While religion has not vanished completely from the American public eye, it has taken a new shape. Questions of religion are now treated “as a private preference rather than a public good.” Little thought is given to how faith, specifically the Christian faith, can be a unifying force to an otherwise divided nation. Religion is the way we may preserve the American democratic lifestyle.
Modern democratic freedom, as Alexis de Tocqueville observed, developed as a result of Christianity’s influence on European, and by extension American, civilization. The political freedom we enjoy as Americans requires a sure moral foundation only religion can supply. Religion also plays a key role in democracy’s preservation. Democracy is self-defeating, fostering moral and intellectual habits that are detrimental to its end of freedom, such as the tyranny of the majority, individualism, materialism, and democratic despotism. Christianity is a check on these otherwise corrosive tendencies.
For centuries, even secular political thinkers have noted that religion is essential to a healthy political community. Religion orients us to the common good.
However, it has become evident that as America has lost its concern for religion the American public, and democracy have become exceedingly at risk. This can be seen everywhere, from our professional sports teams to where we shop.
In fewer than two weeks, the Los Angeles Dodgers have both removed and then apologized and re-invited the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a charity and protest organization that crosses drag and religious imagery, to the team’s tenth annual Pride Night. The Dodgers originally dumped the “sisters” from their Pride Night following pressure from conservative Catholic groups, including the Catholic League and CatholicVote, along with figures such as Father Vierling and Florida Senator Marco Rubio.
Not only were the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence re-invited to the Dodgers Pride Night, but they were awarded while there as well, “The Los Angeles Sisters say they’ve accepted the apology from Dodgers leadership… The Sisters said they will indeed be honored with the Community Hero Award they originally were to receive.” While these “sisters” do good work, their charity reportedly going to support AIDs research and the group boasts “countless hours of community service, ministry, and outreach to those on the edges, in addition to promoting human rights and respect for diversity and spiritual enlightenment,” this should not come at the cost of American faith.
Personally, as a young Catholic, it is evident that my expression would be unwelcomed, and that images of my faith would be as derogatory tools. The Dodgers’ actions exemplify how the tyranny of the masses has taken root without the guiding hand of religion, as de Tocqueville warned.
The Dodgers controversy comes in tandem with a similar fiasco from Target and their annual Pride collection. Eric Carnell, a designer hired a by Target is an outspoken Satanist.
When asked about his collection and the “inspiration” such, Carnell replied “Satanists don’t actually believe in Satan, he is merely used as a symbol of passion, pride, and liberty… for me, Satan is hope, compassion, equality, and love. So, naturally, Satan respects pronouns. He loves all LGBT+ people. I went with a variation of Baphomet for this design, a deity who themself is a mixture of genders, beings, ideas, and existences.”
To Carnell, Satanism is a metaphor. However, this metaphor has come at the cost of the safety of innocent Target employees, “Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve experienced threats impacting our team members’ sense of safety and wellbeing while at work,” Target said in a statement. Target’s ‘rainbow capitalism’ and materialism have shown the necessity of Christianity, or at least the general influence of religion, on American political life. As of now, the company has seemingly severed all ties with Abprallen, as a search for any merchandise from the company on the Target website yields no results.
The effects of the lack of Christian influence on American democracy are becoming more and more common, while American democracy is on the ropes now more than ever. Instead, religious imagery is mocked and Satanic images are beginning to make their way onto our nation’s shelves. These actions that are being done in the name of inclusion and diversity are actively tearing our democracy apart. America is meant to be a diverse nation. But it is also meant to be united. We must either return to faith and Christian morality to preserve our democracy or scramble for an alternative.
Raleigh Adams
Raleigh Adams is a junior at Clemson University's Honors College pursuing a double major in political science and philosophy. Her studies center around political theory, specifically the questions of women’s rights and statesmanship. She hopes to continue her education into graduate work and eventually corrupt the next generation of youth with philosophy as well.
The views expressed in this article are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Lone Conservative staff.
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