Former East Germany Teaches the United States the True Meaning of Heritage

St. Mary's and St. Severi at the Domberg  

I had the once in a lifetime opportunity to tour the area of former East Germany the summer of 2018 with the Utah Baroque Ensemble.  We sang in a number of cathedrals.  It changed my life in many ways and, reflecting on those experiences today, I wanted to share some of those insights especially in light of what we are currently experiencing politically in the United States.  Former East Germany is a particularly good example for us to study as their people experienced intense political upheaval:
Wiemar Republic to Nazi Germany to a Marxist-Leninist regime back to reunification to a Federal Republic.  This happened from 1930 to early 1990's a period of only 60 years.

One of the most amazing cities experiencing political turmoil through the centuries would be Erfurt.  The capital of Thuringia, Erfurt remains simple and unspoiled in many ways, all of them good.  There is so much history here, I could go on and on for several pages.  Most of these pictures are my own.  This is not a tourist excursion, however, it is a lesson we need to learn as Americans and also young people worldwide.

Two of the most famous historic churches and cathedrals sit adjacent:  Dom St. Marien (The Cathedral of St. Mary) and St. Severi at the Domberg both more than 1.200 years old in origin.  St. Mary's is the ordination site of Martin Luther where he began his ministry as a Roman Catholic Priest.  These two churches remained standing in spite the political upheaval associated with the Reformation and beyond.  These cathedrals have even switched from Roman Catholic owned, to Lutheran and back to Roman Catholic, still standing.  Young rioters getting a hint here?? 

Foolish Virgin Depicted

At the entrance to St. Mary's, the 10 virgins from the parables are depicted in statue form.  On one side stand the 5 wise and the other the 5 foolish.  Historically, the 5 foolish virgins are depicted as Jewish.  WHAT IF USING THE LOGIC OF RIOTERS TODAY THESE STATUES WERE TORN DOWN BECAUSE THEY ARE ANTI-SEMITIC?!  Incidentally, Erfurt also maintains one of the oldest synagogues in Europe dating back to the 11th century.  Amazing how art and architecture can still be allowed to stand even if does not depict the values 
of our time??!!    

Building on the grounds of the Petersberg Citadel

This is another fascinating piece of history in Erfurt: Petersberg Citadel.  The citadel was built on Petersberg hill, in the north-western part of the old town centre from 1665.  Erfurt has also been ruled by Sweden, Prussia, Napoleon, the German Empire, the Nazis, and post-World War II Soviet occupying forces, and it was part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). All of these regimes used Petersberg Citadel and had an influence on its development.   Massive reconstruction has taken place since reunification.  This picture is a part of the building still in need of reconstruction but I snapped it for a reason.  LOOK! IT WAS NEVER LIT ON FIRE BY RIOTERS FOR SEVERAL HUNDRED YEARS IN SPITE OF IT REPRESENTING A NUMBER OF INVADING EMPIRES!

Finally, a crowning pièce de résistance.  This is a picture of the ruins of Frauen Kirche in Dresden Germany as restoration construction begins.  It was fire bombed in World War II and left unrestored until the German reunification.  


This is the altar in the newly restored Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady).  Stunning... Beautiful Baroque representation.  Watching the setting sun hit the gold leafing and statues was awe inspiring, the picture does not do it justice.  And then, singing on this very spot with a choir designed specifically in size and volume for a cathedral just like this has changed me forever.  I was not the same and the memory is there to always hold.

I only give a few examples here but enough is enough, America.  We have only been around a few hundred years, we do not have as many physical monuments as we see around the world but we should hold onto the few we do have at the very least!  Yes, there are Confederate statues and plantations that need to be put in their proper place, not destroyed.  The statue of Lincoln freeing the slaves could go in a museum and be replaced with one of him and Frederick Douglas looking each other in the eye and shaking hands.   But, erasing and destroying that part of history?  The majority should not stand for it.  

The one main thing we should hold to is our threatened creed: Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness.  We have not always lived up to that creed, but it is ours and that is worth something.  We have lived up to it better than almost every other nation and that also is worth not throwing it away and replacing it a Marxist alternative.  We have a very small in comparison, vocal, violent, loud and destructive faction among us wanting to destroy that creed, which is even more dangerous than the destruction of our monuments.  It is backed by the mainstream media, supported by the Democrat Party and feared by the Republican Party.  

