“To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without any virtue in the people is a chimerical idea." James Madison in the Virginia Convention.
Our current post-post-modern culture
eschews any discussions of morality, personal or civic. Yet the corrosion or
weakening of civic morality produces grievous effects in our cultural and civil
life, and I believe a return to or strengthening of civic-morality would address
many of the problems our nation faces. As a practicing Christian, I have often
avoided discussions of Civic Morality, thinking any such discussions tainted by
a lack of emphasis on the Bible. I was quite wrong in my approach. When we
abandon the concept of civic morality and instead embrace a more nihilistic or
laissez-faire approach to societal interaction, we head down a road which leads
away from a well-functioning society and good governance.
Our current struggles would be eased by the
embrace of civic morality. But what exactly is civic morality? As defined by PhD
Herzog Civic morality is the belief that engaging in social life is good
coupled with acting in ways that are intended to benefit others beyond the self
and ultimately to promote public good. Patricial Herzog PhD in “Handbook of
the Sociology of Morality, Volume 2” Halman and Gelissen go on to
further distinguish civic morality from personal morality by describing civic
morality as having to do with activities such as public law compliance,
respect for public order, and obedience to norms and rules, in “Values in
Life Domains in a Cross-National Perspective.” While these are excellent
starting points, I believe we should go on to lay out some of the foundational
beliefs and activities that make up civic morality.
I would define civic morality in the
following way: Civic morality is a constellation of beliefs and behaviors
shared by a society or culture that shape and undergird acceptable norms of
behavior within that society and that promote the good or betterment of all its
members. I’m not talking about a moral code arising from a specific religious practice or affiliation.
Instead, I want to examine core values that a culture or society seeks to
inculcate from one degree to another in all its members to better facilitate
the smooth functioning of society and the overall betterment of all its members.
While a society or culture will not always have full consensus regarding the
exact definition of civic morality, a general consensus keeps a society or
culture working together for the benefit of all its members. Over the next few
weeks, I will post a series of essays discussing civic-morality. In these essays,
we will examine truthfulness, courageousness,
faithfulness (personal and corporate), generosity, kindness, civility, cooperation,
patience, and forgiveness. While there are many others, these nine virtues,
when embraced, taught, and reinforced by a society or culture, help shape a
state in which the most people benefit from and grow. Examining these traits as
practiced by a culture helps us understand their importance and provides
insight into how we might go about encouraging them.
As we head into the coming elections,
thinking through the importance of civic morality and how various candidates
embrace and represent these traits weighs heavily on my mind. Our current
political process, so heavily influenced by party affiliation and well-heeled
and often shadowy doners, gives little thought to the moral fitness of a
candidate. This is a problem that afflicts both parties, exerting a pernicious
and corrosive effect on public policy and governance. Too many of our office
holders, untethered to any fixed societal moral code, make decisions that
effect millions of people across the nation. Frequently these policy decisions benefit
a small handful of political allies and are injurious to many others, sometimes
even the majority of the electorate. We need to evaluate our candidates on the
fitness of their civic morality. At its best, government in a representative
republic requires compromise, the give and take of our political process. Even
though for many citizens compromise is a dirty word, effective and good
governance requires it. Those candidates who best exemplify our civic-morality
possess the character needed to navigate the often-murky waters of government.
We need to evaluate candidates on their character more than their
pronouncements of party fidelity. This is why a return to character matters and
civic-morality is so very important. Additionally, civic-morality undergirds the
smooth function of our society, culture, business. All of the values listed
above enable us to work together with some degree of confidence in our neighbors
and business partners. Embracing them and encouraging their growth will improve
all of our lives, daily and long term.
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