Article 1, Section 8, Paragraphs 14-15
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
Calling Forth a Militia
Militias are Citizens in Action.
Militias are instantly assembled.
When a land is doing what is right, there is no need for a standing army. An army should be assembled only when there is a just cause to use it. When Federal laws are not being obeyed and there is a need to enforce these laws, it is the job of the Congress to have the rules in place so that a Militia can be assembled to handle the responsibility.
On a local level, the principle is the same when local people were deputized to find a criminal. Once the criminals were caught, the deputies are decommissioned.
Israel proved how well this works when the priest had his concubine violated. By getting the elders of the land to notice the problem, he was able to have a Militia assembled from the nation of Israel. In fact, they cursed any man that would refuse to come join their Militia! The Militia was extremely effective against the powerful military might of the Benjamites. The Militia kept in contact with God, asking for guidance each step of the way. Their efforts were so successful, they almost completely destroyed the tribe. This was not their purpose. Because they needed to act honorably to their defeated foe, they took dramatic steps to correct the resulting problems.
Judges 20:11, "So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man."
Judges 20:26-27, "Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the LORD, and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. And the children of Israel enquired of the LORD, (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,"
The rest of the book of Judges illustrates the power of only a few that stand up to do the Lord’s work. Even one man can be filled with the Holy Spirit and accomplish great things for God. Men like David and Samson were able to kill hundreds of soldiers single-handedly.
When Moses came down from the Mountain, the Levites instantly arose to slaughter the filthy and immorally polluted people who had slipped into a satanic debauchery. This illustrates how quickly a Militia can assemble and bring justice, by using men available at the time and location.
Exodus 32:27-28, "And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour. And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men."
An example of conquering a huge army with just a few soldiers is seen in the story of Gideon. Gideon was able to amass quite a large army, but God told him to eliminate the majority of soldiers. It only took 300 men to defeat a well equipped and well-trained and professional army of Midianites, Amalekites, and the nations of the East. There were so many enemy soldiers they filled the valley like grasshoppers. God fought for Israel and defeated their foes. 300 men merely blew trumpets, broke open lantern cases and shouted, "The Sword of the Lord and of Gideon!" Judges 7.
In modern American History, if Joseph Smith had not been killed, the Mormon Militia was about to engage in battle with the Militias of neighboring towns and states over polygamy and other problems in 1844. Shortly afterwards, the U.S. Army advanced to Utah to take Brigham Young by force if necessary. This has since caused the Mormon church to have a public relations campaign to sell their image (Reed, D. A., & J. Farkas, R. Mormons: Answered Verse by Verse. electronic ed. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1997, c1992, Page 11).
The Constitution sets the limits as to what is an acceptable reason to call out the Militia. They can be called to help enforce rules that govern interaction between States. They can stop riots as well as to guard against invasions of various types. They are not to be used to badger foreign countries on their soil.
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