, and patriotic public servants and diplomates who dare challenge his flouting of constitutional principles and his claim to “absolute” rights and powers—“do according to [his] own will.” Often—in fact, normally—he has intimidated, slandered, demeaned, and bullied them. He has rudely and crudely fired them. He has replaced them, surrounded himself with criminals—I have lost count of the number of Caligula’s associates who have been convicted of felonies and are serving prison sentences.
 
“Thy princes are rebellious,
   and companions of thieves:
every one loveth gifts,
   and followeth after rewards…” (Isaiah 1.23)
 
 Caligula demands all around him to be sycophants. Cult followers. Yes men and yes women. Individuals fully willing, anxious, even, to defile themselves by “speak[ing] lying and vain words to his people.”


However, with the beginning of impeachment hearings, Caligula’s “changing the affairs of the kingdom” and “putting down” of those who have faithfully served their country has escalated. His slander of loyal, life-long diplomates such as George Kent and Bill Taylor (“a pitiful, ignorant insubordinate gossip” according to Caligula’s gaddianton-style attorney) have reached new lows, below contemptible. They are positively unholy and ungodly. They are, to put it bluntly, satanic.
 
His vile hordes have stooped so low as to suggest that with a name like “Yovanovitch,” the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, perhaps, had Ukrainian interests more in mind than American—i.e., her resistance to Caligula’s immoral and unpatriotic dealings with Ukraine was, somehow, treasonous. This they do to a faithful public servant who earned the “Senior Foreign Service Performance Award” six times and the State Department's “Superior Honor Award” five times. Caligula, himself, has offered veiled and intimidating threats against her. She is “the woman”—the millionth evidence of his ungodly misogyny—of whom Caligula threateningly said, “She’s going to go through some things” as colleagues were warning her that she should leave Ukraine, as she was no longer safe there.
 
Unfortunately, politicians on the right—co-conspirators who have sworn to uphold the 
constitution--have decided that Caligula is not to be held accountable for his 
unconstitutional and/or immoral, unethical misdeeds—surely, if Caligula’s behavior does not warrant impeachment, then impeachment is no longer constitutionally meaningful and our republic can go down any and every darkest path imaginable. Hail Caesar.
 
Politicians on the right, of course, are only looking after their own interests. Indeed, the gaddianton-style senate leader, McConnell, “told Republican Senators their best bet was to calibrate their own message about the impeachment inquiry to fit their political situation” (Every Republican for himself: McConnell told senators in closed door meeting to come up with their own Trump defense,” Tom Boggioni, rawstory.com, emphasis added).
 
Wicked King Noah would be proud to have such loyal sycophants.
 
Having said all this, we have only skimmed the surface of the right’s toxic and 
blasphemous support of the man-who-would-be-emperor. We have still not come to the worst, the vilest, the most ungodly part of the despicable state in which our country has entered. Oh, no. Not by a long shot.
 
American politicians on the right are only puppets. Marionettes without a soul. Others pull the strings. And, lo and behold, it is “Christians” who are their puppet masters. It is “Christians” who, shamefully, put in the White House the vile man who lives up in every moment to his moniker, Caligula. It is “Christians” who have concluded that their anti-messiah—their “vessel” to use their perverted theological term—cannot be held accountable, no matter of what evil he is guilty.
 
My own people—the people formerly known as Mormon—long ago concluded that “when the prophet speaks, the debate is over.” Christians have adopted the same nonsense about their precious anti-messiah. He is not to be questioned. Though they would not have maintained—no, not in a million millenniums—such a position when Barack Obama was president, they have now concluded that the apostle Paul had it right after all.
 
“Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation” (Romans 13.1-2).
 
How very convenient!. It was by means of the exact same type of scriptural wresting that American “Christians” justified slavery and would, no doubt, reinstitute the practice if ever they gained control of our government. May we never be a “Christian” nation!
 
But, we can thank God that the “founding fathers” who American “Christians” claim so vociferously to honor, felt free to act contrary to American “Christianity’s stupid scripture wresting of Pauline writings and so resist the King of Britain—whose power, by American “Christians’” lights, must have been ordained of God, as the king, himself, most certainly maintained. And we can thank God for such loyal, devoted, and patriotic followers of Jesus as Abinadi, who, free of the same American “Christians’” stupid scripture proof-texting, stood boldly against the wiles of wicked King Noah even though “the eyes of the people were blinded” and “they hardened their hearts against the words of Abinadi” (Mosiah 11.29). Even though it ultimately cost him his life.
 
We desperately need principled Christians like Abinadi. Yes, we need them to stand against immoral and unconstitutional leadership such as that represented by Caligula. But something else; something at least equal in importance to the survival of America’s constitution, perhaps, is at stake: the very soul and survival of Christianity in America.
 
“…the wickedness of the church was a great stumbling–block to those who did not belong to the church; and thus the church began to fail in its progress” (Alma 4.10).

"They also became idolatrous, because they were deceived by the vain and flattering words of the king and priests; for they did speak flattering things unto them” (Mosiah 11.7)