I just thought it was really amazing he could be so benevolent towards the South. I get very indignant and angry with stupid people and the lions of injustice, and if I were a slave or an abolitionist living in those times I might have been kind of angry with Lincoln for being so lenient towards the South. Obviously, mistakes were made on both sides, but still. Still, he is to be commended for his Christ-like attitude.
I really liked that he talked about it being not the North's war, nor the South's war, but God's war, because it really was. I also liked what he said about neither side's prayers having been fully answered, because that was true. That is also a heartening point to remember when something you are praying for doesn't work out. Perhaps your prayers weren't answered, but your enemy's prayers probably weren't answered fully too. It sounds mean, but that could be a pretty comforting thing to think about.
I appreciate his eloquence and the fact that he kept his speech short and to the point. He didn't need a lot of pomp and circumstance and length to get across what needed to be understood. Through his theologically untrained brilliance, he was able to reach across space and time to reach those living then and those living now.
Why was it so hard to stop the international slave trade?
Well, for one thing, America, the great hypocrite of the time, did not get on board with abolition until well after Great Britain did. But at the time this movie shows Great Britain was the greatest empire in the world, and was built upon the backs of slaves. The slave trade was acceptable to all but few, and of these, even fewer were brave enough to speak against it. This made it really difficult, because people in Parliament, although perhaps they personally they agreed with abolition, didn’t want to end people’s livelihood. Many people had heard about the horrors of slavery but didn’t quite believe them or couldn’t or didn’t want to understand the reality of things, didn’t want to be held accountable. It’s like today with the cruelty to animals thing. The beef and chicken millions of Americans eat every day were animals shoved 20,000 into a few dozen square feet, packed with hormones so they couldn’t even stand, lived in their own waste and pecked each other’s eyes out for lack of space… and people don’t want to believe it. People don’t want to watch FOOD Inc. to find out the truth behind America’s meatpacking industry. Who wants to be accountable for their sins?
I have yet to see FOOD INC., but last summer after reading the China Study I, for health benefits as well as my love for animals, am mostly vegetarian, with the exception of fish. I no longer buy any meat that is not free-range, and then only sparingly. I know that I as one person can make a difference, and I think that’s something a lot of people in those days didn’t believe. Indeed, in the movie in a conversation between William Pitt and Wilbur, before Wilbur’s abolitionist political days, Pitt challenges Wilbur to change the world, and Wilbur says, “I would change myself first.” It is as if he didn’t believe he could change the world, but he did, and more people today and then should have/had confidence in their ability to do and be something greater.
Another major problem was that people simply weren’t informed about slavery and the terrors of it, which again can be compared to the importance of food documentaries and becoming informed about where our food comes from and how it is treated. Knowledge is power, and even then it took years and years and years of knowledge dished out by Wilbur and his supporters to end the British slave trade. People also thought that destroying slavery was destroying England, and by destroying slavery the riches of the Indies would be handed over to the French. An argument that was also brought up in the film was that slaves equaled plantations, and without plantations, how were they supposed to fill the coffers of the king? They were worried that the French would step into their place and reap the rewards of the Indies, and I willing to bet France thought the same thing about the British. When the time of the war between Britain and France came closer, people thought that abolition wasn’t loyal to the king, which was weird. The focus came off of slavery and onto the war. Suddenly those men, women, and child slaves weren’t so important when people were afraid for themselves. They lost their compassion through fear. Also, vicious rumors were spread about those propagating abolition, rumors that irresponsible people gladly seized as an excuse to be passive while God’s children were continually violated. Additionally, people thought that there were other issues; they said that conditions were bad for everyone, people right there in England; in this way people were distracted from the issue. I hate that, hate when people say well yes, that’s bad, but what about this thing? I understand the importance of prioritizing, but just because there are multiple problems at hand in the world doesn’t mean we have to wait and figure out the solutions to all of them before we fix one. Also, people were elitist, and really thought they deserved to wring their bread from the sweat of another man’s brow, as Abraham Lincoln quoted in his second inaugural address. Also, Satan himself was of course behind the international slave trade, and his influence was strong over the hearts of those there. Heavenly Father’s loving gospel hadn’t returned to the earth yet, and men’s hearts were weak and bereft of the gift of the Holy Ghost. I mean, it took 20 years of being a slaver before John had a change of heart, repented from his life as a seller of souls, and wrote the song “Amazing Grace”. I wonder how often throughout those twenty years he felt horror at the things he was doing? I wonder what made him decide to end it?
Either way, God triumphed, and the internationally legal slave trade was abolished.
The Second Great Awakening was an important basis for that later theological development, specifically that of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The term Kentucky Ablaze is kind of a misnomer, because the religious enthusiasm wasn’t so much a fire as a religious tsunami, a baptism forever changing American and religious society. America didn’t start out religious; rather there were pockets of religion all over. The Second Great Awakening, in Dr. Holzapfel’s words, churched America. The Smith family was living in an area of revival, and there was religious division in Joseph Smith’s own family. His mom was Presbyterian, and his dad had Universalist leanings, which his eldest brother Alvin shared. His dad does have a number of religious visions though, which was certainly not unheard of at the time. However, the fact that he was Joseph Smith Sr. leads me to believe that at least the majority of his visions were actually truthful and from God. Joseph Smith himself leaned toward Methodism, but when we went to camp meetings he didn’t feel what other people were feeling. Due to the religious fervor of the time, he has quite concerned for the welfare of his eternal soul. After studying out these matters in his mind and in his heart, he decided to go ask God about it.
I’m glad that Joseph Smith got involved in the Great Awakening, and that he got involved in the WAY he did. He didn’t get swept up in the falseties of it, but what did concern him were the truths and questions the Second Great Awakening quested for. He studied scripture and many different religions, making the logical decision to pray to God about it, considering that the ministers of the different religions pulled him hither and thither. It’s a testimony to me, actually, of how important it is to be aware of what is going on in our nation, and the importance of being able to sieve through the good and bad, keep the good in your heart, and exercise that good.