Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies (David P. Gushee) - A Review
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY FROM ITS CHRISTIAN ENEMIES. By David P. Gushee. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2023. Xvii + 223 pages.
On January 6, 2021, a mob broke
into the United States Capitol building intent on disrupting the confirmation
of Joe Biden’s election as President. This took place following a Donald Trump
rally not far from the Capitol. It was a violent event that caused members of
Congress as well as the Vice President to flee to safety as Trump followers
broke into the building. They failed in their efforts, but it was touch and go
for a moment. Among those who participated in this riot were people carrying
Christian flags and signs proclaiming themselves acting in the name of Jesus. Apparently,
even Christian pastors were in the mob that day. While many in the crowd would
call themselves Christians, in that moment they acted in service to a
narcissistic President who had lost the election. The United States has always prided
itself on being an exemplar of democracy, but it does seem as if democracy has
begun to lose its luster as Americans, including many Christians, have decided
to embrace authoritarianism. The question of the moment, with Donald Trump once
again running for President and using rather authoritarian rhetoric in his
speeches and social media posts, could we be facing the end of democracy in the
United States?
The question of the fate of
American democracy has been a topic of conversation in many circles, including
Christian ones. Among the Christian writers who have taken notice of current
trends and addressed them is David Gushee. Gushee is a well-regarded Christian
ethicist who is by tradition a Baptist, a tradition that until recently has
espoused religious liberty and expressed itself in democratic forms. Currently,
he is a Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer
University and the author of numerous books on matters of Christian ethics and
contemporary concerns. In Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies,
Gushee addresses the current nationalistic trends within white evangelicalism, even
as he raises the alarm, he also offers resources to stem the tide of Christian
nationalism that is threatening American democracy.
Gushee understands that no
political system is perfect, but democracy is the best we have. Therefore,
democracy is worth defending even if some of its enemies are Christians. Like
me, he is disturbed by the support given to anti-democratic movements and the
embrace of Christian nationalism present within evangelicalism. While many pundits
and scholars speak of Christian nationalism, Gushee offers us a more
descriptive term or phrase that seems to better capture the situation. That
term is "Authoritarian Reactionary Christianity." I like this
descriptor as it is much more specific and less confusing than the term
Christian nationalism. That is because many equate nationalism with patriotism.
In this case, Gushee wants to emphasize authoritarianism, a characteristic we
see present in figures such as Victor Orban of Hungary and Vladimir Putin. Both
of these men, especially Orban, have admirers in certain sectors of the
American body politic and the church as well. These authoritarian nationalist
movements tend to be personality-driven, populist, and they seek power over
others. It is also reactionary in that it seeks to push the nation back to an assumed
earlier golden age (generally an age when white men ruled). It is committed to
winning culture wars as we are seeing in this moment in the backlash against
diversity and inclusion, especially of LGBTQ persons.
Before Gushee gets to this
authoritarian reactionary Christianity in Chapter 2, he must first define and
defend democracy, something he does in Chapter 1. He acknowledges that defining
democracy is not simple since it has taken different forms throughout history. With
that in mind, he has chosen to start with the definition offered by Bruce
Russert of Yale University, who speaks of democracy as a political system
"in which nearly everyone can vote, elections are freely contested, the
chief executive is chosen by popular vote or by an elected parliament, and
civil rights and civil liberties are substantially guaranteed." (p. 8).
That is a good definition, though we have yet to fully embody this definition
as a nation. He points out that democracy is more than simply the rule of the
people, which could be simply mob rule. That's not what is meant here. Thus,
Gushee goes into some detail in defining democracy, as a political system that
requires strong values and virtuous people. Though not perfect it is the best
we have. Unfortunately, this system is being challenged such that the future of
democracy in America is not guaranteed.
In Chapter 2 Gushee examines the
alternatives and threats to democracy, especially as they emerge out of
religious movements, including American Christianity. I've already mentioned
Christian nationalism and Gushee's more descriptive "Authoritarian
Reactionary Christianity" as dangers to democracy. He explores in this
chapter the reasons why authoritarianism has returned and is threatening
democracy. He dives deeper into defining "Authoritarian Reactionary
Christianity," his preferred descriptor, in Chapter 3, pointing out how
culture wars and reactions to immigration and LGBTQ inclusion, have galvanized
certain segments of the population who believe that Christianity is losing its
hold on the nation. He writes, perhaps prophetically, that “Nearly one-fourth
of the way through the twenty-first century, tens of millions of Christians are
attempting to bend the arc of history backward, attempting a religious
counterrevolution to the secular revolutions that they cannot accept and by
which feel threatened” (p. 58).
