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In his book Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies, ethicist David Gushee argues that the liberal democratic tradition, which was pioneered during the Enlightenment and of which we are all beneficiaries, is “thin.” It gives us a negative vision of freedom, providing protections from impositions, but offers no positive, communal vision for the good life.

He writes,

This formative early vision is sometimes described as creating a “thin,” “liberal,” or “libertarian” democratic tradition. Its strength was its realistic recognition of the reality of convictional pluralism and the dangers of government meddling in matters of conscience so important to people that they will fight and die for their beliefs. Its weaknesses, however, were at least twofold. Its social imagination focused on individuals and their personal preferences rather than communities and their shared needs – but it is really communities that build associations and ultimately national governments. Further, its realism did not extend to recognizing that some shared accounts of the good life and the good community, and some way of forming good citizens who can exercise responsible freedom is required to sustain a viable human community – even a political community. Liberal democracy has been described as a “thin” tradition because of these missions.

Go read the founding documents of the United States, urges Gushee, and you will see that “these hugely influential documents offer relatively little by way of a shared communal vision.” These documents, Gushee argues, give lip service to the vague concepts of, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” but make no effort to offer a clear definition of these terms.

Continue reading “Thin Democracy and the Hunger For Meaning” →