rjb@akgua.UUCP (rjb) (02/13/86)
Re: Think Tank says "Tank God for Democracy" :-)
The Brookings Institution has issued a report that was
discussed by AP religion writer G.W. Cornell and it concluded
that the stability and future strength of American democracy
depends on the underpinings of religion. Without it "democracy
lacks essential moral support" to sustain itself, the report says.
[ Let's not get side-tracked in "The U.S. is a Constitutional
Republic NOT a democracy" debate.]
Three years worth of study has apparently gone into this report
which contains 389 pages and is entitled "Religion in American
Public Life."
Among the items that Mr Cornell cited from the text (admittedly
out of context and without supporting info) are the following:
1) Secular value systems fail "to meet the test of intellectual
credibility" for holding society together.
2) Representative government "depends for its health on values
that over the not-so-long run must come from religion."
3) Through religion, "human rights are rooted in the moral worth
with which a loving Creator has endowed each human soul, and
social authority is legitimized by making it answerable to a
transcendent moral law."
[ This kind of harks back to the founders ideas doesn't it and
has a particular Judeo-Christian slant ?]
4) Advocates a moment of silence that could be used for voluntary
prayer in public schools.
5) Rejects the strict church-state separation that bars all expression
and symbols of religion from public life as "neutrality" toward
religion by government. "Banishment of religion does not represent
neutrality between religion and secularism; conduct of public
institutions without any regard to religion is secularism..."
6) "A society that excludes religion totally from its public life,
that seems to regard religion as something that the public must be
protected from, is bound to foster the impression that religion is
either harmful or irrelevant."
7) "Persons subscribing to a classical humanist ethic are driven to
hypocrisy or cynicism" by pretending a "fellow feeling for the masses"
not sustained by that value system, or scorning their ways.
"In either case, social bitterness between humanist elites and the
mass of working-class and middle-class citizens is bound to follow."
[ I think that may be overstating the case somewhat ]
8) "Religious fanaticism may easily lead to social tragedy" e.g.
Iran, Lebanon,...
9) The Founders never intended the 1st Amendment to prevent "acknowledg-
ing dependence of civil society, as all life, on transcendent direction."
10) Described the founders' view of human nature as "largely derived
from the Judeo-Christian belief that man is inherently inclined to
sin." and to pursue his own ends to the detriment of others.
"Belief in original sin led the founders... to regard government as a
necessary check on natural egoism but also to distrust government
itself," resulting in our checks and balances system.
[I believe Jewish contributors on the net have disavowed "original
sin" as a doctrine peculiar to Christianity which undercuts the
Judeo part of the Judeo-Christian assertion. ]
Mr Cornell stated that the Brookings Institution has generally been
regarded as "liberal" over the years. [ Whatever that means ]
While basically in agreement with the conclusions that I have been
presented from the report, I have not read it yet.
Your turn,
Bob Brown {...ihnp4!akgua!rjb}shad@teldata.UUCP (Warren N. Shadwick) (02/18/86)
In article <2096@akgua.UUCP> rjb@akgua.UUCP (rjb) writes: > The Brookings Institution has issued a report ... > > 3) Through religion, "human rights are rooted in the moral worth > with which a loving Creator has endowed each human soul, and > social authority is legitimized by making it answerable to a > transcendent moral law." > > [ This kind of harks back to the founders ideas doesn't it and > has a particular Judeo-Christian slant ?] I'll only quote Washington's farewell address to Congress ... "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports." George Washington > Mr Cornell stated that the Brookings Institution has generally been > regarded as "liberal" over the years. [ Whatever that means ] Isn't it the Brookings Institute who once advocated in a report that everything in society belongs to the government and if the government permits the people to retain anything it is considered to be a 'gift' of the government?