Force 'eh??

Dear Reader, whatever you may think of me, my late friend Keith Green, the long-departed A. W. Tozer or of the much earlier departed Catholic Bishop Fenelon I think the latter's words extremely important.

I discovered Tozer via a book at Keith's house when REZ Band was touring southern California. I was immediately struck by how honest, deep and solidly true I found nearly all he had to say. It was from Tozer quoting Fenelon I began to study the Bishop's writing and life.

Today I share with you a small piece of Fenelon's writings on the use of force penned toward the end of his life. He had in much younger years served under Catholic authorities and King Louis XIV -being put under authority into a situation where he had used force and persuaded the King and his superiors that it was not the witness of Christ that best represented Jesus, the church nor was even a fruitful practice way to persuade people in the long run:

"Above all never force your subjects to change their religion. No human power can penetrate the last defenses of the human heart. Men can never be convinced by force, it only creates hypocrites. When kings meddle with religion, instead of protecting it, they enslave it." -Fenelon’s Examination of Conscience on the Duties of Royalty, to Duc de Bourgogne.

I will simply leave his comment here for your consideration. Oh, there is much to say about why I fully agree, but perhaps I'll write on that another time.

As always, thanks for stopping by. -Glenn