Typical NAR interjecting the Marxist boogey-man, but Hyatt fails to see how his argument works against him as well. Creating a false heritage to push your modern-day political agenda is no better than persuading people in the other direction. They are both based on making people vulnerable to be molded into the image you prefer. I pass no judgment on the 1619 project who are simply trying to point out that this country was built upon the backs of slaves who were brought over to this country starting in 1619. What I will call nonsense on is the notion that there was a revival in 1726 that ended slavery. Hyatt not only tries to sell this, but he wrote a book about it. Slavery, however, would not be ended for 137 years after 1726 and only after a brutal Civil War. The south was clearly never "revived" and many in the south remain the same way to this day. The United States was one of the last countries to end their slave trade. We were not forerunners.
"Proclaiming this truth about America's history is critical, for as George Orwell said in his classic book "1984," "Whoever controls the past, controls the future." And commenting on the demise of nations in world history, Carl Sandburg, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, said, "When a nation goes down, or a society perishes, one condition may always be found; they forgot where they came from. They lost sight of what had brought them along" (Hyatt, 11). Proclaiming the truth of how America was birthed out of a great, spiritual awakening is of paramount importance. This "Great Awakening," which began in 1726, gave birth to an anti-slavery movement and resulted in America's founders turning against slavery at a time it was accepted and practiced in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and most of the world (Hyatt, 90)." - Eddie Hyatt
This may explain why Hyatt is so bent on controlling history by rewriting what occurred. The Sandburg quote might have merit if Hyatt were not lying so much. By forcing a different version of history, Hyatt is essentially trying to force people to remember where they really came from. The truth is we are a great secular nation. The best human experiment in history. We have done this world a great good through the years but hardly perfect. We were built on slavery and the inhumane treatment of the "others" remains not only a blight in our history but a continuing feature in our country today. Hyatt gives up the game here though. In order for his false narrative to work, he needs to proclaim 1726 and ignore 1619. To me, we should probably stick to 1776 and not rewrite in either direction. Our nation however was birthed in rebellion for financial considerations, not some pious cause.
"As a result, America's founding documents are colorblind, with no classifications based on race, ethnicity or skin color. It was the influence of Christianity that made this possible and also enabled the nation to abolish slavery and defeat Jim Crow, segregation and so many other societal ills. Yes, it is time to push back against the dismantling of Christianity in America. I, therefore, invite you to join thousands of others and me in this fight for our heritage of faith and freedom. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln and Dr. Martin Luther King would all agree." - Eddie Hyatt
Again, Hyatt pretends that revival struck America in 1726 that ended slavery, but slavery did not end for another 137 years. What ended slavery was not enlightenment but rather the slaughter of over 600,000 people in the Civil War. Surely Eddie must realize that if the South had won that war, slavery would not have ended at all! Southern Christians and Christian leaders used the bible to promote that slavery was somehow ordained, so spare us the false pious rewrite. It is too transparent. Defeat Jim Crow? That was over another hundred years, and many will argue it is still being waged. Eddie's absurd racism is showing too clearly. Follow his logic. According to Eddie Hyatt there was an awakening revival in America in 1726. He points to this event as what changed our minds about slavery, finally ending the practice in 1863. Then that "momentum" carried on eliminating Jim Crow, which grew out of slavery, over another hundred years later. That is one heck of a revival Eddie. What is worse is the swearing that dead historical figures would agree with this garbage. Dr. King would not agree with such stupidity and subterfuge. He worked his entire life against people like Eddie Hyatt. Look, this country has been a grand experiment in secular government but that does not mean it has always been right. It is only human arrogance to pretend otherwise. To minimize the slave trade and our role in it. To completely ignore the genocide of the indigenous people of the land we stole. To pretend that the revolution was anything other than a carnal decision based on money. To ignore the sweat shops of the Industrial Revolution, the Civil War, American colonialism, wars based on greed and oil and the list can just go on and on. Through all of our good, which can also be listed exhaustively, it mixes with our bad and despite this, the church has prevailed. The remnant still stands but the most glaring obstacle is no longer an unsaved populace to preach the gospel to but a false church pretending that Jesus Christ is more concerned about the Ten Commandments being displayed in front of a courthouse than about our obedience to those commandments in our lives. Do not fall for the last idol of the church age, dominionism. Mark and avoid political shills like Eddie Hyatt. If your own church is more concerned about preaching politics than the gospel, then it time to find one that cares more about the cause of Christ. Be not deceived.
Reverend Anthony Wade - May 7, 2024