My mother would call it throwing the baby out with the bath water.  The baby would be our American Heritage.  The dirty bath water is the racist tendencies and systems we still need to reform and fix (mostly perpetuated in the urban centers of blue states by elected officials for their own political gain).  The cultural revolution Marxist tactics of erasing our history and classifying it as one hundred percent racist and evil needs to be refuted and defeated.  Tearing down our monuments is just the beginning of what they really want to destroy, they will not stop there.  This group will tear down the Freedom capital we have built with the blood, sweat, tears of our Fallen, our Vets, our ingenuity, our innovators, our hard workers. 

So, how do we begin a dialogue?  I am not sure.  This feels like another Civil War.  We do need to be better at drawing a line in the sand and holding our ground until they can calm down a little. 

Germany managed to do it primarily because deep down culturally they have a strong sense of their history in spite of whatever political winds may be blowing.   I know we have that in America, we just need to get back our back bone and stand, not kneel.         

Liberty or Death in Modern America?

So, here is the real problem as I see it: Americans have been experiencing moral decay since the 1960's. As a result, the definition of Liberty as defined by the American founding has changed. We all should remember the French Revolution- why did it fail so badly at first? Liberty has come to mean in America, like it did in France at the time: "Let me do whatever I want, I do not care if it has moral implications or consequences." Now, I have heard people on the right say we have to earn our liberty. This is not true either because we are born with inalienable rights. WHAT WE HAVE TO DO IS KEEP IT. AND, KEEP IT WITHIN A MORAL CONTEXT OR IT NO LONGER FITS THE DEFINITION OF TRUE LIBERTY AS ESTABLISHED IN THE FOUNDING OF THIS COUNTRY. WE MOST LIKELY WILL NOT KEEP IT IN THE PURE SENSE WITHOUT MORALITY OR VIRTUE.

In the context of the Pandemic then, here is the problem from 2 prominent amoral perspectives:

1) We have a large number of people, including the media and politicians in many states, not willing to move the Liberty needle in this country to free a neighbor from bankruptcy fearing they may get the disease and die. Or, fearing the death of somebody else and they being held or feeling responsible. Death in a godless, meaningless empty world is it- the end. There is nothing worse than Death. And, at this point with any level of reopening, more people will die, perhaps they would die anyway but this could speed up the process. This group says we need to rely on science and data only because their main purpose is to keep us alive. This is the case, even though the virus is bad but not as bad as originally expected.

2) Some facing bankruptcy, are willing to go and protest on the streets without protection or social distancing. They are concerned about their rights but apparently not the right to live of others. Granted, the virus is bad, not as bad as originally predicted,however, this group does not care as much at least right now. Now, their livelihoods are threatened beyond what the media and politicians experience so I might empathize a little more here as people become understandably desperate. But, I could see a situation where some in this group will not take a safe re-opening seriously, only think about themselves and not practice social distancing, masks, etc.

Here is the answer: re-establish liberty with it's moral foundation. Realize that yes, all our lives are at risk but those need to be weighed against the suffering of ALL the vulnerable, not just what we want personally from the situation. When Patrick Henry coined the "Liberty or Death" phrase, he and a number of Founders put their lives on the line, their sacred honor, they knew what was at stake but they jumped into the fray so not just they, but their country men and women could be free. To keep Liberty, they were willing to give up even their very lives. If they had the attitude to Liberty that our media and politicians have today, there would be no America as we know it.

To free us from the devastating effects of COVID-19, we will have to make a similar moral decision based on the interests and liberties of everyone. We can re-open safely. We need to re-open safely soon because the American and world economy can not sustain the shut down economically. It is not merely an inconvenience. Millions depend on the American economy and millions will die of starvation unless we open soon. And, we have to accept that more people will die from the virus. Death is a part of life that we try to deny and hide behind the mask of medical and scientific technology on a cultural level. Meaning in life comes not from just avoiding death at all costs, it comes when we sacrifice a piece of our own lives for the liberty and betterment of others. There is a place we can meet somewhere between death by COVID-19 or death by poverty caused by COVID-19, but it will require that original morally centered American Founded Spirit of Liberty.