Nov 5th, 2020: Democracy in Decline
We just have to wait now for the final confirmation of the election result in the US. It depends on where people are on their political spectrums, there will be different commentaries about what should happen next. The US is a divided house. The house with two solitudes. We are now witnessing the decline of democracy in the US and around the world. Both democracy and civilization are fragile when they are to deal with human broken and corrupted conditions.
When we don't truly have a consensus about what is right and wrong, we begin to chip away at the foundation of democracy. How can we say to ourselves that we should cherish the system of democracy when we don't have any well-defined way to measure it? In some ways, we should not be surprised by the aftermath of this election because we don't know who we are and where we want to go as a nation.
What is missing in the midst of all of this chaotic situation? We fail to have meaningful conversations about the sanctity of human life, the dignity of human life, and the ongoing creativity of human life. We should engage in these conversations if we want to honor the long term promise of democracy. If we ignore any of the above, we will compromise and destroy it.
We cannot cherish democracy if we continue to attack free speech. The right to vote cannot happen without the right to have one's ideas and opinions, regardless of how controversial they are. Democracy and conformity are not partners in the dance of the human journey of searching for the truth. Telling me that I have the right to vote while accusing me of hatred by talking about abortion is absurd. Yet, that is the democratic process that we are currently trying to protect and cherish.
So may God help us all as we are trying to navigate this very confusing journey in our human history.
1 Corinthians 1: 10
"I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment."