Turning Point

In 1861, after years of tension in this country, our fledgling union began perhaps its first real test: At 4:30 am on April 12, Confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina’s Charleston Harbor. This has traditionally marked the beginning of the Civil War.

The war that followed was not only a tragic loss of life for many Americans but was also a turning point for this country. It was during this conflict that differing ideals and agendas were brought to bear and tested. The focused needs of the few striving to preserve their livelihood and way of life were tested against the young nation struggling to defend its union and the principles that it was founded upon.

At this point in the history of our nation, this conflict is nothing more than a chapter or two in the history books of our educational process. But the effects of this conflict can still be seen and felt today. As the war ended and the major conflict concluded, the underlying rift that resulted remained.

In a very real sense this country is now facing a new and very challenging turning point.

In the days to come, both politicians and individual Americans alike must all make some crucial and important decisions. I fear that after the events of January 6, 2021 when this nation’s capital and its occupants became the victim of a riot and a violent attack, we as a nation have been thrown into a new chapter in American history; one that will decide this nation’s future just as dramatically and crucially as that Civil War of so many years ago.

As a proud American, it is sad to watch the lines once again being drawn so deeply into the fabric of this nation as to divide us and bring us to violence against each other. And although the events of January 6 are tragic, and the loss of life and violence brought down upon our fellow Americans is unforgivable, the long-term effects of these events cannot yet be fully appreciated and measured.

I hope that the leaders of this nation, and we the people that our government supports, can fully understand, and consider beforehand the significance and the importance of the events that are about to take place.

If our government leaders over the next 24 hours can stand together against the tyranny and the violence that has been brought to bear against this nation, then possibly the nation will follow suit and be able to stand together as well. But if once again debate and decisions are split down party lines then I fear that there is an all too real possibility that once again this nation will be split along with it.

There are those that may read this narrative and decide that this is just another extreme far left or far right view put out into the world to stir dissension and create problems. However, we all need to realize that before the Civil War began before in this country, the population and the powers of the day were already riddled with tension and divided so strongly by the events of the day that certain members of this nation felt that violence was the only solution. At that time both sides of the conflict believed they were right; both sides were frantically fighting for their own future and for what they believed to be the best course of action for their ideals and their needs.

Regardless of your own political beliefs, it is important to realize that we stand at that very same brink now.

Before the first battle of this nation’s Civil War, there was no Confederate Army; there was only a collection of disgruntled American citizens and political and military leaders that felt the need to express their frustration with force rather than dialogue. Admittedly simplifying the situation, this took place because they did not feel their needs were being addressed; they did not feel their concerns were being heard. And when festering anxiety and tension turns to violence and what we today call domestic terrorism, if allowed to proceed unchecked, history has shown us that the next stage is Civil War.

I pray that the American people and the leaders of this nation can both remember the past so as not to repeat it and look to the future: not the future of their party, or their side, or their own personal needs, but the future of this challenged and fragile union and what is best for this country as a whole.

And specifically, I pray for the leaders of this nation, for whether they realize it or not they are in the throes of making history. Not the kind of history that will decide a new tax rate, or its new domestic policy, but the kind of history that will decide the fate of this nation.

In the end, I believe now as I always have: That this nation was founded upon our ability to gather together the differences of the world, bringing them together as one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all:

For all not for some.

In the end I believe that we can stand together as a nation even now.

The American people are watching. The world is watching.

How do you want history to remember you.