Don’t Be Deceived, The Pilgrims Were Not Refugees

Ramon Arias | November 30, 2015

I hope you had a meaningful Thanksgiving celebration with your family and friends.  Now we must continue to face the monumental challenges before us and never cease to work hard to steer America back to her biblical principles that guided her birth.

For those who don’t think history is important and only live for the present, beware. Human history is one of cause and effect. Events in society don’t just happen; they are the outcome of human actions. The present events that are overwhelming people today are connected with the past and they reveal what the future will be.

On Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 2015, Obama unknowingly reminded us of the importance of knowing our origins as a nation as we look back at the Pilgrim’s historic endeavor fueled by their biblical faith and vision for a life under God’s government.  Obama wasted no time, to use the occasion of one of the most celebrated days in the United States’ history, to lecture us with his political interpretation by pushing his agenda in his quest to continue the fundamental transformation of our country.  

The following are some of the remarks in his Thanksgiving address asserting that Syrian refugees are no different than the Pilgrims:

“In 1620, a small band of pilgrims came to this continent, refugees who had fled persecution and violence in their native land. Nearly 400 years later, we remember their part in the American story – and we honor the men and women who helped them in their time of need.”

“Nearly four centuries after the Mayflower set sail, the world is still full of pilgrims – men and women who want nothing more than the chance for a safer, better future for themselves and their families. What makes America America is that we offer that chance.”

[T]ogether may we all play our own small part in the American story, and write a next chapter that future generations can be thankful for.”

When history is deliberately mixed with half-truths, there is a sinister intention to mislead people in order for them to accept a distortion of the true historical facts. You must do your own research as we consider the following facts:

1.  The Pilgrims were not refugees. They were citizens of Great Britain who made the legal journey aboard a ship called the Mayflower to Plymouth, Massachusetts with permission from the authorities. Their intentions were to take residence in the first English settlement in the Americas.

2.  The Pilgrims and Puritans were part of Puritanism, the movement that started after the English Reformation. They advocated strict adherence to the uncompromising biblical teachings, salvation in Christ Jesus by grace, and accepted the Scriptures as the final authority on all matters; not the clergy’s.  They practiced simplicity and Christian virtue. The Puritans wanted to bring reformation within the Protestant Anglican church and the Pilgrims wanted to separate to continue pursuing an ongoing Reformation; this was the reason for the persecution. Some of them moved to Holland and then from Holland to the new colony in Jamestown, Virginia.

3.  Strong winds from the west and the current from the Gulf Stream pushed the Mayflower north of Jamestown colony in Virginia.

4.  Before landing they made an agreement that would bind them in a political commitment; not all of them were of the Pilgrim’s faith. The “Mayflower Compact” was signed on the 11th of November, 1620, onboard the Mayflower shortly after she came to anchor. The Mayflower Compact was a covenant to establish a temporary, legally binding form of self-government until the Company could get formal permission from the Council of New England. This formal permission came in the form of the Pierce Patent of 1621.

5.  The modern version of the Mayflower Compact reads:

In the name of God, Amen. We, whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord King James, by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, defender of the Faith, etc.

Having undertaken, for the Glory of God, and advancements of the Christian faith and honor of our King and Country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the Northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents, solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God, and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic; for our better ordering, and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony; unto which we promise all due submission and obedience.

In witness whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names at Cape Cod the 11th of November, in the year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord King James, of England, France, and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth, 1620

6.  Notice the statement: In the name of God, Amen… Loyal subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord King James. Does this sound like they were running away from the government to you? Of course not! Refugees escaping their countries do not move to another region and swear loyalty to their oppressive governments.

7.  Notice also how they made their purpose clear for their journey and change of residence from England: Having undertaken, for the Glory of God, and advancements of the Christian faith and honor of our King and Country.

8.  The Pilgrims established Plymouth Colony. Half of the Pilgrims were able to survive that severe winter and to their surprise a native from a nearby community who spoke perfect English came forth to meet the Pilgrims, his name was Squanto. He taught them how to plant on sandy soil using fish as fertilizer and also how to eat from the sea. The colony made a treaty with Chief Massasoit; they pledged to help each other against the unfriendly tribes and they succeeded. It was never a one-way arrangement.

9.  In 1630, the Puritans made their way to the same region.

It is true that the world is full of pilgrims who want a better future for themselves and their families. However, this need is felt by most of the seven billion inhabitants on this planet. Is there something we can do to help them secure a better future? Is Obama willing to give them a chance? After all, this is America.

We must be wise on how we can effectively help people without jeopardizing the already fragile security situation we have with all the millions of illegals and more that are coming every day. The overload will affect us sooner rather than later.   

The American story is divided into parts. The first part begins with the Pilgrims and the Puritans. The second part takes place after it became the new experimental form of government. Sad to say that this last part gradually began to move away from the forefathers’ vision: “for the Glory of God, and advancements of the Christian faith…”

Future generations will not be thankful to inherit the tremendous immorality, perversion, and corruption that we see at present, especially the slaughter of close to 60 million babies in the mother’s womb simply for being looked upon as an inconvenience. When all things are considered: the violence, crime, drugs, big government, control of education, control of media, control of every aspect of people’s lives, a crushing national debt, rejection of God’s moral absolutes, rejection of Jesus Christ, and the love for the ways of darkness, is it any wonder people’s hearts are in despair. It is only too clear that if we don’t work toward biblical reformation future generations will not bless us but will curse us for killing America.

Almighty God who guided the Pilgrims every step of the way is more than willing to guide His people if we turn our hearts toward Him. It is vital for us to once again obey His commandments and become wiser.

Biblical Christians should have the clearest perspective and be the most capable of offering solutions that are not superficial or shaky but ones with lasting results. Real solutions should not be based on speculation but on excellent understanding on how to interpret the lessons of history and how to apply biblical principles to lift societies out of the mire.

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