Thoughts on Camp of the Saints, by SaraSue
SurvivalBlog Contributor September 10, 2024
The following are my thoughts on the novel Camp of the Saints. It was written by Jean Raspail, and published in 1973:
I recently read the English translation of Camp of the Saints. It was horrifying, but a good study in how people act and respond in terrifying situations. I wonder if this book is banned for being “racist” in a lot of places or in people’s minds. It addresses that concept. Its main theme, in my mind, is the hypocrisy of the church, of those who want to “save humanity”, of the do-gooders, etc., and then, how they react when danger comes to their front door. I’m not sure I could recommend it for your reading pleasure, unless you want a view and understanding of what it’s like for your country to be invaded and taken over. In which case, it might be eye-opening and spur you to work even harder on your own safety and security. Also, I think a primary theme is the idea that there is no such thing as universal peace and compatibility between people of different cultures and races. Each “tribe” prefers their own way of living, and their own cultural and moral standards. The book showcases “white guilt”. It showcases the idealistic goals of the leftist, globalist, Marxist/communist/socialist believers, and the idea that we must all embrace “equity” – the rich must be destroyed and the poor lifted up. The playing field must be leveled, in their view, no matter the consequences. And no matter who dies in the process.
In America, we are famous for being the “melting pot” of the world. We are numbered by people of all races who have legally immigrated here from around the world, adopted our Western culture and practices, while holding on to their own dear beliefs. In America, that was possible, and expected. We pride ourselves in our acceptance of our differences. Mostly, we all get along while still maintaining our own “separateness”. In my family tree, we are English, German, Irish, Scottish, Swiss, Austrian, Portuguese, Italian, Flemish, Hispanic, American Indian, and African American. We are “diverse”, and yet we have similar values: love of God, love of country, love of family. We wish to live in peace.
Americans get “irritable” when you start shoving things down their throats or forcing them to conform to someone else’s belief system. We have, probably uniquely, a “live and let live” attitude… until we are threatened. Then, not so much. I wish I could better describe our mixed culture. It’s not about “celebrating diversity” by enforcing diversity via laws and policies. It’s about accepting people as they are and accommodating one another’s cherished cultural differences. It is actually a voluntary thing because we believe in Freedom. With that being said, we have been, mostly, a Judeo-Christian country governed by fair and impartial Laws that protected (past tense is intentional) the independence and freedom of everyone equally, while punishing criminals who break the Laws. We have failed at that on and off throughout our history. I have no desire to excuse our collective sins.
In the recent decades, the idea of a “Judeo-Christian” country has been kicked to the curb by many in high and low places. That has “irritated” the majority of Americans. And most recently, it seems, if you are “a white, Christian, man”, you are even more despised. But, not by regular Americans, don’t get me wrong. You are despised by the people who wish to “level the paying field” for “all humanity” and therefore your “white patriarchy” must be destroyed. That doesn’t really work in our “live and let live culture”. To most Americans, it matters not the color of your skin or belief system, as long as you respect others. Do your thing – just don’t force me to do it, and certainly do not teach your ideologies to our children.
On another train of thought… One thing that is universally true, whether it’s an invasion or simply war, women and children are always the first to be brutalized. In previous years, I had read The Gulag Archipelago, and also spent a great deal of time reading and listening to various Holocaust survivor stories. Very dark, yes, but I personally want a reminder of man’s inhumanity towards man, even if it jostles all my sensibilities. I’m not an optimist nor a pessimist, but a realist. Very bad things can happen and it’s better, in my mind, to understand how things happen rather than stick my head in the sand (with my butt exposed) and pretend everything is okay. Everything is okay, until it’s not. Slowly, then all of a sudden.
There is a lot of “pretending” going on in America over the invasion of our country. I don’t see it ending well. I am not excusing America’s sins. No. They are legion and we collectively deserve God’s judgement. What I see is that there are forces at work who wish to destroy us and they will use any means necessary, as they’ve stated. Better to know than not know. Ultimately, the enemy is Satan and he is busy telling people what to do and they are doing it. We have as much of a spiritual war on our hands, as we do an intellectual war, that will devolve into a physical war if things don’t change significantly.
Let me be clear… I do not live in fear. My days may be filled with hard, sweaty, work on the farm, but each day is a beautiful thing – whether I’m milking a cow who generously gives her full fat creamy milk to nourish my family, or training a young heifer to follow a lead, or training dogs, or cats, or caring for chickens and teaching them to “go to bed” in the hen house at night, or tending to the garden, or baking yummy things in the kitchen, or reveling over how full the freezers and pantries are, or spending time with my adorable grandchildren, or reading a book I want to read, or marveling at the beauty, God’s creation, that surrounds me, or simply babbling away to my Father Who watches over me… My days are ordered and spontaneous at the same time. It is beautiful here. Peaceful. Amazing. I love to watch the sunrise early in the morning, to hear the birds waking up, to watch the farm come to life. The “To Do List” is very long, and yet here is where I want to be. So, no. I do not live in fear. I live in a beautiful place, enjoying Freedom, and I want it to stay that way.
