Does it really matter?

   Some say we need to learn history, ''because it is fascinating'';  this true, very true.
However, for some reason they have not said this, but a people without their history is an enslaved people. Even if they have no master over them, a people without history is enslaved to an ever increasing Godless society that makes gods out of money, prestige, youth, convenience, and whatever else will serve as a pretty bauble in the moment.
   A people without history cannot know the difference between a Hitler and a Churchill; they cannot know the signs of someone who wants to rule for their good as a servant, or someone who wants to use them for personal power, and to use people in any manner for personal gain.
   As for the most accurate history book, the Bible is discarded in an ignorant society, and that society will turn increasingly barbaric and have no clue they are doing so. We have become so ignorant as a people that we have let Roe v Wade stand for more than 40 years, and girls and women are still believing that the child in their womb is merely tissue.
   We have equated daily showers and pressed clothing with civilization, and we have so bought into that idea we are no longer able to know truth from lie.
   We must, with all possible speed and will, bring full world history back to our nation...and that history MUST match original documents, or it is mere opinion.
   We must rescue our children from those in many public schools who teach treason and Godlessness, and so doom our next generation to self-destruction as a people. We have somehow accepted the idea that we can survive as a people without knowing Jesus Christ, but an honest and full study of history will show clearly that this simply has no basis in fact.
   A free people knows its history, and the men who founded our nation, both in the 1600's, and their descendants of the 1700's, were education far beyond our currant  concepts of learning.
   God, help us!  Draw our hearts to Yourself, and rescue us from our immense ignorance!

''Need You'' Bracelet

   The Need You Bracelet is a conversation starter; a reminder that we all need each other, need Jesus Christ, every day.
   In the late 1700's and into the mid 1800's, Muslims had very active slave markets just as they do now, and in this time period much human cargo was shipped to the America's. Since there was little communication among people, the horrors of slavery were not widely known until twenty-some newspapers, many smaller publications, and books, were distributed; and the Underground Railroad was active, but had to remain secretive for the safety of all involved. These anti-slavery men and women came from all walks of life and communities, Black and White.
   When books like Harriet Beecher Stowe's ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' was distributed, the people of the United States became incensed at the brutality of many slave owners. There were some slave owners who were kind, and some broke the Democratic law that slaves must not be taught to read or attend any kind of Church service. Some of the publishers of the abolitionists are detailed in other articles of this blog.
   The Democratic party stood firm for slavery and made many extreme and harsh laws to keep their 'businesses' in human trafficking alive and prosperous. The Republican party was formed in 1854 by anti-slave activists who worked hard against the self-serving slave owners who forced their way in government.
   The Bracelet is also an encouragement to learn much of our history that has been cruelly denied the past few generations, and a people without their history will soon implode through ignorance. History must come from a full and honest research from original documents, or it is mere opinion.
   People who were enslaved were forbidden to speak their native language, to speak of their homeland or any memories of family, they were forbidden to read or have any means of communicating in large crowds. They were isolated, demeaned, treated worse than animals. they were forbidden their history...how vital it is for us to have our history...and that history includes Scripture...we must fight for our history, for each other, and purposefully put Jesus Christ in the center of our lives.

Freedom through Jesus Christ and Brotherly cooperation.

Memories of Aunt Lydia are sweet and lovely. An occasional whiff of an odor or fragrance can send me right back to her kitchen with the mismatched cupboards, pie safe, stand-alone sink, and coats hung behind the back door. Through either doorway sat the small dining table, jams, jellies, butters, and condiments were gathered to the center of the table, and an oil-cloth neatly covered it all. To the side was a smaller roll-top desk, always open because there were just too many papers to close it. Not just bills, but writings and plans for the next garden club she began some 30 years before and often hosted; then there were several articles waiting to add to the local paper column she had been writing for several years; and, of course, 4-H papers for the many lives she impacted, along with many cards of thanks for her selfless work.
How sweet these memories were as I think back on the summers I spent with her as a teen, and my mind treasured and carefully put away as the sweetest of memories. These memories are sweet beyond saying, and they have had a significant impact on who I am today. Grandma Buttolph, although I barely knew her, also made an impact on my life that has influenced me to this day. And the stories through the diary of my Great, great Grandfather, Rev John Buttolph, makes my heart swell with gratitude for my heritage.

