Dear America, 

Most of you will recognize the following famous words: 

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. 

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed[.]

– Thomas Jefferson, U.S. Declaration of Independence 

What is the Declaration really saying? 

Having just covered the topic of Vocation, now is the perfect time for us to dissect Thomas Jefferson’s preamble. My goal in doing so is to clarify terminology for the reader that has become very confused in our modern American discourse. It is my belief that our national uncertainty about fundamental terms and their meaning in context is one major root cause of our deep cultural issues. 

First, within a Christian worldview, there are at least two major (primordial) forces at play across the spiritual and physical realms: 

• God’s Will, represented by “salvation comes via grace alone through faith (in Christ) alone”
  • Importantly, good and moral works cannot save you—only faith can. But, if you have faith, you will attempt to be good and moral. This also ties into the idea of Vocation. 
  • In a way, the “sign of a living faith” in Christianity is not hugely different from the Ancient Greek concept of eudaimonia that Jefferson evokes with the phrase “pursuit of happiness.” Nor is it, speaking broadly, much different from the Stoic, Confucian, Buddhist and other pathways to a virtuous life. That said, C.S. Lewis covered this well in Abolition of Man and his concept of the Tao, so I do not feel the need to. 
• Natural Order, which is an earthly extension of God’s Will
  • This is commonly understood in modern terms through the lens of physical science. 
  • In a Christian worldview, however, God’s law is also “written on the hearts of man” (Romans 2:15). Reflected in Lewis’s Tao concept, this essentially equates to Natural Law / Natural Reason and Objective Morality / Truth (true common sense, if you will). 
• Luciferian Will (also Man’s Corrupted Will), represented by “Utopia manifests via will alone through power alone” 
  • At the heart of this force is subversion. In the words of the Serpent: “Did God really say…?” 
  • Importantly, the primary objective of Luciferian Will is to eliminate the need for God. 

But why is any of this important to a discussion of American culture and government? 

Because Jefferson assumed his audience would understand and have a common view of fundamental ideas like Virtue (reflected in the “pursuit of happiness”), Natural Reason (“We hold these truths to be self-evident”), Natural Law (“the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them”), and God’s Will (echoing Martin Luther’s views on Vocation, “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights”). 

Further, Jefferson notably adds: “That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed […].” This is critical for two main reasons: [1] Governments are not instituted to control people via the exertion of power nor necessarily even to ease the people’s burdens—governments are instituted to provide an orderly system in which We the People can freely practice our Vocations / Pursue Happiness / Live a Virtuous Life; and [2] Governments derive their just powers via the consent of We the People (which is one of our Vocations, through which God works). 

I will reiterate a point I made in a previous letter: While the Founders created a wall between the spheres of Church and State, they most certainly built this constitutional republic on a foundation of Protestantism, Classical Philosophy, and English governmental traditions. 

What form of government do we Americans have, anyway? 

Western Civilization owes much to / has borrowed much from the Ancient Greeks. For example, language (even if the modern lexicon was filtered through Latin and Old French on its way to us today): 

• Kratos. Translates to “strength,” “power,” or “rule.” God of War, anyone? 
• Demos. Translates to “the people.” 
• Democracy. Government by the people. 
• Aristocracy. Government by the elite. 
• Plutocracy. Government by the wealthy. 
• Monarchy. Rule by one. 
• Oligarchy. Rule by a few. 

The American media and our politicians often refer to “our democracy,” and this is perhaps the greatest mislabeling in the history of labels. Sure, our government has democratic elements, but it also incorporates monarchic, oligarchic, aristocratic, and English parliamentary aspects. This is why it is considered a great experiment in self-government. 

Once again, the concept of Vocation is prerequisite to understanding the “American experiment.” Here are just two key examples: 

• In each high-level form of government listed above, there are accepted pathways of accession and succession. Hence, monarchs—who inherited power the moral and legal way—are viewed with legitimacy whereas dictators—who seized and probably abused power for the sake of wealth, control, etc.—are maligned.
  
  In the American system—at all governmental levels—part of our Vocation as We the People is to function as the proper path of accession for our leaders. And, since in the Protestant worldview God works through us, he is wearing our collective mask and speaking through We the People to elect suitable leaders to fill Vocations within our various governmental systems.
  
