From: johnyreb43@yahoo.com
Hi Confederates,
I have come to the belief that it is difficult, if not impossible to be a Christian and Pro Southern at the same time. To be a Christian must always be first, and therefore one cannot ever accept slavery as right. When you accept that liberty comes from God Himself, you cannot then embrace slavery, or make excuses for it, just as you cannot now make excuses for abortion, drug abuse, legalized prostitution and all the other evils that fill America today!
And yet, once I am past slavery, I love the South. I love its priorities, its ties to the land, its heritage and history. I love its heroes, who could not want to emulate men like Lee and Jackson, Dowling and the Johnstons? Who could not be proud of what the South accomplished, in the past and today?
And yet it persists. Racism is not a one way street. It flows abundantly in all directions. Racism is Satan's tool, pushing Christ out of the South in so many ways. And if someone like me talks about that, ...well it is a clear sign you are not Southern. It's clear you have accepted the Yankee propaganda. (I see the devil in these words...)
Racism is NOT a result of slavery. Racism exists across the world, it is a burden carried by all humanity. But slavery was a result of racism and greed. And while many condemn me for saying it, clearly slavery was and is a sin.
There is so much that we can learn from the South. So much that could be applied to today's problems. Pride in America begins with pride in your local area and state. And for the South, there are volumes of history which can bring useful pride. But separate good from bad. The United States is not perfect, and neither was the Confederacy. Humanity is condemned to imperfection. It is a birthright we can not shake or depart from. It is the reason we need God.
I know many in the "Southern movement" would prefer we not talk of the evils of slavery, that we just ignore it. Many will say, "only 5% of southerners owned slaves." This is their way of marginalizing it, minimizing it. But the entire Southern economy was built on slavery. And for the Yankees, it was their means, their excuse to loose the hounds of war against a part of the nation so different, so contrary to their purposes.
The race issues we face today would not exist had there not been slavery...because they would not be here!
Why am I writing this? Because there are so many good men in the SCV whom I miss. Many of you do good work and believe in Christ first. To those of you, I miss our time. I guess I am just human and airing out some old laundry.
I wish the SCV could be so much more than it is...a history group. I wish it had the spirit of its ancestors to be a political force. Much of what is the Cause is good and applicable to today. America is suffering because there is no political voice for what is right. And while so many grannies will say the SCV cannot be that voice, I so totally disagree...having been in politics and governance for 15 years and knowing what other non profits do to further their own points of view. Vindication of the Cause is a righteous endeavor, and a political one, not a history class, but a cause to fight for today.
But alas the divides are too large. It is easier to live in the inertia of infighting then to unite for "a glorious cause"... George Washington's term.
The summer is almost over, and I wish for all across the South a grand fall. Football will soon the air once again. But remember in November there will be much to do to change the course of this nation. That course must move closer to the Cause of the South, to the policies of the Confederate Constitution... to the reasons the South decided to leave the union. It's all there, if you read it.
God Bless the South,
Mark Vogl
PS ...My ancestor did own a slave, so I am neither throwing stones at others, nor am I being disrespectful to an ancestor I am very proud to call mine.
