Whenever individuals exit the existential modalities of their people, without being ritually ‘transferred’ to another people through strictly formalized exchange procedures (marriage, adoption), they become outcasts: they literally become ‘nobodies’. An archetypal expression of the resultant ‘loss of soul’ is found in the Biblical account of the Curse of Cain: And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth (Genesis 4:11–12). In the world of Tradition, the loss of ethnic identity meant a fate worse than death itself, as is reflected in the lament of Cain: And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me (Genesis: 4:13–14). Thus, the dissolution of ethnic identity under the aegis of Modern ‘progress’ effectively places Modern men under the Curse of Cain: as they are reduced to atomized individuals without a past and without a future, without a home and without a name, they become ‘lost souls’, condemned to wander the Earth without rest and without destination. On these lost souls the meaning of ‘Ethnic Vocation’ is inevitably lost. Under the shade of this ‘loss of soul’, it is the duty of well-intentioned educators to point out to young people the great loss they will incur when they abandon their Ethnic Vocation.
Ethnic Vocation in the Postmodern West
And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord,
and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
— Genesis 4:16
Within the framework of the Postmodern ideology of Cultural Nihilism, Ethnic Vocation is a taboo subject: the merest hint that ethnic identity might have a ‘higher meaning’ — as is inevitably implied by the term ‘vocation’ — is bound to raise a formidable barrage of slander and abuse. The standard Cultural Nihilist reaction to any rational discussion of the subjects of historical ethnicity and national identity includes accusations of ‘racism’ and ‘nationalism’, terms that in Western public discourse are inextricably associated with the unresolved traumas of the 20th century history of the Western peoples. These literally senseless accusations are obviously aimed at repressing any reminder of the highly ‘inconvenient truth’ of the doubly bio-evolutionary and cultural-historical reality of ethnicity. Cultural Nihilist doctrine is simply incompatible with rational discussion of this reality. Inevitably, the Cultural Nihilist hostile elite inhabits a hermetically closed mental bubble, which allows it to remain in permanent denial. It is up to the new génération identitaire of the Postmodern West to exit and explode this bubble, to reclaim its legitimate inheritance and to recover its Ethnic Vocation.
The ‘Western peoples’ can be pragmatically defined as the indigenous peoples inhabiting the European continent to the west of the religious divide imposed by the 1054 Great Schism line (roughly the present EU and EEA, excluding Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and Cyprus) plus their overseas settlements (the worldwide Anglosphere, parts of Latin America and South Africa). By this approximate definition, they include at least four dozen ethnicities, all of which have their own specialized Ethnic Vocations. These Ethnic Vocations, however, do have certain features in common. Despite substantial historical admixtures and some extreme variations, these features include (1) a shared physical phenotype (the ‘Caucasian Race’), (2) a shared religious Tradition (the Catholic/Protestant res publica christiana) and (3) a shared linguistic heritage (the Indo-European language family). From a Traditionalist perspective, these three ‘criteria’ are neither rigidly materialist nor rigidly reductionist: ‘phenotype’ refers to model physical expression rather than to ‘racial purity’, ‘religion’ refers to model spiritual experience rather than to theological dogma and ‘language’ refers to model creative ability rather than to linguistic exclusivity. In this regard, it is important to emphasize the historically hybrid phenotypic, religious and linguistic roots of Western civilization: the origins of this civilization are to be found in Völkerwanderung, which resulted in continent-wide phenotypic admixture, Evangelization, which resulted in an effective fusion of Christianity with Paganism, and Romanization, which resulted in the imposition of Classical standards on all Western forms of intellectual and artistic expression. Furthermore, the three criteria of phenotype, religion and language are neither totally exclusive nor totally exhaustive: they leave a considerable space for ‘anomalies’, in the form of deductions, compromises and additions. Most prominently these anomalies include: (1) considerable genetic fluidity in some overseas settlements (most importantly in Latin America north of the Tropic of Capricorn), (2) some religious fluidity in the old borderlands with Orthodoxy and Islam (most importantly in the Ukraine and the Balkans) and (3) specific linguistic exceptions (most importantly the Finno-Ugric peoples). According to a maximally ‘inclusive’ definition, this means that at least some of the non-Caucasian populations of Latin America and some of the non-Christian populations of the Balkans may be identified as ‘Western’. An objective standard of ‘Western identity’ may be the Voluntary 2:1 Standard, which revolves around the aforementioned three markers of ethnicity (phenotype, religion and language): if the large majority of a given people share two of these three markers, that people may be considered ‘Western’, provided it wishes to explicitly identify itself as such. In this regard, the voluntary character of Western identity is crucial, because the authenticity of this identity depends on a combination of interior experience (an interior sense of Western identity) and external assimilation (a sense of shared destiny with other Western peoples). This voluntary aspect reflects the core mechanism of Ethnic Vocation, viz. the immanent effectuation of a transcendentally defined act of will.
