Bonjour Citizen! Shhhh quick into this alley way.
Quietly citizen!!
Oh no quick run this way!
Vive la resistance!

Do you remember me? The Jacobin from the French Revolutionwho managed to avoid the guillotine when my comrades Robespierre and Saint-Just were captured, one of the barricade leaders of the 1832 June Rebellion? I'm your time travelling revolutionary host! This time we are on another journey, but lets try to keep it as secretive as possible.

Anyway, we're in France again but World War II just broke out.. Poland was invaded by Nazi Germany. I know what you are thinking "GET ME OUT OF HERE NOW!!!" Sorry can't do.

Most people would have fled if they knew what was happening, but its not easy becoming a refugee- somebody has to accept you. Also, the borders are sealed so good luck trying to escape without that creepy Nazi soldier over there finding you.
"CITIZEN HAUSHEER GET ME HOME TO THE 21ST CENTURY!!"
Shh citizen, keep your voice down. They will catch us, take this! Its a fake passport. I'm with the French Resistance, don't let them know. We might be able to smuggle you out but wait- run down that alley!

Citizen are you alright? I think we are safe for now. See that Bible, open it up. Yep, that's the very same Bible where I defended republicanism against divine right monarchy and Louis Phillippe. What do you think it will do to help us escape Hitler?

"Oh but Romans 13 demands we have to listen to a higher authority." Or does it? Citizen, let me see that. Looks like Paul was talking in very specific terms about the times and era in this chapter. But tell me, where do rights come from? do human rights come from God? or are they something we made up?

Romans 13 we hear time and time again, but are all governing authorities from God?

Alright citizen, I'm going to have to whisper something into your ear that the Nazis do not want to hear humans appoint authority, when authority oversteps God's laws the people have a natural right to resist and defy them!

Romans 13 is cautioning against anarchy!

Also please keep in mind the role of the church and state are separate. The state must be secular, and the church should be free of state influence. Of course Christians must be active in politics to be responsible good citizens, but please do keep in mind the independent roles of church and state which I shall write a future article about.

Alright citizen, I propose another Bible verse " Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!" - Acts 5:29

If a human is violating God's law don't we have a right to resist? Also, not all resistance is anarchy. The American Revolution did it through the lesser magistrate theory, even the French Revolution had a governing system and legally tried and executed the king for his crimes against humanity.

Any king or ruler who says "I'm divinely ordained" places himself at level with God. Through doing this, the king or queen becomes an idol.

Now fascism, this philisophy denies the very basic human right- the right to live. This philosophy is incompatable with all areas of scripture, and is all about destruction of our fellow humans.

I hope we are on the same note, fascism is bad. Instead of running away, it should be resisted. If we keep running our problems will follow us, and those we left behind will suffer. Evil must be confronted instead of ignored.

If we were created in the image of God, don't we have a God-given right to defend others created in the image of God?

If we turn the other way, aren't we just as guilty as those rounding up people to go to concentration camps?

Christianity is about defending the weak, defending the powerless, and being a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. Christianity is so much more than we make it out to be, we are supposed to be a light to the world and helping those around us.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a pastor living in Nazi Germany said
"Christianity stands or falls with its revolutionary protest against violence, arbitrariness and pride of power and with its plea for the weak. Christians are doing too little to make these points clear rather than too much. Christendom adjusts itself far too easily to the worship of power. Christians should give more offense, shock the world far more, than they are doing now. Christian should take a stronger stand in favor of the weak rather than considering first the possible right of the strong."

Nazism is violence against God's creation, and violence against human nature. Unfortionately you cannot debate or argue with a Nazi. A Nazi immediately will dismiss you as having "inferior logic" or belonging to a genetically "inferior" race if you disagree with them. A Nazi must be resisted.

Bonhoeffer went on to say "We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself."

Injustice needs action in order to stop it. Thoughts are all well and good, but people must actively protect the oppressed and stand up against the injustice or injustice will continue.