Therefore, I take pains to understand what is going on in the world and around me. Therefore, I am armed and dangerous to my enemies at the level I am capable of. Therefore, I work at honing my skills should the rug of freedom be ripped out from under me. Therefore, I prepare a place for my family to take refuge in, if the Lord wills it. Therefore, I plan to be without the modern conveniences I was born with. Therefore, I expose my mind to the realities. Lord forgive me, but I have zero patience with other women who babble about their next vacation, or sanctimoniously speak of their most recent “charitable giving” or “girls night out”, or chat about fashion (unless it’s a new side arm), and who whine when they are inconvenienced. Again, Lord forgive me, and that is why I’m not the Lord because my mercy and grace are not perfectly balanced with my judgment, as the Lord’s is. Where the Lord can see everything future and past, I can only see the reality in front of me.
When people say, they’re just going to trust the Lord, I want to stomp my foot and say, “Show me in the Scriptures where a man or woman of God sat there on their YouKnowWhat and did nothing.” Even Paul was active in his prison chains.
Take a look around Europe and see what is going on there. Many parts of European countries are in total chaos, “no go zones”. I bet the general population wished they hadn’t given up the appropriate weapons to meet the challenges. Look at what is happening in our big cities. Not to mention, the world is on the cusp of WWIII and America is on the cusp of another Civil War. Things are a mess. How messy will things get?
But, I digress. The focus of the book, a novel, details the happenings when a large group of invaders arrive by the millions to another country (in this case, from India, to France). The reader is drawn into the squalor and death the “migrants” have suffered through to get to their destination. The people of France form “Welcoming Committees” in order to prepare for their arrival. And it shows how the proponents of the “migration” equally die when the invasion occurs, for whatever reasons. It forced me to think about our “kind intentions” and our “generous nature” and our endless funding of this or that “cause” around the globe. And we are happy and sanctimonious (tie that blue and yellow ribbon around your mailbox!), until we lose something of value – a daughter, for example, to brutal rape or murder. Then, suddenly, we want the “Authorities” to do something about it. But, it’s too late then. It’s too late because the “Authorities” are not able to address tens of millions of those types of incidences “all at once”.
The book describes a very small group of very brave men who are tasked with defending the country, as most of the “armies” have fled the challenge. And in the end, it shows how the government of France kills its own men who are still trying to stop the invaders from ravaging the country. How could that happen? Why? Because long ago, the government was infiltrated by “migrants” who had been waiting for their moment of revenge against the country they adopted. A worst-case scenario obviously. But, think about it… who in our American government is “not to be trusted”? Trust in the American government is at an historic low and there are valid reasons for that – too numerous to list here. Our government, currently, is not our friend.
Basically, reading the novel takes the mind through a whole host of emotions, intellectual acrobatics, and brutal resulting facts of an illegal invasion of one’s country. You can dismiss it all because it’s a “novel”. Of course you can – why even read it! Who even wants to know that they gang raped the wife of the guy, who heralded their coming, until she was dead, and they threw up on her chest and left her naked on the floor for him to find after they beat and locked him up. Ewwwww. Who wants to fill their mind with such things? Well, I do, for a brief time, and only so that I can clearly see what could be in store for myself, my daughters, my granddaughters. If you read the news, that very same thing is happening in our country, but downplayed by the “Media”.
Facing it, in its horrific gory detail, gives me the strength to pick up a rifle and know that I must defend myself and my family at all costs and at all times. I am a gentle woman who cannot even watch a scary movie. I closed my eyes and covered my ears when watching “Saving Private Ryan”. I have not seen war up close and personal like many of our heroes have. They have seen things that they will not retell us, for their own sanity, and to protect ours. So, it is up to us individually, even if we get our gumption from an uncanny novel. If the evil can be written about, the evil exists.
If you still don’t believe that our country is at grave risk, right now, from the illegal invaders, you might find that reading some of Michael Yon’s writings, a veteran and journalist who has been chronicling the invasion, helpful. Or not. Suit yourself.
I cannot face such realities in large doses should I slip into despair. It has been many years since I studied the holocaust survivor testimonies, and many years before that I read The Gulag Archipelago. I can only face it in small doses, but each time I do, it gives me courage to fight the good fight. It helps me to be exceptionally aware that great evil exists in the world. It causes me to turn to the Lord God and request mercy and protection against the great evils. It causes me to be prepared, as best as I humanly can. It informs my politics. It influences my associations. It causes me to accept that “situational awareness” at all times is 100% essential. Reading the book may not be for you. Maybe you don’t want to know or fill your mind with that kind of knowledge. My opinion about this book written 50 years ago… is it is essential reading for the times we are in.
