Loyalty

Loyalty Demonstrates our Convictions about what we Believe

Prior to the Civil War, Cadets at West Point were enrollments from both the North and the South. They were often roommates, trained together and were loyal to each other.

Suddenly we found our nation at war - not with a foreign country, but among ourselves. Ironically these Cadets were now divided. Finding themselves on two sides of the fence, they became the worst of enemies. Those who were from the South even resigned from
positions because of their loyalty to their homeland. It was an important issue, and makes a statement about integrity and commitment, because, on the surface, the subject of "loyalty" is relative.

Some years ago Hollywood produced a motion picture about a joint mission to outer space between the U.S. and the Russians. They worked together as a team in the project, working together toward a common goal. But in communicating with their home base on earth, they discovered that incidents on an international scale brought the U.S. and Russia at odds. Relations between governments were now broken off, and left the teams on the space crafts in a dilemma. In order to maintain their loyalty to their homeland, they now had to separate and abort this joint mission.

This is paramount to individuals drawing their "battle lines" in convictions. Those who we "align ourselves with", often reflect our loyalty. It demonstrates where our "loyal" lines are drawn.

What is so ironic is that this loyalty is a model that becomes a paradox: Perhaps this week some subject comes up in a discussion with a friend. Next week, you engage in a controversy with someone else that contradicts last week’s discussion. But for the sake of peace you now ally yourself with this new, opposite view. You are now have "allied" yourself with someone and his position, totally contradicting last weeks arrangement. You have now established a completely different "loyal" arrangement – on a par with betrayal to the one you were loyal to the week before!

We are a fickle society. We play Chameleon, changing with the wind depending on the conversation that suits us at the moment. Believe it or not, we find ourselves no different than Benedict Arnold, who allied himself with the U.S. during the Revolutionary War, then saw an opportunity to sell West Point to the British just for monetary gain. After the war, seeing that the British lost, he tried to come back to U.S. soil!

If we do not understand true loyalty, our relationships to each other are pitifully shallow. Worse than this, it demonstrates our loyalty to truth (or lack thereof). The ultimate loyalty we need to demonstrate is to our own conscience and God - and what He says on some subject – than take our side with truth.

©2001 David Film.
www.DavidFilm.ShortURL.com