The Rise of Tyranny and the Fight for Virtue
Like the ruthless autocrats of Rome, today’s leaders rule with the swagger of conquerors, brandishing their authority like a gladius, striking down opposition with calculated brutality. The vulnerable are trampled beneath the chariot wheels of policy, their suffering mere collateral in the march toward dominion. In real time, we witness a federal government swelling with unchecked ambition, its iron-fisted grip tightening around individual liberties, its hunger for control insatiable. Dissenters are cast to the political sands of the arena, their voices drowned beneath the roar of the mob trained to jeer rather than judge.
The erosion of safeguards—the dismantling of institutional independence, the execution of mass purges in pursuit of absolute loyalty, the elevation of power over principle—brings unsettling echoes of the emperors who ruled by decree and fear. As tribunals are reduced to spectacles and governance mutates into command, the fate of democracy itself hangs in the balance, teetering on the edge of an abyss carved by ambition and bloodlust.
This struggle is at the heart of my latest novel, The Seven Seeds: Shepherd of Souls. In this alternate history, Rome never fell, and the empire endures under the weight of its own ruthless ambitions. Torn from his familiar world, Pope Gregory finds himself in a civilization where conquest and domination supersede compassion and wisdom. Without the guiding light of Christianity, Rome remains locked in a brutal cycle of power, its leaders consumed with maintaining control at any cost.
But within this bleak landscape, Gregory discovers an ancient manuscript containing seven virtues: compassion, humility, forgiveness, justice, wisdom, courage, and sacrifice. These Seven Seeds offer an alternative to oppression, a challenge to the prevailing order, and the foundation of a future built on moral strength. This journey mirrors our time, where tyranny must be met with principles that elevate rather than destroy.
Writing The Seven Seeds was a revelation. While my previous works have explored Jewish traditions and beliefs, this novel led me to the profound wisdom of Christ’s teachings—not as rigid doctrine but as an essential philosophy for a just and moral society. In a world increasingly shaped by ambition, division, and disregard for human dignity, these virtues guide resistance to oppression and reclaiming our shared humanity.
Now more than ever, we must decide what kind of world we wish to inhabit. Do we surrender to the unchecked power of those who govern cruelly, or do we plant the Seven Seeds and nurture a future rooted in compassion and justice?
History warns us of the dangers of complacency. The Seven Seeds is more than a novel—it is a call to action, a reminder that even in the darkest of times, the power to create change lies in our hands.
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