We are living in fear
“Do not be afraid of t hose who k i l l t h e b o d y b u t c a n n o t k i l l t h e soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” - Matthew 10: 28.
last week’s article, I wrote about t he pervading at mosphere of fear that is permeating almost all spheres, throughout our puny, but beautiful kingdom, lately. Sadly, it continues - unrelenting. Uneasy calm has returned. Sadly, from the looks of things, our government, seemingly, is hell bent on its crusade of perpetuating the reign of fear.
Events, which continue t o t ake place at a frightening, and frantic pace, are testimony to the fact that as a people resident in this kingdom bona fide Emaswati citizens we h a v e b e c o me a l i e n s i n o u r o wn country. Fear continues to hold us to ransom. To say we are living on the edge - and dangerously so - would be the under- statement of the year. We are as good as, “dead men, walking.” I cannot go deeper into the reasons why this is so, since some of the topical issues are currently sub- judice - that is, before a judge or court, not yet judicially decided.
I NRUN FOR DEAR LIFE
Suffice it for me to say, though, that I think I should mention here that I am always fascinated by how rats run for dear life at the mere sight of humans. I cannot help, but equate our current predicament based on fear, to the actions of these repulsive creatures. Some of us cringe, and cower in fear, lately, at the mere sight of a police officer, who is leisurely going about his policing rounds, or the imposing, and menacing sight of members of the army, prowling around the streets, like a predator looking for prey. Cry the country!
The hegemony, and apparent reign of fear continues obstinately, and from the looks of things, it is will not end any time soon. Seemingly, things will take a little while before things return to normalcy - if ever.
Surely, one thing I cannot help, but point out is that any semblance of cohesion, or unity, has been irrevocably destroyed - unless, we all, from the greatest to the smallest, commit to dialogue - serious dialogue.
Please go over again over the above quote, and try to digest every word.
My two- cents worth of opinion, or intellect, tells me that the above quote is a divine warning, and promise, reassuring God’s creation that there is a Higher Power up there who is in control of every single event that is taking place in our sinful and broken world. We are shaken, fearful of being persecuted, and even killed by our fellow compatriots, posing as our protectors, for standing on the side of Truth.
In the above quote, God specifically warns us against fearing ( as opposed to respect) any other person, other than Him. Yes, we are under the imperfect, physical rule of human leaders, and yes, God has allowed human rulers to have authority over His creation; but, He expects leaders to rule over His creation with fairness, justice, and to refrain from striking fear into the hearts of His people.
BEYOND COMPREHENSION
What we are currently experiencing in the country, is beyond comprehension. Our leadership is behaving in a very perplexing manner. The famous spirit of Swati tolerance and belief in dialogue is nowhere to be found. Instead, it is threats galore, and acts of retribution against those perceived as enemies of the State. Are we being tested? Is there an unseen power of i mmense pr oport i ons, i nsi di ousl y orchestrating ungodly things behind the scenes?
Bi b l e p r o p h e c y p r e d i c t s a t i me, sooner than later, that will be ushered i n wher e o u r l o y a l t y t o God - o r, to human leaders - will be tested. I believe that we are fast approaching that time now.
The crucial question is: Should we l i ve i n f ear of mankind, or r at her, should we only fear Him who stands for truth - who is Truth itself - the One who warns us in the above, quoted verse? Are we going to compromise truth, because we are fearful of those in our midst who have the power to physically harm our bodies, but cannot, in their wildest dreams, kill both body, and soul... throwing us into the fiercely burning furnace that is hell? It is crucial that we understand that:
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” 2 Timothy 1: 7
Paul, here, r eminds Timothy t hat God has given us a sound mind. . . . Thi s means y o u r t h o u g h t s c a n b e shielded f r om t he l i es of t he devil — ridiculous, unfounded and crazy thoughts that have tried to grip your mind in the past. Or present. Is this what is currently playing itself out in the minds of the nation? What has happened to that... sound mind, maSwati akitsi, nani ma leaders?
VINDICTIVE MINDSETS
What i s currently t aking place i n t h e c o u n t r y p r o v e s t h a t v i o l e n c e , vindictive mindsets, and the choking spirit of l awlessness, has r eplaced morality, and Godly l ove. There i s not only violence perpetrated by the usual criminal sectors in our society, but there increasingly are signals that there exists both State, and people’s v i o l e n t t e n d e n c i e s , a s well a s t h e persecution of defenders of truth. Our leaders are now seemingly leading the pack in acts of lawlessness.
