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Principled Ideas from the Centennial Institute
Volume 9, Number 7 September 2017
WEVE TRIED EVERYTHING ELSE,
LETS TRY HIM.
Cal Thomas
Cal Thomas, nationally syndicated columnist, pundit, author and radio commentator at the more sophisticated than the false gods that tempted ancient
2017 Western Conservative Summit.
Theres a line from the wonderful film LaLa Land which
perfectly describes Washington as well as Hollywood.
These are places where everything is worshipped, but
nothing is valued.
On his program a couple of weeks ago, Rush
Limbaugh talked about how we have lost a Is the future God, they neither glorified Him as God nor
sense of common sense. I think its worse than
that. We now accept nonsense as normal.
of America gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became
If indeed anything can be considered normal
in our LGBTQ anything-goes culture.
G.K. Chesterton once observed that the danger when men
stop believing in God is not that theyll believe in nothing,
but that they believe in anything. The late Catholic
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen said 50 years ago, America, it
is said, is suffering from intolerance. It is not. It is suffering
from tolerance. Tolerance of right and wrong, truth and
error, virtue and evil, Christ and chaos. Our country, he
said, is not nearly as overrun with the bigoted, as it is
overrun with the broad-minded.
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Publisher, Dr. Donald W. Sweeting
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Editor, Jeff Hunt
When asked about their religious affiliation in a poll
recently, 20% of millennials said none. Add to these the
secular progressives who have dominated the news media,
academia, and Hollywood for decades, and one does not
need to be a prophet to predict the future of America seems
anything but secure.
The slaughter of the innocent has reached 60 million and
counting. Behavior once regarded as perverted is now called
mainstream, and woe to anyone suggesting it is wrong. The
standard for determining right from wrong was abandoned
in the 1960s, and we are left with no standard higher
than whatever an individual believes to be true for him or
herif indeed we can use those pronouns in the age
of gender neutrality.
A Canadian family recently declined to name the gender
of their newborn, wanting the child to make its own
determination. That used to be obvious in the bathtub
when I was growing up, I dont know about you.
What scripture calls abominations, people now call
orientations and choice. We have become our own god,
Israel, but with no greater power. Paul the Apostles words
to the Romans could be an editorial for our time, The
wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the
godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the
truth by their wickedness. Since what may be known about
God is plain to them, because God has made
it plain to them.... For although they knew
futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
secure? Although they claim to be wise, they became
fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal
God for mortal images made to look like a mortal human
being and birds, and animals, and reptiles. Therefore God
gave them over.
Cal Thomas is one of the most popular syndicated columnists in the country,
appearing in hundreds of newspapers, on Fox News and other media outlets.
He began his career in radio, TV, and print at age 16.
Centennial Institute sponsors research, events, and publications to enhance
public understanding of the most important issues facing our state and nation.
By proclaiming Truth, we aim to foster faith, family, and freedom,
teach citizenship, and renew the spirit of 1776.
 Does this sound like America today? Men committed
shameful acts with other men, and received from themselves
the due penalty of their error. Furthermore, just as they