In Chapter 4, Gushee contrasts the
secular revolutions of the 20th century and the current religious
counterrevolution. He follows here the work of political philosopher Michael
Walzer. Gushee points us to the case of the secular Zionist movement that led
to the founding of Israel and the religious movements that have taken the lead
in Israel. He includes in the discussion the apocalyptic element that helps
drive Christian nationalism in this conversation. With that as the foundation, Gushee
moves to current trends in the USA and elsewhere, that are seeing similar
religious reactions. David writes that he believes it is reasonable to
"suggest that the perceived secular revolutions(s) of the 1960s finally
created the motivation necessary for the United States to have its first
experience of an organized religious (mainly Christian)
counterrevolution." (p. 70). That counterrevolution is threatening
American democracy, such that an institution that many had assumed was stable
and unsusceptible to collapse is now showing signs that this could be a possibility.
Having raised the question of
secular revolutions and religious counterrevolution, Gushee spends the next six
chapters taking note of reactionary political movements that sought to sweep
aside secular states. He begins with France in the period from 1870 to 1944
(chapter 5) and then moves to what he calls "The Politics of Cultural
Despair in Germany, 1853-1933," a political period that gave way to
Hitler's Nazi movement in 1933. Many of the seeds of Hitler's movement were
planted during this period, including anti-Jewish sentiment. Part of this reaction
is the emergence of a "corrupted, quasi-Christian nationalist
religion" that bears "little resemblance to Jesus or historic
Christian moral political norms." (p. 195). From there we move to Chapter
7 and "Authoritarian Reactionary Christianity in Putin's Russia." As
we watch the war between Russia and Ukraine, we've seen authoritarian
reactionary Christianity on full display as Putin has made common cause with
the Russian Orthodox Patriarch, couching the war in religious terms. Although
not nearly as reactionary as Russia, chapter 8 lifts up the situation in Poland,
where politicians had sought to align with the Roman Catholic Church in ways
that have degraded Poland's democracy (though a recent election seems to have
stemmed this trend for the moment). More disconcerting is Victor Orban's
Hungary (Chapter 9), as Orban has essentially established one-man rule rooted
in reactionary Christianity. His motto is "illiberal democracy." This
is an important chapter because Orban has become a hero to many on the American
Right, with Donald Trump and many GOP leaders idolizing him. Tucker Carlson has
broadcast from Hungary and conservative movements have held conventions there.
Orban's Hungary has become the model for what some would like to see happen in
the United States. Chapter 10 takes note of the former President of Brazil, who
embraced a similar version of authoritarian reactionary Christianity. Although
he lost re-election, like Trump he rejected the results of the election.
The situations discussed in
chapters 5 through 10, lead to a discussion of "Authoritarian Reactionary
Christianity in Trump's United States." While neither David Gushee nor I
see Trump as a true believer in his reactionary message, he has galvanized a
significant portion of the electorate who are true believers. Some even speak
in messianic terms. They serve as Trump's enablers. One of the dimensions of
this movement is an attempt being made even by members of Congress to contrast
democracy with a republic. We’re told by some that we’re not really a democracy,
which those taking this position equates with mob rule, Instead, we are a
republic, a representative government. The message here is that the majority
don’t really have a say, so voting rights are not a major concern. These are
views espoused by the current Speaker of the House along with other Republicans
from across the country. While the Constitution speaks of the United States as being
a republic, the distinction being made between the two is not a legitimate
effort.
Democracy cannot be the final end of life . . .. It is a form of human society, and man is only partly fulfilled in his social relations. Ultimately each individual faces not society but God as his judge and redeemer. . .. Democracy is certainly a better form of society than totalitarianism. But many proponents of it share one mistake of communists at least: they know of no other dimension of existence except the social one. (p. 190).
In defending Democracy, Gushee like Niebuhr, recognizes that
it is the form of government available to us, even when it doesn’t work well,
but it’s not the end of life, for that would be “eternal communion with God”
(p. 191).
David
Gushee writes Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies out of concern for our current situation both within
the larger country and in the church. While he points out the challenges, he
also offers a word of hope at a time when many are feeling discouraged and even
fearful as to the current situation. One path of hope is finding resources
within our traditions that can help us resist the threat and bring redemption
to the land. To help us with this effort, a set of discussion questions is
found at the end of the book, making this useful for congregational study. At
the end of the day, we can be thankful for the work of scholars like David
Gushee who are willing and able to bring their scholarship to bear on the
practical concerns of the time. So, please read Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies closely, especially if you are a Christian, so that you
may engage the social-political and religious world with open eyes and open hearts,
something that Christians ought to embrace.
Comments