Conspiracy-A Biblical View

Conspiracy-A Biblical View, by Gary North ★★★★★
This is the best conspiracy book that I have read so far and probably the last for a while. He will freely admit that there are “conspiracies” out there, yet he won’t titillate the unctions of the extremists that feel that there is a conspirator or one of his agents under every rock and behind every tree. This book was downloaded free from Gary North’s website and was read in .pdf fashion on e-books for iPad. The book is dedicated to Antony Sutton and Otto Scott. Sutton was the author of a recently reviewed book by me, who sacrificed academic advancement to tell the truth. Otto Scott is an author that I once met and mostly writes about Christian perspectives on political matters. His book on Robespierre is first-class.
In the preface, North notes “at long last, a growing minority of Christians has begun to understand the theological and organizational nature of the cultural and civilizational war they are in and have long been in, unbeknownst to most of their predecessors” and then quotes Pat Robertson’s book on the New World Order. North notes “The issue here is the new world order. Jesus Christ inaugurated a New World Order. His followers call it the New Covenant. No other world order will ever replace it. But, there are rival orders and would-be orders. They have their spokesmen.” He then quotes George Bush but notes that George Bush, in calling for an NWO, misses a few hundred generations, back to ancient Egypt and before. So, North quotes Isaiah, “You are not to say, “It is a conspiracy!” In regard to all that these people call a conspiracy, you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it. It is the Lord of Hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear. And He shall be your dread.” Isa 8:12-13. Again, “most historians have substituted some variation of cosmic impersonalism – the rule of impersonal forces – for the biblical concept of cosmic personalism: the rule of God. Conspiracy historians have usually substituted a rival version of cosmic personalism: the rule of secret societies. The thesis is the same…”. By now in the introduction, the reader should already have a good idea as to where Gary North is going.
The Introductory chapter first compares open vs. secret ministries, noting that Jesus was always open, thus putting the church in direct opposition with secret societies. North then develops the thesis of the existence of secret societies, none of which should be doubted. He asks “Then comes the inevitable question: Who is covering up? And why? Why the conspiracy of silence? Is all of this crazy? Or is some of it correct? What should the serious Christian think about conspiracies?” Chapter one develops arguments that show the reality of conspiracies but quotes heavily from CS Lewis’ book That Hideous Strength which talks about the secret government organization N.I.C.E. that is clandestine and intends of suppressing the liberties of mankind, a suggestion that even CS Lewis took conspiracies seriously. The end of the chapter again brings the reader back to a biblical viewpoint, noting that the conspiratorial time frame has been going on since Cain and Abel, with the fundamental ethical issue, “Which God should men worship?”. “There is one conspiracy, Satan’s, and ultimately it will fail”.  Chapter two discusses the biblical doctrine of human leadership, as modeled by King David. North then discusses the myth of the “will of the people”, as though the democratic process controls what happens in a western government. Yet, the people remain clueless (naive) as to how things really work. North diminishes the idea that our salvation comes through education, but rather, through a return to biblical morality. I’ll quote one of North’s examples. Why did the sixteenth amendment on the federal income tax go through (perhaps/probably even illegally!)? The public was sold the bill that they should sock it to the rich. A moral public would have objected to that. It might not have been coincidental that the sixteenth amendment passed just at the time that theological liberalism was taking root in American society. North notes that moral principles are skirted by the plea for “value-free” (moral-free) solutions.
Chapter three delves into the theology of the conspiracy. He notes “the chief premise of the modern conspirator is this: Man, the savior of man.” After attacking Marxism, North notes that Christians must not hide and “wait for the rapture”, but need to become politically active. Because man is fallen, it is necessary to convey limited power to the ruling class, with the absolute authority given only to God. North concurs that our constitution is correct in limiting the power of the governed, which is why the constitution is now being skirted about by the ruling class. North realizes that there must be a sustaining religion that governs society. The church and state must remain separate but in the alliance. Contrary to Marxism, “ethics is primary, not economics or political power”. North then viciously (and properly) attacks the system of fractional reserve banking, showing how it guarantees corruption. Later, North comments, “The motivation of conspiracies is simple: to be as God”.
Chapter four discusses specific conspiracies, but notes that should the various conspiratorial organizations be suddenly terminated, our problem would not be solved because other organizations would rise to fill the void. More important, according to North, is to be aware of their presence, and that their presence is contrary to Scriptural norms. The next chapter details how conspiracy historians have fared and failed in the course of history. An informed public is contrary to the intentions of the ruling elite. He uses numerous examples, one of which is the US entry into WWII, after heavily funding Hitler.  The role of the council on foreign relations is heavily mentioned. Yet, to believe in secret events that influence political policy and decision making, one will receive the sarcastic accusation of Rockefeller “I never cease to be amazed at those few among us who spot a conspiracy under every rock…”. Chapter 6 notes that there have been people willing to take the insults of Rockefeller and speak the truth. Carroll Quigley is heavily quoted, as well as James Billington. The response of the elite scholars goes in three phases 1) It isn’t true, 2) It’s true, but irrelevant, to 3) We knew all about it years ago. Chapter seven notes the disruption of the conspirators, as the public becomes aware of the inside actions of the power elite. North calls for a counter-offensive of a) self-education, b) morally grounded mobilization, c) cutting off the funds to the State. Chapter 8 calls for the replacement of evil with good. North appeals to replacing the power elite with godly men. Victory comes through steady, long-term replacement. The action begins locally, by being a member of a committed church. It comes through raising children in a family and not being educated by the state. It comes through becoming politically active. It comes through educating others as to what is really going on.
I appreciate this book since it puts a strong biblical perspective on conspiracies. They are not something to fear or run from, but to fight again, since the fight is a theological battle. In this regard, a previous book that I reviewed by Leithart remains completely consistent, contrary to comments to my review that are posted on this website. And, I’d expect that, since Leithart studied under Gary North at one time. The reality is that there is only one conspiracy that has existed through the ages but manifested in various ways, shapes and forms. Christians should seriously realize that many of whom they deem to be “Christian” is a part of the “other” side and that political party doesn’t separate the Christians from the pagans. This book is free, it is easy to read, and clearly offers a solution to the “conspiracy”. There is no excuse to not download and read it. (That means you too Dennis! Please read the book before commenting! It’s a price that you can afford)