Godly l ove - t he l ove we profess to have for our compatriots as leaders, and as a nation - has now been replaced by witch- hunting, and pers e c u t i o n o f t h o s e p e r c e i v e d t o b e rabble- rousers. The divisions, hatred, threats, resentment against our leadership, is destroying every fibre of the fabric of our society which used to bond us together as emaSwati.
Brother hates brother... It is a complete mess.
We have come to the conclusion that whatever we utter in words, has to be carefully weighed in, lest it lands one i nto t rouble. As people, we cannot freely exercise our fundamental right of freedom of expression, inclusive of numerous other rights. The “democracy” we tell whoever cares to listen, that it is at work here in the country, is relentlessly pointing to the glaring fact that we are still living in a cage - at the mercy of our leaders. Is this life?
As I write this article, in exercise of my right to freedom of expression - as enshrined in our Constitution - someone, or a group of people - tormented souls who dearly need t he calming Spirit of the Holy Ghost - could already be planning evil against yours truly. Why, one may ask? As a people, we want to be constantly told a little l i e, now and again. We t hri ve and glorify on living a lie, as opposed to Truth.
DEMOCRATIC ENVIRONMENT
I still humbly insist that God created us humans to live under a a democratic environment. The concept of democracy had been desecrated, and turned i nto a t ool of oppression by many ungodly leaders, globally.
Let me share with t he reader t his very enlightening article, titled, “The Global Disorder and the Rise of Despotism”, published in May 2019, in the “News” publication of Australia, found at, www. internationalaffairs. org:
“. . . Profess or J ohn Keane of t he University of Sydney spoke t o t he Institute ( Australian Institute of International Affairs) about the rise of new poli t i cal r egi mes t hr eat eni ng established, power- sharing democracies around the world, best described by an old t erm, despotism. Rising gl obal powers s uch as Russia and China, and many smaller countries like Turkey, Hungary, Saudi Arabia and Turkmenistan, all share similarities that distinguish them from more customary labels such as totalitarian, authoritarian or dictatorial.
“He noted that these despotic regimes are entangled, not only financially and politically, but also ideologically in seeking to undermine the established global order of the rule of law and democracy. All of these despotic regimes consider themselves democracies of some sort ( Russian ‘ managed democracy’ or Chinese ‘ peoples’ democracy’) and ground t heir authority i n t he sovereignty of their citizens, whilst proclaiming their version of democracy as superior to the traditional western concept.
“These despotic regimes employ t o o l s whi c h g i v e t h e i l l u s i o n o f democracy without ceding any real p o l i t i c a l p o wer t o t h e c i t i z e n r y. They are ‘ phantom democracies’; like phantom pregnancies, people experiencing them think they’re real.
DESPOTIC REGIMES
“Professor Keane identified nine features shared by the new despotic regimes: ( 1) despotic regimes understand that consent of the people is the source of their continued hold on power ( 2) each despotic regime is built upon patron- client relations that undermine the rule of law ( 3) all despotic regimes are plutocratic, employ state capitalism and produce vast inequality of wealth ( 4) despotic regimes control all forms of political discourse, often presenting conflicting positions, so as to both at t r act and i s ol at e i t s population and prevent any serious independent movement against the state
5) Despotic regimes have l arge, wealthy middle classes ( 6) all despotic r egimes practice el ecti ons, though no real power is entrusted to the citizenry ( 7) despotic regimes utilise broad state media apparatuses t o propagate t heir i deologies ( 8) despotic regimes camouflage state violence t hrough fear and t orture ( 9) al l despotic r egimes cl ai m t o exemplify societies founded on the rule of law, though in reality this is a façade, rife with corruption and injustice..” Unquote.
As a person who believes in subscribing to Godly principles, I am sincere in my beliefs that there is still ample time to prevent total anarchy f r o m t e a r i n g t h i s c o u n t r y a p a r t . This can be achieved through commitment to dialogue from all sides. Being vindictive, and proving our might over the defenceless, will do more harm than good. Some of us are pained by the hatred we feel playing itself out from both the governing, and the governed.
Let us, as a nation, and leaders take note of the words of Martin Luther King, Jr.: “Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.”.. Shalom!