Essay:The Survivalist Mindset - A Biblical Case for Preparedness and Self-Defense

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Conservative Politics and The Survivalist Mindset - A Biblical Case for Preparedness and Self-Defense

“A prudent person foresees the danger ahead and takes precautions; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.” – Proverbs 22:3

“Compassion is the key to the ultimate survival of our species.” ― Doug Dillon

In this essay I will discuss the justifications for preparedness, self-defense and home security. Most of the reasons, as the title of the essay indicates will be from a religious point of view, predominantly Christian and Biblical. However, to dispel leftist propaganda, I will also discuss how many orthodox conservative Asian Buddhists now living freely in America escaped the genocidal communist dictatorships of China, Russia, Vietnam, Korea, Mongolia, Burma, and Cambodia. These conservative Asian orthodox Buddhists, as opposed to the numerous liberal Buddhist dilettantes - New Agers - hippies, see Buddhist scriptural and historic justification for preparedness, and the use of firearms for self-defense, home security, and as defense against big government tyranny as they endured and fought in the atheist Asian communist nations.

The most important reason that American conservatives, many American Christians, many conservative Asian-born Buddhists (who escaped communism to the liberty of America), many veterans, most Patriots, almost all preppers, all gun enthusiasts, many libertarians and some more moderate liberals invest in and use firearms is for the simple reason that '"Criminals never follow laws"'—especially progressive police state created gun control, ammunition control and gun free zone laws.

Criminals by Nature Never Follow Laws

Ammunition control, gun control and gun free zones have always been absurd left wing "unicorn utopia" pollyanna fantasies of the Anti-self-defense movement, for the simple reason that criminals by their nature never follow laws.

A huge campaign of disinformation on guns is pushed daily on our TVs and Internet devices. It has nothing to do with public safety or preventing mass shootings of innocent people. No law against "guns and ammo" would have stopped the evil Muslim jihad terrorists murder 12 people at the gun free zone in Paris at Charlie Hebdo or Adam Lanza at Sandy Hook Elementary school – violent criminals will always break laws and be violent with all kinds of devices – they don't need guns (as evidenced by the high amount of knife crime and knife murders in "gun free" United Kingdom and Australia).

Thomas Jefferson said, "Laws that forbid the carrying of arms...disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man.”

If we truly wish to increase public safety, then we should make laws whereby immediate armed responses by good civilians are allowed and encouraged – now that will save our children and stop these senseless massacres by madmen. President James Monroe said on November 16, 1818, "The right of self-defense never ceases. It is among the most sacred, and alike necessary to nations and to individuals."

Jefferson said, "The constitutions of most of our States assert that all power is inherent in the people; that... it is their right and duty to be at all times armed;..." (Thomas Jefferson letter to Justice John Cartwright of the Supreme Court, June 5, 1824. 1824. ME 16:45).

No, this progressive police state "gun grabbing" movement is more ominous in nature, and it ties into an alarming political change in the United States – the exact kind our wise Founding Fathers worried about. "To disarm the people [is] the best and most effectual way to enslave them…" (George Mason, 3 Elliot, Debates at 380, June 14, 1788)

God and Guns: Your Biblical Right to Self Defense

In American today there is an overemphasis on the “power of prayer” (especially by those in the Pentecostal and charismatic movements) which has misled many into making zero preparations.

There is, of course, nothing wrong with prayer, in fact Christians are commanded to pray. But the old phrase "Praise the Lord, and pass the ammo" is worth repeating as well. Jesus Himself told his followers to be "wise as serpents". And how many of us had trouble finding toilet paper in March 2020?

Christianity and Physical Preparedness

One may ask how a Christian can justify preparedness in light of their Christian faith. One could cite the "Lilies of the Field" passage:

"Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, [shall he] not much more [clothe] you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof." Matthew 6:25-34 (KJV)

New York Times best-selling conservative Christian libertarian preparedness author James Wesley Rawles states that, "It seems people are misinterpreting these verses. These are verses about 'worry', not about work or preparedness. Never does the Bible teach that we should laze about and not provide for our families. Earning our daily bread is the Godly way to live. We are taught not to be lazy or dependent on others. Yes, we are to trust in God’s providence, but nowhere do the scriptures absolve us of the responsibility to work or to save up for lean times. Consider these four verses from the book of Proverbs":

"He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain [persons is] void of understanding.." Proverbs 12:11, KJV

"In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips [tendeth] only to penury." Proverbs 14:23, KJV

"The desire of the slothful killeth him; for his hands refuse to labour." Proverbs 21:25, KJV

"The thoughts of the diligent [tend] only to plenteousness; but of every one [that is] hasty only to want." Proverbs 21:5, KJV

Food Storage

The Bible encourages storing food:

"And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which [was] round about every city, laid he up in the same. And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for [it was] without number." Genesis 41:47-49 (KJV)

"And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, were ended. And the seven years of dearth began to come, according as Joseph had said: and the dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph; what he saith to you, do. And the famine was over all the face of the earth: And Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy [corn]; because that the famine was [so] sore in all lands." Genesis 41:53-57 (KJV)

Mahayana Buddhist Scriptural Support for Self Defense

The Bodhisattva Vows of the Brahma Net Sutra support the use of weapons for self-defense, home security, and stopping evil-doers such as rapists and murderers from, in a future life, falling into a lower realm such as the hell-realm, ghost-realm, animal-realm, or a lower human rebirth due to their negative karma cause and effect (sin)

Bibliography - Further Reading

• Party, Boston T., Boston's Gun Bible. Wyoming American Redoubt Javelin Press, 2008. Contains an entire chapter devoted to why Christians, conservatives and libertarians are preppers.
• Party, Boston T., Molon Labe!. Wyoming American Redoubt Javelin Press, 30 January 2004, 454 pp (first edition, paperback), ISBN 1-888766-07-7 - Conservative Christian Libertarian dystopian fiction novel entirely based around the issue of States' rights and the Tenth Amendment's connection with the Second Amendment right to armed citizen defense against federal tyranny. Contains many long discussions on why Christians, conservatives and libertarians are preppers.