Annunciation of America

Annunciation of America

America is not just a continent which, more or less randomly, takes place in the far West on the maps of the world, but at the same time is, according to the logic of things, and the West in terms of metageography. We can even say: America is the West in absolute, metaphysical sense of the term. America is absolute West. It is the undisputed leader and center of the Western world (Western civilization) and compared with it, all other Western countries are only second-rate units, subsidiaries, including its European provinces (European Union), in a tightly integrated "Trans-Atlantic structures" (NATO). Still more, America is likely to become a paradigm, a universal model, obligatory to all mankind. Thus, like a raised torch in the hand of the Statue of Liberty, yet mysterious essence of this country really shines all over the planet, over Earth, illuminating different nations and continents, as well as a new and unknown radiation. Indeed, America" offer the hand to the whole of humanity", and offered him its eschatology, a messianic revelation, its "Annunciation".

 
The New Jerusalem
 
But, it was not always like that. The former European colony, a very marginal "island", which was, as much as yesterday, threatened to "drown in the sea", from some time ago began to play a very self-conscious role. The sad truth is that Europe, meanwhile, subordinating to the U.S, lost not only its cultural integrity, but even any idea of itself. We must, in front of that, ask ourself: how is it possible? In the beginning America was not substantially different from any other European colonies, and nothing like this had happened with Brazil, Canada and Australia, for example.
 
We will try, in text which follows, to retrace the thread of those ideas that have made America the headquarter of a truly messianic and, by their nature, totalitarian ideology, an ideology stably rooted in the American mentality. We are aware, at the same time, that this topic is far from exhausted, and only requires new research, which will affect the subject in all its depth, in its diverse and even mutually contradictory aspects – aspects of geo-religious, ideological, deep-psychological, conspirological... and, above all, religious. Because the real roots of Americanism are religious. George Washington was the first American who identified America with Christian, post-apocalyptic "New Jerusalem". This is also was the first time when the idea clearly stated that the American community – a nation, a state, or a new church? – on some abysmal way separated from Europe and from the „rest of the world". We will see that this is not a new political experience (democracy). Goods that America offers to its customers are one particular eschatology.
 
The wolf and the lamb, side by side
 
With this, is an important observation. Thomas Molnar, in his „Americanology”, draws our attention to observation of Niebuhr, according to which, after the new arrivals left the boat or the plane, they, newcomers to America, experience a complete change of mentality, imagining that they left behind them, "not just their country of origin, but also the eastern sin with all its consequences (wars, famine, poverty)”.
 
Awareness of American uniqueness, at least for the two centuries, was not a unknown to the European, nor American politicians and intellectuals. The term "the West", which was created in America at the beginning of the nineteenth century to clearly confirm this difference, definitely separating America from Europe in the cultural, political, and any other sense of the word (originally the "West" as a synonym for "New World", did not include Europe or the western part of Europe in the integral entity with America. Subsequently, during the XX century, we witnessing something truly amazing: "the West" begins to spread with the metastases speed, devouring always new and new spaces, and casting a heavy shadow over the rest of planet.)
 
At the beginning of the last century, U.S. President Jefferson spoke of "separated, American hemisphere," in which, as he predicted, "the wolf and the lamb will live in peace, side by side" (that, of course, never will be possible in Europe or in another part of the world). From this American president we can follow clearly formulated political ideas that will be, either in its religious form, either in the laical form of them, continually occur throughout American political history. (Precisely, these ideas raised in fact on the religious basis, and they, during their bicentennial history, more often appeared in their simplified, laically form).
 
The full and true deviance
 
Here is talk about the idea that America embodies a perfect society, a sort of realized and embodied Utopia, based on which to the Americans, as the new "chosen people", belongs a privileged position and importance. As long as other nations persist in their "perversions", America will be forced to change them in any way, carrying his ostensible mission.
 
The existence of other people, their traditions and culture, in this case, for America has the meaning of the incident. Like Woodrow Wilson, many America's political leaders believed that sooner or later, the whole world will quite willingly accept the American approach, and its social structure, but, if that does not happen, however, than would be quite justified to use force.
 
On the other hand, this is the reason why many thinkers in American civilization recognized certain pathological features, or even complete and „true aberration" (T. Molnar). Whatever bias, prejudice they might have about its culture and heritage, we must acknowledge to this way of the thinking the undeniable foundation. Really, is there anything in America which, by their nature, is not extreme, caricatural or grotesque?
 
Historians remind us that the "founding fathers" of America were Puritans, and remind us, also, that  many other extreme Protestant sects, shortly after the discovery of America, were as the magnet attracted to the far West, seeking sanctuary in the "New World".
 