But, what if the family stories passed down had been of slavery, of cruel and humiliating treatment on a daily basis, with every day filled with hard, back-breaking work, and no thanks given, as the work benefited a 'massa' and his family, while Great, great Grandparents  returned to accommodations unfit for animals. What if those memories were of a child's Momma being 'sold' like cast-off merchandise and the child ripped away from his Momma's side and given to others who were so beaten down they had nothing of kindness to give. What if my stories had been of my Great, great Grandmother being whipped until blood flowed to the ground because she refused to give her body to whomever it may have been demanded.
These are stories that throb in the terrible memories of many people who are our neighbors, and we do not understand what drives them because we have chosen, over the decades, to remove history from our schoolrooms.

Yet, what if we could bring out the true history of this mass injustice, and see a people who often put all their life on the line to escape enslavement, and with great courage, set their hearts to escape their captors and find a new life!  Many did not survive such a venture, either by death, or a return to the living nightmare of forced hard labor and certain torture for even considering escape. Death, was indeed, preferable to forced labor, and solely for the benefit of another. Then their was great courage as those who did escape returned to help others find a way out of their living hell.
Where did this courage come from? Courage, justice, kindness, and civility come solely from God Almighty, through Jesus Christ, who is the one and only original source of civilization, because He is the Creator of all, and saved humanity through His sacrifice for our sins. Freedom and the Judeo-Christian faiths are inseparable, historically so, and can be seen throughout the past thousands of years.

As we learn, and pass along, this three-fold history of Black and White cooperation, and love of Jesus Christ, we can build bridges where division seems nailed in place.

"It is evident that the white and black “must fall or flourish together.”

"It is evident that the white and black “must fall or flourish together.” In the light of this great truth, laws ought to be enacted, and institutions established — all distinctions, founded on complexion, ought to be repealed, repudiated, and forever abolished — and every right, privilege, and immunity, now enjoyed by the white man, ought to be as freely granted to the man of color."   John Fairfield, died c. 1861.

   John Fairfield grew up on a Plantation in Virginia; a favorite childhood friend was Bill, a slave, 'owned' by his uncle. As a young man, John, traveled to Ohio, a slave-free state, taking Bill with him. Through the years John and Bill had secretly spoken of helping Bill escape to Canada where Bill would be free from any threat of being enslaved, and could build a life, a home, and a family.
   John devised a plan for Bill to take one of John's uncle's horses at night and meet at a pre-determined place, then head north under cover of night. While details of their travels were not given, it can be assumed they moved freely about, posing as slave and owner until they reached Canada, where Bill did indeed build a new life.
   For twelve years John helped thousands of enslaved people escape the inhumane life of enforced hard labor, continuing to gather information of the whereabouts of traded and lost family members who were united, sometimes after many years. Most of these people John was not able to take openly as He had with Bill, and at one time taking as many as 28 on one trek!
   John kept his journeys secret and was able to go to various Plantations posing as a slave trader, all the while passing the word among the slaves to prepare to leave on a particular night, meeting and taking off for the north country.
   His tactics would have to change as Plantation owners would become suspicious, but still he did this for twelve years! He was, indeed, arrested several times, but his affiliation with Free Masonry set him free. Although not mentioned in the articles about him, he must have made good use of the Underground Railroad many times; both free Blacks, and white, were, without question, necessary for the escape of these courageous men and women! Every few miles, through several states, a home would be prepared to hide these people during the day, sometimes for several days, even weeks, as they were hidden from bounty hunters. The travel was difficult, especially for the old and very young; but the thought of living as free men and women kept their hope burning!
   Most of these brave souls were Christian, as Jesus gave them His hope, and His guidance and wisdom, through the many very real, life-threatening dangers! To return to slavery was unthinkable, and some took their own lives rather than return to forced labor and cruel taskmasters.

 Many articles on slavery and abolition, it is said outright, or heavily suggested, that it was a small minority of whites that helped end slavery.  This is simply not true and is a great divider! The record must be set straight, and from original records! History based on anything other than original documents is mere opinion, and is false, misleading, and damaging to society and individuals.