Where is the social justice “Statement” against socialist public schooling?

I have already voiced my displeasure with the “Statement on Social Justice” by MacArthur, et al. A very important aspect, however, remains to be addressed. In light of the breadth of the topic of “social justice,” the level of outrage flowing from the Statement, and its stark condemnations, it is startling to notice the scope of the what the document does not say.

Where is the condemnation of the real socialism?

One of the movement’s greatest disappointments is its highly selective outrage. When the time came that these guys decided someone finally must speak out against the great impending danger of leftist “social justice,” and the field of social issues was wide open, what were the things upon which they lowered their sights?

Things like “radical feminism”? Give me a break. Some unspecified “political theories” are mentioned along with certain other “ideologies” that are denied to be “consistent with biblical teaching.”

Even if we were to grant that these in their entirety were completely unhelpful, vacuous, and even heretical inquiries, it would still leave us scratching our heads as to why the outrage does not extend to the most pervasive, popular, damaging, and widespread socialist practices already firmly entrenched throughout conservative churches—including most of the churches of the founding signatories of this document.

Why haven’t the vast majority of the founding signatories offered the same condemnation of the socialistic public schools or social security, for example?

It should be safe to assume that all these guys would rail against socialism as inconsistent with biblical teaching. Even by technical definitions, the public education system is without question the most socialistic institution in our society. The state owns the means of production, after all!

Yet where is the alarm from these anti-social-justice crusaders? In fact, why have most of them remained silent on it all these years? We’re talking decades, their whole careers.

I know Voddie, for example, has been a consistent critic. But what of all these others?

Not only have they not opposed this leftist social justice warfare against us and our children, they have instead made space for it and justified it. For example, John MacArthur’s Grace to You answers the public school question, “Not everything is necessarily good or high quality because it is called ‘Christian,’ nor is everything bad just because it is under the umbrella of public education.”

Likewise, G3 host Josh Buice makes similar space. To his credit, he at least questions public schools and advocates for homeschooling. But there is no condemnation of what we all must acknowledge is the most socialistic social justice institution of the left and the statists!

These fellows rather seem constrained to allow for the acceptability of public education.

Likewise, a review of the website of organizer and initial signatory Michael O’Fallon—a site created especially for his crusade on the named topics—finds virtually no mention of public education whatsoever among numerous anti-SJW articles. The few references that surface reveal no criticism of the socialistic history or nature of the system, but rather display laments that children are no longer taught the Bible in the socialist centers. This assumes the socialist systems is actually OK.

A similar silence and tacit, assumed permissibility can be found at White’s Alpha and Omega, among the very few hits on the terms.

Where are John’s, Josh’s, James’s, or Michael’s sweeping, undefined condemnations of the leftist social justice institution that is public education?

While we have plenty of targeting of select contemporary examples and personalities, no one will point out the massive elephant in the room. One almost gets the idea it is the thing we dare not mention. One gets the suspicion that there are too many thousands of Christians in these churches, sitting under these pastors, helping pay their salaries, who are dependent upon the socialized education system. One gets the idea there are quite a few public school teachers and principals sitting in those pews, and as many socialized pensions along with them.

And we have not even touched on the great wealth transfer system known as social security, or the socialized health care systems of Medicare and Medicaid.

In the Statement we do have, “social justice” cannot be condemned enough. Yet it is insisted that this is not cultural retreatism. There is space given to the need for biblical standards in society. Specifically, it says, “We affirm that societies must establish laws to correct injustices that have been imposed through cultural prejudice.”

“Must.” That is language of moral imperative. Yet while I have seen the propaganda arm of the Statement churn out several articles with buzzwords, more condemnations, and even a massive reductio ad hitlerum, I have yet to see a single constructive example from any of these people of a law that must be established.

I have yet to see a single constructive example from any of them over all these years of how the Bible should apply to justice in society, and how laws ought to be changed to fit it. Yet the Statement goes on, “We further deny that Christians can live justly in the world under any principles other than the biblical standard of righteousness.” Yet for all these years, nothing.

This, my friends, is what you call lip service.

Worse yet, when there are clearly socialistic systems which would fall under this heading, which we cannot consider just because they do not conform to biblical standards of righteousness, these guys kick the can and whistle on.

Again I ask, where’s the social justice statement against the real socialism already permeated throughout our lands and churches? Where is the social justice statement against public schooling? Against property taxation? Against graduated income taxation? Against welfarism (including Social Security and Medicare)? Against public bond issues? Against central banking? Against corporate welfare? Against administrative law? Against inheritance taxation? Against wars of aggression and interventionism?

Where is the outcry against these things (several of which were planks in the actual Communist Manifesto btw)? Where is the Statement from any of these leaders against any of these socialistic evils for all these years now?

Silence. For decades.

Meanwhile, the teachers’ unions know better. One New York state federation of teachers’ unions representing over 600,000 teachers has said public education is the social justice issue of our time!

That has been true, by the way, for decades, and conservative Christians just cannot seem to figure out why young people leave church and never come back. You tithed them to the state and now they follow their master. You took the socialist cheese and got caught in the socialist trap.

How does the perspective of your current great stand against “social justice” look, now?

It looks a bit silly, not to mention inept, to make a bold public stand against leftist social justice, and then send Christian kids off to the single most socialistic institution of our society.

It would be great if there were a Statement that actually deals fully with all these real issues, calls out the problems for what they really are, and then provides the positive biblical measures of justice and change for every area, wouldn’t it? Now that would be a Statement on Social Justice worth signing!

Of course, these guys will never write it. Their theologies of the church, society, and last days will not allow it, among other things. But it has been written for years now. You can find it in Gary DeMar’s God and Government and my project, Restoring America One County at a Time.

There is a reason, for example, I began my project with a hardcore chapter on education. Then one on welfare. Then one on local government. I address all these issues, and I actually lay out a blueprint of biblical principles in each area, and I call for changes in law that these guys say “must” occur, but never in their lives get around to discussing. I do.

What more can be said? Either we wise up, or we don’t. Either we repent of our apathy and fear, or we don’t. Either we say what we really mean, or we don’t.

If we are found at the end of the day saying something we don’t really mean, playing fancy strong-arm publicity games and behind-the-scenes political games, what are we really doing other than practicing Saul Alinsky in the name of fighting Saul Alinsky? I won’t be party to that. But I will put my stick in its spokes when it rolls by.

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