All of them were common preachings of extreme moralism and radical democracy, but only in the, as within narrow, strictly separated communities of "dedicated". Max Weber points out that Calvinism in England managed first deeply change in the traditional system of economy, and then he was successful and in the demolishing or substantially reshaping the traditional monarchy.
 
City of God on Earth
 
But Calvinism was a new religion, not just one of the many Christian communities or sects. Fundamental statement of John Calvin's learning was the idea of predestination to salvation - it belonged to the modest, small group of "selected" – and, on the other hand, the "eternal damnation" and the suffering, despised to mass, to the "people of the world".
 
Puritanism completely excluded mercy ("God's judgment" is no possible to change in any way), bringing the "chosen-ones" a feeling of complete isolation and dominance, and often even animosity to the rest of humanity. The ultimate goal of this revolutionary and, "at the very basis nihilistic ideology" (as wrote Igor Rostislavovich Shafarevich) was, however, establish a perfect society, built "in a new way", following the example of the new construction of the temple of Jerusalem.
 
Of particular importance is the fact that the concept of nation for Puritans had no relevance and that the puritans, even in his own homeland, felt like immigrants, referring hostility towards any historical tradition: "Favourite character of their literature", notes Shafarevich, "is a stranger, refugee, hermit".
 
However, due its primarily Puritan heritage, and political traditions that grew out of it, in America, for a relatively short time is developed a society that was completely emancipated from European traditions, and which, because of this, for many years, was not stopped to be provocative, activating curiosity in Europe.
Emphasize, however, once again, a radical Puritan's ideology goal – to establish the City of God, "Heavenly Jerusalem" on Earth – which is, rather than the mystical, purely rational, and can be understood only in terms of neoprotestant's political theology of Americanism, although this fact  obviously stands in contradiction to the strange "horisontalism" and ultimate pragmatism of American society. And when Washington told: "The United States are the New Jerusalem, predetermined by God's providence…“ and so on, it was not worthless or mere figure of speech or rhetorical conventionality. It was a clear and precise formulation of the American political mission, eschatological in its content, a kind of messianic revelation. And right that idea of "New Jerusalem" (and, no less vague eschatological hope that she's woke up), driven by a colorful procession of believers of this new religion, moved them to the new "Promised Land", to "New Canaan", which, in such a wonderful way, sudden appear on the horizon of European and world history – so, this idea really has something deeply mysterious.
 
Torrent of blood of accursed ones
 
But there is one more important contradiction in that faith in the new "Golden Age", conceived on American land. Faith which is unacceptable to any real, true Christian because, as is well known, in the eschatological drama of the Second Coming of Christ, the descension of the "City of the Lord" does not precede but rather coming after appearance of Antichrist and the end of the world. Moreover, it is the Antichrist who falsely promising "Golden Age", by (or before) the Second Coming.
 
There is no doubt, therefore, it is a "twisted" eschatological perspective or even a parody of true (Christian) eschatology. Thus, in general, the presence of "apocalyptic" motif is strongly emphasized in all aspects of American religion, and not only in them, but also in the products of American mass culture (literature, film, mass culture). It is interesting that the Americans are at the same time historically optimistic, firmly convinced of the necessity of constant progress. Now we obviously see why. "Happy end" – this is something what, in the America case, all ready happened. Apocalyptic screenplay – those torrents of blood of "accursed", which with so many demonic passions describes television preachers – it will be done, but only in the Old and by the God already convicted, "damn" world. Not in the "New Earth", not in the land of Revelation of St. John Theologian, not in the land which is expanding its false messianic revelation, it`s farcical "Good News". In other words, America is already on the other side of the Apocalypse, being deeply involved in the new millennium, a new "Golden age" or "Era of Aquarius," beyond time and history (well-being also understood on paranoidal way as material well-being of America, which is another, direct "proof" of the truth of the new religion). So it mission is precisely to transfer message about End of Time, inform the rest of humanity. On a purely political level, it means taking care of their own exports of that "saving" political model. Is no surprise for us, after all, that America, otherwise progressive and philanthropic, has its second feature, a sinister aspect – the face of the apocalypse, dedicated to all those who reject its "Gospel". This is the face of the "Merciful Angel", which with anger destroyed Serbia, and not just her. In fact, it was the act of mercy, because out of the U.S. "Gospel" is no salvation.
 
