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Throughout human history mankind has either produced or imagined heroic men (and sometimes women) who fought not for themselves, but for their people. St. George killed the dragon, Joan of Arc held back the English, Davy Crockett opened the frontier. Sometimes these heroes were real, sometimes fictitious. Sometimes they were local, sometimes they took on epic proportions. America now needs such a hero — we demonstrated that in this last election.

America has learned a difficult lesson — we’ve lived through four years of leaderless abandonment. Like a lost dog America has stumbled into fights, gone hungry from time to time, and felt ashamed of our national existence. We’ve watched the American Dream fade. How did we end up here? What’s more important — how do we find our way home?

We do this with leadership. Just as a dog needs a master to train and guide and care for it, a nation needs a leader — not just a person in a position of power (though that is important), but a special person, a one-in-a-million person with a rare combination of attributes. How do we know this person when he (or she) turns up?

We can look back at history and at literature to start a list. Since we’re talking about nations, let’s focus on the larger-than-life men who met the challenges of their predicaments and won the day — the epic heroes. It makes little difference whether the hero is historic or fictional — their characteristics are the same. What did these characters have in common?

Epic heroes are always superhumanly strong and brave; I think of Beowulf who, despite the failure of twelve years of the Spear Danes efforts to stop Grendel’s attacks on Hrothgar’s kingdom, killed him bare-handed. Then he killed Grendel’s mother — a formidable monster in her own right, and this feat required him to be under water for a whole day; his followers were giving him up for dead. Grendel’s mother, like many monsters, was a swamp creature, but our hero did her in. Wow. Then, as an old man, he goes after the fire dragon, accompanied by only one stalwart knight. An epic hero is willing and able to fight superhuman monsters with supernatural powers and to do it alone, and die, if need be.

Besides being strong and brave, an epic hero must be a skilled negotiator, aware of protocols, capable of wearing a tux. He is able to talk with kings and handle himself, and his men, in royal courts. In short, he must be part of, or at least comfortable with, the aristocracy. He must be intelligent, educated, well-bred, and have a position of power. (Beowulf was the nephew of Hygelac, the king of the Geats, an historical figure, who died in battle in 521 A.D. So, was Beowulf real? The timing is right. He’s real enough to inspire us.)

The epic hero must also be a leader of men. Not a controller of men, but an inspiring person, a leader who goes to battle with the men he leads. George Washington at Valley Forge, freezing along with his troops. King Arthur and the knights of his Round Table. King David and his loyal followers. Jesus Christ and His disciples.

And an epic hero must be the lead character in a story that is epic in its magnitude. Beowulf saved Hrothgar and his kingdom. George Washington made America possible. Arthur fought back the Saxon invaders for over 50 years. David was the best king Israel ever had. Christ saved us all, if we want to be saved.

Not to make a direct comparison, but America is in a similar situation — do we want to be saved? This election sure makes it look like we do, but are we willing to follow Donald Trump into the swamp to clean up the mess the Left has made of our once great nation?

Trump, like Beowulf, has a cohort of loyal adherents who may or may not agree with him, but who are willing and able to fight the swamp-dwellers alongside him. These men and women are cabinet nominees, staff persons, podcasters, writers, reporters, pastors — people who have been raised up, placed into history for “such a time as this.”

So, several questions need answers:

  1. Will we hold steady during the messy battles to come? We’ve been euphoric since the election, but anyone who does any thinking has to realize that:
    1. Cornered rats bite. We can’t expect the slithery minions that inhabit the swamp will go down gently. They will fight politically, financially, and physically (They’ve already tried to kill him twice.). They have no moral or legal qualms to stop them.  The average American can’t directly do anything to protect Trump and his cohort, but we can pray. Obviously, God is watching over these folks — let’s pray that He continues.
    2. The mess we face is multifaceted, complex in the extreme, and of a magnitude that no human epic hero ever faced.  The fate of the whole world depends on America recovering its standing in the world. Like long, convoluted strings of dominoes, if any one of our problems blows up, the whole intricate design can topple. We need to be praying that Trump can avoid knocking over the wrong domino; it’s not going to be easy.
    3. Now would be an advantageous time for our enemies — both foreign and domestic — to come after us. Witness New Orleans and Las Vegas. God kept the Germans back from the beaches of Dunkirk until most of the trapped soldiers had been rescued; there is no other explanation for that hiatus. We must pray that He will hold our enemies back until we can reawaken our military might.
    4. While Trump has a definite mandate, it isn’t 100%. There’s still a good 40% of our fellow Americans who are, evidently, in favor of confiscatory taxes (their fair share), surgical mutilation of our children, open borders, abortion even up until birth, trans men in women’s spaces, and the sexualization of our kids. Those ideas aren’t dead and gone. They still need fighting. Truth needs to be spoken over and over again.
    5. The fear factor will play a big part in these next few months. We will be told to be afraid of birds, drones, orbs, extraterrestrials, prison, Christians, climate changes, petroleum, fog, and CO2. In short, everything under ground, on the ground, in the air, and above the air. We’re to be frightened little beasties. If we get scared enough, we’ll be malleable and panicky, easily led off a cliff.

Think back on the hero idea. We are not home from the battle. Frodo has yet to throw the Ring into Mt. Doom. Aragorn is not now sitting on his throne; that is yet to come. But if Tolkien taught us anything it’s that even the smallest, most insignificant person can rise to the occasion and win the day. America will need the help of every Gandalf, every Beowulf she can attract, and those heroes are being gathered. Millions and millions of us are praying and speaking out. After all, America is a nation of heroes. Let us, in Davidic terms, gird up our lions and be ready to keep marching until we get this done.

Deana Chadwell is an adjunct professor and department head at Pacific Bible College https://pacificbible.edu in southern Oregon. She teaches writing, logic, and literature. She can be contacted at 1window45@gmail.com

Image: AT via Magic Studio