Some examples will serve to illustrate the use of this Voluntary 2:1 Standard. By this standard, the Finno-Ugrian peoples of Finland, Estonia and Hungary as well as the Bosnian and Albanian peoples of Muslim faith, all of them historically, consciously and intentionally embedded within Western civilization, are Westerners. By this same Voluntary 2:1 Standard, however, the Israelites and Roma populations living in Western countries are not Westerners: despite considerable overlaps (phenotype and language in case of most Israelites, religion and language in case of most Roma), they self-identify as non-Western and this self-identification should be respected. These people have distinct historical rights as long-term residents, but they basically remain ‘guests’ by their own wish.
Finally, it is of fundamental importance to stress that a consistent application of the Voluntary 2:1 Standard should induce extreme caution regarding the actual ‘Western’ identity of many contemporary ‘Westerners’. Under the aegis of Postmodern Cultural Nihilism, many ‘Westerners’ emphatically reject their own historical identity: they are vehemently opposed to any sense of self in term of historical phenotype, historical religion and historical language. They positively seek phenotypic deconstruction through compulsory ‘colour blindness’, religious deconstruction through militant atheism, and linguistic deconstruction through obligatory cosmopolitanism. This is already resulting in large-scale métissage, public-sphere laïcité and run-away créolisation in the European heartland of Western civilization. Arguably, the Traditional ideals of the Caucasian phenotype are currently much more prized outside the West, than in the West itself: the Iranian and Indian peoples are currently more preoccupied with phenotypic heritage (‘Aryan ancestry’, ‘caste purity’), than are their much more ‘purely’ preserved Caucasian ‘relatives’ in the West. Similarly, the Traditional ideals of Christian spirituality are currently much more prized in the churches of the Christian East, than in those of the Christian West: the Orthodox and Monophysite Churches are currently going through major revivals, while the Catholic and Protestant Churches have reached a stage of terminal decline.
Specific Postmodern phenomena of political, social-economic and cultural ‘globalization’, such as neo-Kalergian ‘Eurocracy’, neo-liberal ‘open borders’ and ‘internationalized’ academia, may be considered as reliable indicators of the degree of institutionalized oikophobia that has been made possible by the systematic rejection of historical Western identity by contemporary ‘Westerners’. From a Traditionalist perspective, the collective identities of the non-Western ‘migrants’ that are currently colonizing the Western heartland — populations that are socio-culturally primitive, but demographically viable — are much more authentic than the improvised and disposable hyper-individual ‘identities’ of these ethnically ‘deconstructed’ ex-Westerners.
As stated earlier: it is now up to the new génération identitaire of the Postmodern West to undo the ethnic ‘deconstruction’ perpetrated by the baby boomers, and to reclaim its legitimate inheritance through a rediscovery of Ethnic Vocation. In the European context, simplistically ‘racist’ or ‘ethno-nationalist’ agendas will not suffice in this regard. These agendas are exclusively rationalist-materialist constructs that might have some relevance in the context of specific ethnic conflicts in the overseas West, such as America and South Africa, but they are entirely inadequate in terms of European metapolitical discourse and European identity politics. For the European identitarian movement, racial self-awareness and ethno-nationalist self-defence constitute, at most, last-ditch ‘fall back’ positions. But before that desperate ultimate stance is forced upon the European peoples, the reaffirmation of their own specialized Ethnic Vocations — preservation of their own specific historical identities — will inevitably have priority. That said, the fact that Europe’s different peoples share a substantial degree of common identity gives them good cause to pragmatically ally against an enemy they now all share: the transnational Cultural Nihilist hostile elite of the West. The clear and imminent danger of ethnic replacement that now emanates from the hostile elite requires a maximal degree of inter-national cooperation and coordination.
