The Powers That Be

For as long as man has enjoyed recorded history, a pattern of human behavior is repeated.  The pattern reappears, every now and again, no matter the point-in-time, the culture or geography; the forces of man collide marking times of great change.

This is not a new idea for students of history and those that learn from the past.  But all too often we never really recognize the significance of what is happening or when it is about to occur.  A deeper understanding of events only occurs afterwards.  After the shouting, the war, the assassination or the rebellion has reached its end, do people stop to consider what has happened, why it happened and did it deliver on the promise.

The examples below are meant to illustrate what happens when the winds of change impact the powers that be.  The French Revolution, the English Peasant Revolt or the treachery of the Pharisees are forces of men –  power and control of the few always collide with the free-will of the many.

Greed, power, control – when the few seem to have the lions share of money, wealth, government control or spiritual influence – the 99%ers blame those in the position of authority for their condition.

Historically speaking, there may be very little difference between the circumstances of the past and more modern events.   We hear from the media talking-heads and a few disenfranchised souls about the 1%ers – but I don't think the current dynamic is between the haves and have nots - the 99%ers and the 1%ers.  Today everyone is free, everyone can rise above their birth situation and anyone can accomplish great things.

The struggle is no longer a “have vs have nots” – but maybe it is now focused around those willing to scratch and claw for some sense of influence in their government versus those that do not want their existing circles of influence changed.

The political elite (the black helicopter politicians) want to hold on to control.  Who are these people?  I am not talking about money people.  I am talking about the back-room power brokers that want to maintain authority and control to the point where they will undermine the very will of the people – the will of everyone is the voting ballot.

This political elite seems willing to derail the power of the voting public.  It makes no difference the party of your choice – if anyone tries to unseat those with the power-behind-the-throne, the journey will be on a long and a bumpy road.

Are the events of today really so different than the past?

• Is the motivation of the people really any different today than the English serfs?

• Is the unimaginable national debt resulting in unfair burdens of  taxation?

• Is the Pharisees’ fear and betrayal any different than the established GOP actions?

These are worthy questions about the will of the people versus a few maintaining control.


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French Revolution

France in 1789 was one of the richest and most powerful nations in Europe. Only in Great Britain and the Netherlands did the common people have more freedom and less chance of arbitrary punishment.

Nonetheless, a popular rebellion would first to bring the regime of King Louis XVI of France under control of a constitution, then to depose, imprison, try, and execute the king and, later, his wife Marie Antoinette.

Many factors led to the revolution; to some extent the old order succumbed to its own rigidity in the face of a changing world; to some extent, it fell to the ambitions of a rising bourgeoisie, allied with aggrieved peasants and wage-earners and with individuals of all classes who were influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment.

As the revolution proceeded and as power devolved from the monarchy to legislative bodies, the conflicting interests of these initially allied groups would become the source of conflict and bloodshed.

Certainly, all of the following must be counted among the causes of the revolution:

• Resentment of royal absolutism.
• Resentment of the seigneurial system by peasants, wage-earners, and a rising bourgeoisie.
• The rise of enlightenment ideals.
• An unmanageable national debt, both caused by and exacerbating the burden of a grossly inequitable system of taxation.
• Food scarcity in the years immediately before the revolution.
• Disruption of status quo

Changed followed.


English Peasant Revolt

The Peasants' Revolt was fed by the economic and social upheaval of the 14th century.   At the start of the century, the majority of English people worked in the countryside, as part of a sophisticated economy that fed the country's towns and cities and supported an extensive international trade.

Across much of England, production was organized around manors, controlled by local lords – including the gentry and the Church – and governed through a system of manorial courts.

Some of the population were unfree serfs, who had to work on their lords' lands for a period each year, although the balance of free and unfree varied across England, and in the south-east there were relatively few serfs.   Some serfs were born unfree and could not leave their manors to work elsewhere without the consent of the local lord; others accepted limitations on their freedom as part of the tenure agreement for their farmland.  Population growth led to pressure on the available agricultural land, increasing the power of local landowners.

• Land owners holding control
• Serfs being enslaved
• Economic pressure post Black Plague
• Unfair and high taxation
• Disruption of status quo

Great change followed.



Betrayed by Pharisees

As the evening began, after Jesus and His disciples had celebrated the Passover, they came to the garden. At some point, Jesus took three of them—Peter, James and John— to a place separated from the rest. Here Jesus asked them to watch with Him and pray so they would not fall into temptation (Matthew 26:41), but they fell asleep. Twice, Jesus had to wake them and remind them to pray so that they would not fall into temptation. This was especially poignant because Peter did indeed fall into temptation later that very night when three times he denied even knowing Jesus. Jesus moved a little way from the three men to pray, and twice He asked His Father to remove the cup of wrath He was about to drink, but each time He submitted to the Father’s will. He was “exceedingly sorrowful unto death,” but God sent an angel from heaven to strengthen Him (Luke 22:43).

After this, Judas Iscariot, the betrayer, arrived with a “multitude” of soldiers, high priests, Pharisees, and servants to arrest Jesus. Judas identified Him by the prearranged signal of a kiss which he gave to Jesus. Trying to protect Jesus, Peter took a sword and attacked a man named Malchus, the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

Jesus rebuked Peter and miraculously healed the man’s ear. It’s surprising that witnessing this amazing miracle of healing had no effect on the multitude. Neither were they shaken by His awesome display of power as described in John 18:5-6, where either at the majesty of His looks, or at the power of His words, or both, they became like dead men, falling to the ground. Nevertheless, they arrested Him and took Him to Pontius Pilate, while the disciples scattered in fear for their lives.

The events that occurred in the Garden of Gethsemane have reverberated down through the centuries. The passion Jesus displayed on that momentous night has been depicted in music, books, and films for centuries. From the 16th century, when Bach wrote two magnificent oratorios based on the gospel accounts of Matthew and John, to the present day with the film The Passion of the Christ, the story of this extraordinary night has been told again and again.

Even our language has been affected by these events, giving us such phrases as “he who lives by the sword dies by the sword” (Matthew 26:52); “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Mark 14:38); and “sweating drops of blood” (Luke 22:44). Of course, the most important impact of this night was the willingness of our Savior to die on the cross in our place in order to pay the penalty for our sins. God “made Him who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is the gospel of Jesus Christ.

• Fear of Jesus
• Loss of authority
• Pharisees wanted control of money
• Disruption of status quo



http://en.wikipedia.org   Source of condensed history