Good America – bad Europe
 
President Jefferson's idea of a separate hemisphere chronologically is the first in a series of political ideas, views and doctrines that attempted to Puritan notions of "good" and "not corrupted" America (as opposed to in the sin sank Europe), translate into political reality. The Monroe Doctrine forbade the interference of any European power in the „American hemisphere“, but here, in the opinion of one of the senior government officials from the epoch of President Wilson, the sovereignty of other countries on the American continent is a "coincidence" and the for U.S. has no operational significance. 
 
As this proscription is based on a ethic, value aspect of assessment and the need to   protect “good” America from potentially bad influences from Europe, which in the future could threaten it – it is absolutely understandable that a similar request would have no proper foundation, if the case that Europeans or Asians presented such wish, in order to protect its sphere from U.S. interference (America is, how keep repeating its emissaries, not only the "most democratic", but is and "most moral" world power).
 
These are the assumptions underlying the two seemingly irreconcilable extremes of U.S. foreign policy; "isolationism" and aggressive "intervention": the first is based on the idea of isolation from the "corrupted the rest of the world", the other on the idea of colonizing of other nations, forcing them accept U.S. models and its way of thinking, so that America finally ceased to feel its exceptionality. (It's also one of the hidden and undeclared objectives of isolationism. We can notice that is  the same dilemma that had to deal with, no less messianic minded Bolsheviks, just as it was formulated in a slightly different way, a choosings between building socialism in one country and "world revolution" of Trotskyists.)
 
We are a moral people
 
Regard this, we can recall and the idea of a "By God pointed fate of America" (the term originated 1845 year). Also, Stimson doctrine (1932) required a repudiation of "territorial changes extorted by force". In practice, that soon led to a worsening of the conflict around the world, because the U.S. has usurped the right to evaluate the territorial changes which can be recognized and which can not. Similar views about American uniqueness, after all, was shared by many other American presidents, statesmen, strategists and political leaders – almost without exception. List could be extended almost indefinitely.
 
In general, for U.S. foreign policy is the typical, this moralizing perspective ("We are a moral people"), which, however, very easily, connects at end with amoralism whenever is the word about the United States and its special interests. Thus, for example, in 1948, the head of the department of strategy in State Department, George Kennan, proposed definitive abandonment of "unclear goals", such as "human rights" and advocating "liberal democracy", believing that the U.S. would soon anyway be forced to act from a position of power in order to preserve its "disproportionate, privileged position". Perfectly understandable, because: "God has blessed us, such as the New Israel" – this is a refrain that, surprisingly often, you can hear from Protestant pastors and from political leaders of this country. Thus, the Lord has privileged us like no other nation on Earth" – and, because of that, will add another ideologue of neoprotestantism, "we have a right to demand that all others need submit to our will".
 
Finally we notice something else: stability and a truly totalitarian will, that does not change in its desire for subjugation, and is not limited by anything, by no any higher consideration, except the actual, factual possibility of its realization.
 
The epoch of global America
 
Following, real or merely declaratory, the same political tradition, President Bush, during the U.S. intervention in the Persian Gulf, held the pose and the rhetoric of moral preacher and teacher, instructing messages that Europeans can only read as ridiculous or grotesque. Thus, for example, President Bush's named American nation, as "the most complete in love”, adding how and its military forces are inspired by the idea of "the triumph of the moral order in the world."
 
Right from the time of this U.S. president, however, dates a single, relatively new thing. The first time officially proclaimed, the "new world order" opened the epoch of planetary ambitions of the West, America's global era, America projected to the endpoints of the planet. This was a time when the West finally abandons its privileged scope, and strike out towards other continents and, above all, to the very heart of Eurasia.
Thus, the diverse peoples and countries, states and religions, ethnicities, the human races, cultures, etc... they all still stand in front of a unique choice. The dilemma, however, is non-existent, because behind the "New World Order" is a powerful driving force: the United States, with its military power, economic resources and political coercion, blackmails, blockades, interventions, sanctions... It should be accepted, quite willingly, that false messianism of America, its false religion and its parodic "Gospel", "Good News," which brings to the mankind, how it is alleged, introducing to all of us with a new "Golden age". Accept, because it requires from us "common sense", which in fully aware us that this is not only the outward change, a mere change in clothing styles, or "way of life".
 
Americanization it means: be submitted to a false messianic center, to change the true structure of thought and being. Americanization means giving up from the European idea and from a specifically European – so authentic – destiny. But, is it that really the path that leads straight to paradise of wellbeing in the new "Golden Age"? Or, on the contrary, is that road to the right of the New Testament fulfillment of apocalyptic prophecy, whit which will be, very soon, faced all of humanity? Many sings and events – those who have gone and those which will play in the future – saying it's the second.
 
Translated by Vesna S. Disic