did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of
God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind. So they
do what ought not to be done. They have become filled
with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity.
They are full of envy, murder, grief, strife, deceit and
malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent,
arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil. They
disobey their parents. They have no
understanding, no fidelity, no love,
no mercy. Although they know
Gods righteous decree that those We are sinners who dont
who do such things deserve death,
they not only continue to do these
need to be
things, they also approve of those rather transformed.
who practice them.
Is anything in that passage unlike
what we are witnessing today in our time? Does anyone
believe a political party or leader can, through the power
of politics or government, reverse this? Why would such
people be responsive to conservative agendas much less
biblical truth?
Every day in Washington there are efforts to improve
things, change culture, and overcome our human nature
with no acknowledgement that we are sinners who dont
need to be reformed but rather transformed. The political
parties see many of us an unfortunates, in need of but
another government program to repair our miserable
state. These have and will continue to fail because only
the life changing message of Jesus Christ can transform
individuals, and if achieved in sufficient numbers, change
nations. Call it bubble up not trickle down.
Righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a reproach to any
people. -Proverbs 14:34. We are being reproached for our
many sins and still we persist in them. Is there anything we
havent tried in most of our lifetimes? We tried republicans
and democrats, liberals and conservatives, mushy
moderates, white papers, blue ribbon commissions, study
groups, experts, academics, the best and the brightest. If
the answer is no, and it is, perhaps we should try God,
the only source of children and the only hope of individual
and national restoration.
We are no longer One Nation, and we are certainly not
under God. We sing God Bless America at ball games and
all presidents in recent years have ended their speeches
with this statement, but my question is, why should He?
What are we doing to deserve Gods blessings? If He exiled
ancient Israel for abandoning Him, what makes us think
we are more special than the only nation ever to enjoy a
covenant relationship with Him?
How will our judgment come or is
it already here?
In ancient times, armies
reformed but slaughtered the Israelites or exiled
them to Babylon when they
abandoned God and worshipped
false deities. The West is being
invaded by a foreign religious
power intent on destroying us. Our secular progressive
leaders, here and in Europe, pretend that letting them in
will make them more like us. Quite the opposite. They see
our tolerance as weakness. They know our ways and are
using them and our Constitution to impose themselves.
It may take them 100 years, but as history shows, they are
patient. Believe what they say about a worldwide caliphate,
destroying our Constitution, and imposing Sharia law.
Believe it because they tell us their intentions and practice
their worldview wherever they get the chance.
Now do all Muslims believe this? We want to believe not,
but their Koran demands it, and if they dont believe it,
they are disobeying their so-called holy book. Investigate
for yourselves and then, if youre a follower of Jesus of
Nazareth, learn how to witness to them. Around the world,
Muslims are now being converted and have a new hope
of heaven that they havent had in their previous religion.
Ask them, theyll tell you. When a religion demands that
infidels be killed or be subjugated to the will of their god,
secular diplomats will not be successful in getting them
to change their minds, when to do so according to their
doctrine is spending eternity in hell.

