"No" To Godless European Constitution

By Richard Salbato

Last month two of the primary founding members of the new European Constitution, France and the Netherlands, voted "NO!" to its ratification. Seeing the handwriting on the wall, England has decided to back off on its vote this coming year. This should kill the entire Constitution and bring it back to the drawing board. The reasons for these two countries voting against the constitution may not be religion and morals. Nevertheless, one cannot but see the Hand of God in this.

The French and Dutch voters did not like the idea of giving up democratic rights. The people do not vote for the members of the Central European Government. Unlike the United States where the central government is voted for direct by the people, European central office holders are appointed without a democratic process. Unlike the United States, the central government of Europe overrides almost every country law. Unlike the United States, whose states regulate their own economies, the central government of Europe dictates economic laws including the maximum debt of the governments. In fact, the people of Europe have no say in the laws of the Central Government at all and are expected to follow it blindly like puppets simply because they might have a higher living standard - promised but not realized.

The reasons for the "No!" vote may be complicated. Opening up the borders to low wage Eastern European workers may have been an issue. Borders that allow western factories and industry to move to Eastern Europe may have been an issue. For some the threat of Islam's increasing presence and the possible membership of Turkey, may have been important issues.

The Euro

Most likely Economics was the major issue for what may be the collapse of the constitution. Many of the countries which joined the euro have suffered economic stagnation and rising unemployment, with people also blaming the currency for rising inflation. The German and French economies are suffering and Italy has plunged into full blown recession.

The euro is now vulnerable to a collapse in public support. Many Dutch used the referendum on the constitution to show their disapproval of the euro, while in Germany polls show 56 per cent of people want to return to the Mark. A report called The Demise of the Euro by the Center for European Policy Studies, admitted that the currency was probably responsible for Italy’s economic problems, which it predicted would soon afflict the majority of countries in the euro-zone.

Confidence in the euro collapsed in the markets after the French and Dutch referendums, because economists believe that it would make it difficult for governments to co-ordinate action to keep the currency stable. The currency had already been hit by the collapse of the Stability Pact which underpinned it. Euro-zone governments are now openly flouting their legal borrowing limits. It looks like the EU is on its way to becoming a very loose grouping and if the euro is a representation of the bloc then there is little reason to see a strong currency.

Social or Capitalistic Economics

Many of the arguments in Europe include future European social and economic policy, the British rebate, the size of the European budget, and enlargement, including Turkey’s application for membership. There will be a fight for the heart of Europe with the French wanting a social system of government (socialism) and the English wanting a capital system of government (capitalism).

As the new president of EU, Britain's Tony Blair will chair almost all negotiations between EU ministers, with the right to propose and withdraw initiatives, putting him in a powerful position to resolve Europe’s worst crisis for 50 years. Mr Blair has made economic reform the top priority of his presidency in the EU, hoping to make labor markets more flexible in order to tackle record unemployment and sluggish growth across the continent.

The Constitution does nothing to respond to the criticisms which have been made of its economics. There is a significant risk that it will make economic flexibility more difficult. The Constitution leads to a greater central control over Member States and more “red tape” from Brussels and to a less dynamic and flexible European economy.

The English Government stated that it would oppose proposals in the Convention, which would produce unwarranted constraints on the flexibility of labor, product and capital markets, and thereby undermine the success of EMU.

Fight for Christian Europe

Why should Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, and Jews care about a secular constitution? For the same reason that the constitution cares so much about the morals of religion which is their primary reason for the constitution and not the unity of Europe. If they cared about the unity of Europe they would want unity with what made Europe in the first place.

The Godless Euro Constitution is a war against the Christian concept of society in favor of a Secular concept of society and of human rights. For over 60 years now the Christian idea of human rights has been increasingly under attack by international organizations such as the United Nations and now the European Union.

The Catholic vision of human rights differs markedly from the concept of the Euro Constitution. The attempt to create a central Euro government is based on a concept of rights from the 18th-century Enlightenment thinkers, and French revolution.