  
• Our governmental system is an amalgamation of elements and ideas with clear Vocations defined within it (e.g., a quasi-“council of elders” oligarchy in the Supreme Court, a quasi-monarchy in the Presidency, a quasi-aristocracy in the House, and, prior to the Seventeenth Amendment, a Voice of the States in the Senate). Our Founders brought all these elements and all relevant Vocations together—multiple governing bodies at all levels of government collaborating within a careful system of checks and balances—and harnessed them to serve We the People; thereby serving God’s Will and bringing Providence.
  
  Importantly, in our government, it is the Vocations and their proper fulfilment that are vital, not so much the individuals who “wear the masks.” All power and authority is borrowed. Even though this statement has a strong Christian flavor to it, I think the non-Christian audience can still find truth in it. 

So, is our American government best described as a democracy? In a word, no. Even the label “constitutional republic” is, in my mind, missing the point a bit. I really think we should just call it the American System and move on. Because—even though the various political structures that our Founders incorporated into our government have existed since at least the time of the Ancient Greeks, with the English adding the inspiration for our Founding Documents via the Magna Carta as well as a precursor to our Congress (albeit, theirs is structured around the old feudal class system rather than a Vocational view)—no one put the pieces together the way we did until we did it. We should, even if we are not proud of this fact anymore, recognize it as truth. 

For me, I think our government is the most sophisticated, adaptable, and representative form ever devised by mankind. However, it also demands a high degree of accountability and cultural acumen from its citizenry (We the People), and my belief is that we have largely forgotten this component. Never perfect, but always better than the day before… 

Conclusion 

The American System of government works. It works exceptionally well when correctly operated and maintained. But, like any sophisticated machinery, it also runs very poorly when improperly operated and/or neglected. My point is: It behooves We the People to understand the worldview of the Founders and the deep Western cultural tradition they tapped into when they established the American System. 

For example, why does capitalism have more appeal in a society like ours than socialism does? My supposition is that the Vocational principles upon which our nation was founded lead inevitably to meritocracy and free markets. Do I think this means that all elements proposed by socialistic systems are wrong or bad? No. But, they must be engineered into the American System with the aim of improving its performance, not the aim of entirely changing its operation or, in the first place, the value proposition behind its operation outright. That is, does our government exist to establish the safe, ordered space wherein We the People are free in “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”? Or does the government exist as a manifestation of currently accepted power structures and language, with its aim being to implement controls and safeguards so that humanity can be elevated (or, just as likely, subjugated) collectively and equitably? 

Are these two objectives at all compatible? I do not think they are terribly so, but I glimpse a dim ray of hope. 

If the prevailing Postmodern paradigm(s) in the United States shift in their primary objective from “reformatting the hard drive of American culture and government” to “understanding and working within the established systems, including processes for lawmaking and constitutional amendments” then there is a chance. Given the entrenched position of the Western Academy and its scions, though, I doubt it is a great chance. 

However, the aim of American Cultural Restorationism (or my view of it framed as CuRe) is not to ensure the culture war stops or that my favored side wins. Instead, CuRe aims to plant the seeds of an American culture that is “past-grounded, present-aware, and future-mindful.” We must look to the future. 

Love it or hate it, Make America Great Again (MAGA) is a good object to help make my point. MAGA is focused on American greatness in its economy, diplomacy, power projection, industry, infrastructure, etc. But where that movement draws the most ire is its ongoing volleys in the white-hot American culture war. While this conflict may be consuming our attention right now, it will doubtless end. And then what?

We must do the work today and every day henceforth that will allow our culture to produce statesmen, musicians, writers, philosophers, theologians, scientists, and dreamers whose achievements will echo through the ages. Thus, CuRe is taking a longer timeline view and aiming higher in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs at cultural healing, with the objective of preserving the American System for future generations—bolstered and recontextualized based on modern conditions but maintaining integrity with the Founders' meaning and intent in context. 

So… 

Now that we have a shared, foundational understanding of our American System—which is inextricably linked with the American culture and We the People—we can next review the appropriateness of changes that have been made to it, gaps in its operation, and possible improvements to it. 

But that will have to wait. Until then, America, 

Finch Fries