CENTENNIAL REVIEW is published monthly by the Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University. The authors views are not necessarily
those of CCU. Designer, Justin Jones. Illustrator, Benjamin Hummel. Subscriptions free upon request. Write to: Centennial Institute, 8787 W.
Alameda Ave., Lakewood, CO 80226. Call 800.44.FAITH. Or visit us online at centennial.ccu.edu.

Please join the Centennial Institute today. As a Centennial donor, you can help us restore Americas moral core and prepare
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Centennial Review September 2017 2

Is there a short-term way to address these problems and
many others? I believe there is, but it wont come from
Washington, which is dysfunctional to its core. Instead, it
will come through individuals like you and like me.
Lets get off defense. We dont need to defend our positions.
We should force the secular progressives to defend their
failed policies. It is the Left, not conservatives, who have
brought the nation to near financial ruin, with a 20 trillion
dollar debt and more to come. It is not our values that have
poisoned relationships between men and women. Credit or
blame for that goes to Hugh Hefners playboy philosophy
and Helen Gurley Browns Cosmo magazine. It isnt us but
them who have ruined the family, promoting behavior
that produces incurable venereal diseases and encouraging
shacking up and easy divorce.
It is the Left, not us, that has ruined education. Spending
there is no greater satisfaction than holding a baby in
on public education, which is at record levels, has failed to
your arms that you helped to save and telling a woman
produce better educated young people who can compete
the truth and seeing her life changed. And lets strengthen
with other young minds elsewhere in the world. Lets
our marriages. My wife passed away in February after a
get our children and
long health struggle. We were married 51 years, and I miss
grandchildren out of
Change will these re-education camps
her. But I am confident I will see her again. Did we have
differences? Of course. When you take a second sinner
come through where they are taught
they evolved from slime
under your roof, you double the number of sinners. But
individuals like and that their nearest
we worked everything out because Jesus of Nazareth was at
the center of our marriage, and we knew it was to Him we
you and me. relative is down at the zoo
and thats why they like
were ultimately accountable. It was He who taught us love
was not a feeling but a covenant.
bananas on their cereal.
Children are on loan to us from God. They arent ours, And how about the media, which I have been a part of my
theyre His. But see if what scripture requires us to teach is entire adult professional life. Yes, most have a liberal bias,
what is being taught in the government schools. Instead, but bashing them doesnt change their minds. Heres an
put them in private schools or homeschool them where they idea, when you see something you like, rare as that may
will get a real education and, more importantly, a moral be, and especially if it is correct, send the reporter a note, a
foundation. Lets take a page from the Left and start with tweet, a Facebook message, or an old fashioned letter. Meet
poor and minority students who are being denied a decent a local reporter or news director, and if you have an idea
education and therefore a decent future. Some will recall or perspective you believe should be reported, respectfully
Alabama Governor George Wallace famously standing in a share it. Encourage conservative young people to enter
schoolhouse door in the early 60ies in an attempt to keep the field. Theyll have to be careful about their worldview
African American children out. Now the Left stands in initially but if they are talented and work hard, they can
the doors of failing inner-city schools trying to keep them succeed. I have. We need to reclaim the newspapers in
inside because of contributions from the teachers unions. It this country. Young people are not reading them but they
is an immorality, it is a form of discrimination and racism should. Subscribe again to your local paper and support
unlike any other. Lets turn this issue around and shove it those few conservatives who have columns.
down their throats. Finally, pray for revival. It is the only path left to us that can
The Wall Street Journal reported last week that vouchers are possibly turn lives around from our false pursuits. Let me tell
working, as the new Secretary of Education well knows, you about the powerful revival of 1857. It began when two
boosting grades in English and soon math. Get behind men on Wall Street were so concerned about the direction
vouchers in your state. Get behind pregnancy help centers of America that they decided to meet together once a week
with prayers, support, and volunteers. Next to salvation, on their lunch hour to pray for revival. Soon they were
Centennial Review September 2017 3
 Centennial Institute
SPEAKING AT THE
Colorado Christian University
2017 WESTERN
8787 W. Alameda Ave.
CONSERVATIVE
Lakewood, CO 80226
SUMMIT
Cal Thomas is a nationally Return Service Requested
acclaimed syndicated col-
umnist, pundit, author,
and radio commenta-
tor. Born in Washington,
D.C., Thomas attended
American University for
undergraduate studies be-
fore launching a prolific
writing and broadcasting career which would see
him join media outlets including NBC, CNBC, Fox
News, and USA Today. He has written ten books and
hosts a daily radio commentary, which is heard on
more than 300 stations nationwide. Thomas resides
in Washington, D.C. where he continues to write
and speak on political issues.

joined by other men. In time, the crowd grew so big they This is the key you see, a changed heart produces a changed
moved to the churches, began meeting at night, and invited mind and in sufficient numbers produce a changed nation.
their wives. In one of his many parables, Jesus said if we are faithful in
It wasnt long until revival came. At the height of the small things, He will give us charge over the bigger things.
revival, 10,000 people a week were coming By doing the smaller things, the only things
to Christ in New York City alone. The effort Changed heart, in which we have any power and influence,
the collective outcome will bubble up and
expanded. In the middle of winter, it is said
that people in West Virginia were cutting
changed mind, might even reach Washington.
holes in the ice to be baptized, prompting changed nation. Jesus said, My kingdom is not of this
one commentator to say when Baptists do world, but He put us here for a brief time
that, you know theyre on fire. When the revival jumped so that we might share his love and redemptive power with
the Atlantic, crime virtually disappeared in London. The others who need it. Weve tried everything else, lets try
police had nothing to do, and so they formed quartets to Him. Hes not only the only one left, hes the only one who
sing at revival meetings. has ever been there. n

Jeff Hunt, director of the Centennial Institute and co-producer of the Western Conservative Summit, is joined on stage by students
who participated in the Young Christian Conservatives Leadership Conference at the 2017 Western Conservative Summit.

Centennial Review September 2017 4