Can a Nazi change? Possibly. It would take Jesus working in their hearts for them to change. I do believe they must be resisted though, they must meet opposition or they will get away with atrocious acts against humanity.

Bonhoeffer also said "silence in the face of evil, is evil"

Shouldn't we as Christians stand out against the world? aren't we supposed to defend the oppressed?

I wouldn't want to have God ask me "did you do anything to stop this?" and have to reply "no."

Christianity does not call us to be complacent in the face of evil. If anything, we Christians have nothing to lose in standing against evil.

If we die, we should know where we are going in the end and have comfort in it. This isn't about ourselves, but this is about defending the rights of the weak and powerless. If we remain quite, our consciouses will bug us with "what if you stood up?" and what is to stop the Nazis from going after you next- after all they have 0 regard for human rights.

For those who don't believe in violence, non-violent resistance against Hitler was possible as well. Arguing about the type of resistance that was needed is for another day, but there were many ways to resist the nazis just as there were many resistance groups. Some people hid those in danger, some forged visas, some published pamphlets. The list of resistance activities during World War II was endless.

Ohhh its nearing curfew, take this candle. Oh wait, what is that?

Oh, you have to go back to the 21st century real quick? Wait here... yikes what is this!
Neo-Nazis? These are a thing?? So this isn't just a hypothetical ethics scenario of the past?? Oh no.... keeping my eyes on this

Make no mistake my friend- Neo-Nazis still exist. The context is different, they are not in politicial power. But still, we must defend the rights of the oppressed and speak out against this trend of neo-nazism. They may not have the power of Hitler's Nazis but they are still a threat and we should speak against them before they get the power. The issues themselves haven't changed although the actors have. Are all human lives valuable?
Yes.
Should we speak up for the lives of the vulnerable? Whether i'm in 1789 in Paris, France or at the barricades of the June Rebellion or in the French Resistance or in modern USA the answer should remain the same. Yes.

What do you mean Nazis are still around? Isn't that something from the 1940s?
Oh I wish it was only something of the past. Sadly, I've seen much evidence of Nazism. I was taking a walk and saw grafetti with "HH 1938" on the ground. HH? that means "Hail Hitler" and "1938" is a very significant year in the rise of Nazism and Hitler.

On a train going down to Virginia, we passed through neighborhoods in Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania where I saw what felt like miles of swastikas grafettied. This philosophy is alive and well. I've seen it in youtube comments, I've seen it on newsarticle comments and i've seen it in the streets.

We can't turn a deaf ear to the rising problems of our modern world, we must acknowledge them and speak against them before the situation gets even worse.

The reason people turn to this philosophies is fear mixed with hatred.

What can we do in response? Show love and solidarity to those who are targetted.

"Love the future is thine!" declared Enjolras, the revolutionary leader in Les Miserables.

Stand with Jewish people, stand with minorities. Learn and listen to their stories. Call out fascism as unbiblical and hope that others will see it as such.

I shall share a quote that Camille Desmoulins wrote to Robespierre during the French Revolution "remember the lesson that history and philosophy has taught us, that love is stronger and more enduring than fear." If we do not let fascists divide us into "us vs them" we are winning, if we recognize fascist principles for what they are- we should say it. We need to stand firm to the truth that we know is within us, and speak the truth. We need to hold fast to our principles of right and wrong, and we need to look out for those who are threatened by such philosophies.

Do not be afraid to speak out against the evils you see in today's world. The future will thank you for it, and you are a light in the world. Shine your light for all the world to see, show love for all and stand up for the rights of the oppressed wherever and whoever they are. As Wilberforce said "We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself." This may look bleak, but isn't that when light shines the brightest?

Resist hatred, show love. Speak out for your beliefs. If you want the world to be a better place, you must stand up to the evils of our time and show love. For remember greater is He who is in us, then He who is in the world.
Our light must shine stronger against the darknesses of our ages. In the future, you want to look back at what you did with assurance that you did what was right.