On a political level, an appropriate response to this danger could be a confederative league, i.e. a pragmatic alliance that leaves intact the full sovereignty of each state and nation while temporarily directing their joint resources at the common enemy. In this regard, the old Polish and Russian revolutionary slogan ‘for our freedom and yours’ points to historical precedents for the preservation of separate identities during a common struggle. On a metapolitical level, an appropriate sense of shared fate can be found in the Traditionalist concept of meta-historical destiny. Traditionalist authorities such as Julius Evola teach that the collective destiny of the Western peoples is determined by their shared privileged (superhuman, ‘Hyperborean’) ancestry and (noble, ‘Aryan’) lineage. This meta-historical vision is scientifically mirrored in sustained research into shared linguistic roots (Anquetil Duperron), shared social structure (George Dumézil) and shared worldviews (Max Müller). In Europe, scientific research into the origin, identity and destiny of the Indo-European peoples was negatively affected by National Socialist abuse of the key term ‘Aryan’. In Asia, this research, which received much of its impetus from the work of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, has meanwhile continued apace. Recently, European researchers have finally shed the politically correct taboo on ethnic identity and origin as legitimate subjects of scientific inquiry, but it will take a new generation of thinkers, scholars and artists to fully re-appropriate these subjects for Western philosophy, science and literature. But the present Western génération identitaire does not need to wait for this faraway moment: ethnic identity surpasses a mere intellectual grasp of facts: it is an experiential reality that can be directly re-appropriated simply by being re-lived.
Higher Calling
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,
saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher then the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
— Isaiah 55:8–9
The Traditionalist concept of meta-historical destiny may be elaborated above and beyond the specific trajectories of specific peoples (i.e. their Ethnic Vocations): groups of peoples may also share a historically determined experiential reality of a higher order, a shared ‘Higher Calling’. Thus, Modern history shows that the Western peoples as a group share the ‘Higher Vocation’ of Katechon of the World: the Western peoples are collectively fated to be the protectors, lawgivers, educators and benefactors of the Southern and Eastern peoples. Collectively they are the Bringer of Evangelion, the Creator of Nomos and the Master of Techne. Essentially, this Higher Calling is beyond the full grasp of the human intellect; essentially, it is superhuman. However, even the most basic knowledge of world history and even the most rudimentary understanding of the world of today illustrate that this Higher Vocation is also a tangible reality. Only the Western peoples’ continued adherence to this Higher Vocation assures the other peoples of the world of the gains of Western civilization: spiritual freedom, scientific endeavour, earthly justice, liberating technology and soothing medicine. The specific Ethic Vocation of each specific Western people may be considered as a partial and special — historically and geographically conditioned — reflection of that shared Higher Vocation.
Because each of the Western peoples — however small — has its own role — however modest — within this Higher Vocation, the author will now limit himself to discussing the specific Ethnic Vocation of his own small people: the Dutch people. Perhaps other peoples may benefit from a discussion of the fate of the Dutch people under the aegis of Cultural Nihilism, because this unfolding fate may hold the key to understanding the future fate of the Western people as a whole. The Dutch people is undoubtedly among the most modern of the Western peoples; it only took shape under the impact of full-blown Modernity (Early Capitalism, Age of Discovery, Post-Renaissance Humanism, Radical Reformation). Ever since its rise to nationhood the Netherlands has retained a distinctly ‘progressive’ cultural-historical ‘edge’, as evidenced in its pioneering role in hyper-capitalist experimentation, technological innovation and extremist hyper-secularism. In this sense, the Netherlands is an intrinsic part of the avant garde of Modernity, alongside other typically ‘Protestant Ethic’ nations such as Switzerland, Britain and America. Thus, the Netherlands may very well serve as a cultural-historical ‘test case’, offering a preview of what may be in store for the rest of Western civilization.
The third chapter already described this ‘test case’ — the Postmodern predicament of the Netherlands as a ‘lesson of history’ — and this fourth chapter will investigate the special Ethnic Vocation of the Netherlands as the necessary background to this lesson. Because no comprehensive cultural-historical summary is possible within the limited framework of Alba Rosa, this third chapter will focus on the single most important element of the Ethnic Vocation of the Netherlands: Radical Protestantism. This chapter will show not only how this particular element forms the necessary background to the Crisis of the Modern Netherlands, but also how a correct grasp of its meaning can help overcome this crisis. Because Radical Protestantism is a vital element within Western Modernity in general, this analysis can also be valuable in the international identitarian search for metapolitical formulae to remedy the Crisis of the Modern West.
Τὸ Κατέχον
And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.
— 2 Thessalonians 2:6–8
In its original outline, this chapter was written as a contribution to a Russian research project named Katehon. Every linguistically educated Bible student knows what this very special term refers to. But because Scripture is read less and less,
this paragraph is introduced by the translation of the relevant verses. At the same time, this introductory Word indicates the concept that is the focus of this chapter. It is important to state this focus explicitly to those who still intend to be Christians in a newly paganized world.
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