Marxism
Replacing God with the State
Communism
Combined with Atheism become Marxism
The Commonwealth of Australia has some in built principles that all people of this nation have a right to share in our common bounty. However, devoid of God, communism has a long and sordid history. Communism is a system of social structure which pits all humans into to opposing categories; the Bourgeoisie (elites) and the Proletariat '(oppressed groups). In his book The Communist Manifesto which was co-written with Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx argues the solution is for the state to own everything and then distribute the shared resources to all in a fair manner. Marx concludes that revolution is the way to implement new communist systems.
“The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. Workingmen of all countries, unite.”
Karl Marx - The Communist Manifesto
Like all false ideas, there is an element of truth within the error. The rich do take advantage of the poor (1 Samuel 8:10-18) and it is a good and Christ-like thing to have compassion on the vulnerable and share resources with those in need. (Mark 9:41). The first century church chose to lived in a communal form. (Acts 2:44-45). However, this was a voluntary choice which demonstrate how deeply their lives had been transformed. There was no compulsion or obligation for believers to give all their possessions to others, the state or even the church. (Acts 5:4) But a communist political system rejects human freedom and instead unilaterally sets up the State in the place of God. The state becomes the Holy Spirit, deciding good and evil choices.
When the state rejects Christian principles and replaces them with atheism, then just as in George Orwell's Animal Farm, significant state based oppression will quickly occur. Historically, communists nations achieve poor results for their people in terms of prosperity, freedom and life expectance. Consider North Korea or a host of other surveillance communist states.
However, the opposite of communism is not capitalism. Capitalism is a system whereby capital can be used to build compounding and generational wealth. In the Old Testament, God recognised the weakness of hoarding wealth and set up a system of Jubilee. Capitalism - devoid of values - contains many perils too. In both communism and capitalism, those who heap power to themselves can steal and unilaterally take the goods of others. Rather, free enterprise offers individuals to purse the Biblical principle of building working with their hands so they can bless others with the fruits of their own work.
Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
Ephesians 4:28
The concept of private property was established by God. When He provided the 10 commandments, He instituted the a system of private property in the 8th commandment - Thou Shalt Not Steal. Furthermore, commandments 6-10 all include the systemic belief that what other have, does not belong to you. For an ordered society, these 10 commandments are still true. When it comes to sharing, God desired a freely cheerful giver, not one who's property is taken out of compulsion.
A person's willingness to spend other people's money is not evidence that the person himself is compassionate.
Lawrence W. Reed
Cultural Marxism
State Controlled Thought
Karl Marx did not invent communism, but He brought it back and gave it an empirical revolutionary flavour. So Marxism is more than an economic governance system. Marxism is also a cultural system of revolution and domination. The West has entered a period where it is now reconsidering Marxism - not by name yet, but in principle. Those principles are starting with the cultural elements of Marxism. The ideas are being introduced through woke ideology. The ideology of identity politics recreates a new Proletariat who feel aggrieved and demand justice. In response, the state hears those cries and implements affirmative actions to try and balance our the results under an equity framework. Eventually an equity framework will result in financial redistribution and a new cycle of state sanctioned persecution.
Standing in the way of Cultural Marxism is Christianity and the principles that it espouses of original sin, redemption, equality, responsibility, and heart transformation. It is not possible for Christianity and Marxism to be synthesised. They are two diametrically opposed worldviews. This battle of ideology is why we can all feel the cultural tension and transition in the air that we breathe.
For those of us who are old enough to know or remember history, we can more easily see the tactics of this dangerous cultural revolution. However, children don't yet have the life experience to refute these seductive ideas. That is why the Marxist cultural revolution starts in the education system. Teacher and education unions are building curricula around rewriting history and indoctrinating children with critical theories. Schools and universities are the incubates for woke ideas, knowing that with a couple of decades, those ideas will be become mainstream popular thought.
Christian parents must not blindly outsource the raising of their children to the state. For this reason many churches rightly have established Christian schools as an extension of the Great Commission. They recognise that growing robust discipleship requires more than 1 hour of church per week. Parent's can outsource aspects of their children's education to school educators, but they cannot outsource the responsibility for the children that God has given them. God will not hold them blameless who throw their children to dangerous ideological lions. The church has an important job to assist Christian parents in their God given job of raising their children in the fear and admonition of the one and true living God.
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