The Church links rights to the concept of human dignity, founded in turn on our being created in God's image. Also important in Church thought is the concept of natural rights that are linked to human nature and are, therefore, not capable of being redefined at whim by governments and international declarations.

By contrast, the European Union is influenced by a strongly secularist orientation that is hostile to the established churches, especially the Catholic Church. Under the catch words of "tolerance and freedom" they advocate individual freedom to sin against nature and each other, making individual freedom god over collective freedom. The right of individual freedom over the collective freedom, gives on the right to abandon his family, his children, or even kill his or her children. The right of individual freedom gives the right to use sex for personal gratification even over the rights of children, pedophilia. Because Christians do not advocate this extreme freedom of individualism, the EU is fighting against Christianity.

An example is the report by the European Parliament's commission on human rights in 2003 which condemned China's repression of groups such as Falun Gong and Buddhists, without mentioning the country's severe persecution of Christians. Likewise, Islamic countries were criticized by the European Union for their treatment of women, but no space in the report is given to the severe restrictions placed on Christian activities in those same nations.

On the other hand, Italy was severely criticized because its Constitution refers to the importance of the Catholic Church, even though there are ample guarantees of complete religious liberty.

The 2003 report portrayed religion in general as being the worst enemy of human rights and a threat to world peace. Over the last few years EU documents have painted religious belief as being negative. The documents often tend to lump together all forms of religion as being influenced by fundamentalism and tending toward intolerance -- and thus incompatible with a modern pluralist society.

The same human rights commission has expressly criticized the Catholic Church for its refusal to accept same-sex marriage and its opposition to the adoption of children by homosexual couples.

As well, the European Union has been very active in supporting family planning and has provided generous funding not only for U.N. efforts in this area, but also for the activities of private organizations such as the International Planned Parenthood Foundation (IPPF), a leading abortion provider. The European Union's enthusiasm for "reproductive rights" leads it to portray the Catholic Church as a foe of women. And while EU documents are often circumspect in their criticism of Islam's treatment of women, the Church and the Pope come in for frequent censure.

International institutions see the Catholic Church, along with some other religious groups, as a threat to this way of conceiving rights. As well, the Church's position on some women's issues, such as the refusal to admit them to the priesthood, has made it a target of strong criticism. This culminated in the European Union's refusal to even acknowledge the Christian heritage in Europe in the preface of the new Constitution.

Now it is most likely that the Euro Central Government is dead unless it changes its thinking. In fact there will be major economic problems in Europe unless ethics change and change fast. As plummeting birth rates and increasing lifespans rapidly raise the percentage of oldsters in Europe, ageing is becoming the most crucial issue of the 21st century. Those who spent their youth in the 1970s fretting over overpopulation may now spend their old age worrying whether the world has enough young people to support them. An aging Eastern Germany that never paid into the retirement fund, may in fact bankrupt the German government over the next 15 years.

Ideas such as a center for collective projects on trade, utilities projects, defense and immigration are good. A single currency is good idea. Working towards an international language is a good idea. But forcing all governments of Europe into a godless social agenda is not going to work and that is the major motive behind the writers of this Constitution.

With the "no" vote of two major countries they must go back to the drawing board and start over. This is a great opportunity for Christian organizations, clergy, and good Christians everywhere to start fighting for real human rights and continuing to say no to any attempt to push Christianity out of Europe.

Understand that the EU's agenda is the elimination of religion. Unity of Europe or better economics is just a smoke screen, an excuse to take power from the united countries and dictate social agendas. This is the reason the constitution really does not say anything. Written Constitutions are the best form of government because they put restrictions on politicians but the EU Constitution simply places power in the hands of people who are not elected and places no restrictions on their power.

Fight back as a united Christian voice because if Catholics and Orthodox and Protestants do not unite, they cannot win against the Enlightenment thinkers because they are united. Communists, socialists, masons, homosexuals, feminists, all are united in being against Christian morals and in keeping Christians from having a voice in politics.