The Parable of the Wise Men FEBRUARY 01, 1963 by LOLA H. TAYLOR Mrs. Taylor is a housewife, mother, and full-time secretary, with free lancing as a hobby. And in those days there lived "wise men" in the great cities who said to each other, "Since we are learned and our brethren are ignorant and thus are not capable of making decisions for their own best good, therefore let us form a council among ourselves and we will make these decisions for our unlearned, ignorant brethren. "And we will cause that there shall be no poor among them, and no one who does not have work, or the wherewithal to sustain himself in case he should be unable or unwilling to work. "And we will take a portion of the substance from each one who labors to sustain his household, and we will distribute it among the poor and thus will all be prospered by our great wisdom and learning." Now these "wise men" were honest in heart and meant no injustice to their brethren, nevertheless they did sin against them in that they did take away the God-given free agency of each man to decide what he would do with the fruits of his labor—whether he would spend it wisely or waste it, and whether he would give to the poor. And because it was the law that the "wise men" made that they would provide for the poor, and because they took ever larger portions of the substance of those who labored, the love of man for his neighbor waxed cold, and he began to say, "Let the ‘wise men’ with their decrees take care of the poor and unfortunate." And in those days also, came evil men who sought for power over their fellow men, and they began to join with the "wise men" and to say, "We, too, would help our poor ignorant brethren, in that we would take from those that have and give to those that have not. And we will cause that no man shall be lifted above his neighbor because of his great wealth." And so great was the likeness of the things which they sought to do and the power they thus obtained, that no one could tell which was the "wise man" of good intent or the evil man who sought power over them. And it came to pass that the taxes placed upon those who labored became so grievous, and the multitude of laws and decrees became so burdensome that they began to murmur and to feel that they labored in vain, and they began to be unwilling to be taxed to provide for those who would not labor. And the men of wealth said in their hearts, "Why should we further deplete our riches to produce goods when the laws of the `wise men’ will not allow us to keep our gain or dispose of it according to our desire." And thus it became necessary for the "wise men" to issue still more decrees, that the goods might continue to be produced. And all men, both rich and poor, became more and more in bondage to the laws of the "wise men." And the oppressed cried out for their free agency; but their cries went unheeded because of the multitude who still cried, "We prefer security to freedom." And this multitude worshiped the laws of the "wise men" as their Provider, being deceived in that they believed the laws to be the source of all goodness, not knowing that laws and administrators of laws produce nothing, but take from one to give to another. And the "wise men" said, "We must give the people security so we may continue to rule over them." And though some of the "wise men" began to perceive the folly of their ways, they found it was not within their power to restore the free agency which they had taken from their brethren, because of the evil men among them who had gained control through the many laws and decrees that had gone forth. And then did the "wise men" know that they had lost their own free agency to the evil men among them. And they with all their families were brought down into bondage with their unlearned brethren. And a loud wail went up from all those who had forgotten God, in anxiety lest he should have forgotten them also. Read more: fee.org/the_freeman/detail/the-parable-of-the-wise-men#ixzz2cM1C1B9p
Posted on: Sun, 18 Aug 2013 20:22:55 +0000
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