Wednesday, March 14, 2012

John Jay on politics in the pulpit

John Jay is an often-overlooked Founding Father when it comes to questions of religion in the public square.  An orthodox Protestant Christian with a strong aversion to Roman Catholicism, Jay was nonetheless a proponent of religious liberty as a general proposition who believed that while religion should have a role in guiding the moral development of society, it should also refrain from stating positions on every political issue.  This is evident in one of Jay's letters to Jedidiah Morse, where Jay wrote as follows:
Although the mere expediency of public measures may not be a proper subject for the pulpit, yet, in my opinion, it is the right and duty of our pastors to press the observance of all moral and religious duties, and to animadvert on every course of conduct which may be repugnant to them.
Letter dated January 1, 1813.

Jay is far from advocating a naked public square in his work, but his statement to Morse demonstrates a concern that pastors not address political issues beyond the specific competency of religion to address -- those issues that directly impacted on moral and religious duties.  This active though restrained role was, to Jay, one that was supported by the witness of the Old Testament.

As we move through the political season this year, John Jay's sage words regarding the proper role intersection of politics and the pulpit are salutary ones to keep in mind.  

13 comments:

Phil Johnson said...

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animadvert, to harshly criticise.
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I think Mark's blog illustrates the major societal difference between Founding Era times and the present which is all about communictions.
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The pulpit was definitely the dominating media where ideas and messages were broadcast throughout society, back during the Founding Era. But, ever since the telegraph, communications media have evolved beyond the most far flung imaginations of our ancestors.
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I could go into any number of comments regarding this point; but, here is the late James W. Carey--then Dean of the College of Communciations, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign--In Democracy and Its Discontents, Daniel Boorstin summarized his version of American history with the comment that "perhaps the most important single change in human consciousness in the last century, and especially in the American consciousness, has been the multiplying of the means and forms of what we call 'communicationsion'"(1974:7). Boorstin's wavering conclusion is common enough, even unexceptional, though it remains largely uninvestigated. But is it true?" The opening paragragh to the introduction to Communication As Culture, Essays on Media and Society. Check it out.
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Carey's work investigates the issues.

Tom Van Dyke said...

Interesting, Phil. Of course the black churches on the left and the mainstream evangelicals on the right still offer a forum---a bully pulpit, even---for politics little different from the Founding era, where the local church was also the community meeting house.

In fact, I bet the church/meeting house accommodated more ideological diversity than say, a black church, a white fundie church, or of course today's Unitarian Universalists, where God is optional but liberal politics are not.

;-)

Oh, and before we get in TVD's face for his cheeky but devastatingly accurate assessment of modern UUism:

http://www.philocrites.com/archives/002335.html

John C. Green of Akron University reports on a spring 2001 survey of 1,011 ministers serving UU congregations; 65.9 percent of the ministers responded. The results?
Party identification
Strong Democrat 56%
Weak Democrat 11%
Independent, lean Democrat 22%
Independent 7%
Independent, lean Republican 2%
Weak Republican <1%
Strong Republican 1%
Presidential choice in 2000
Al Gore 81%
George W. Bush 2%
Pat Buchanan 0%
Ralph Nader 15%
Other 1%
Did not vote

Phil Johnson said...

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The idea of a dominating media is that it over rides all other sources of information.
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During the Founding Era, the pulpit was more than bully. It dominated!
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And, it had no opposition.
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Tom Van Dyke said...

I don't think that's all provably true, Phil. In fact what I was actually saying is that today's pulpits are more bullying than those 250-plus years ago.

During the Founding Era, the pulpit was more than bully. It dominated!

Interesting argument about religion and the Founding, Phil.

Phil Johnson said...

That today's PULPITS may be more bullying today than they were during the Founding Era can be argued; but, the discussion is about the way our ancestors received information about anything outside their personal day to day life experiences. Today, we have any number of media that are in play including cell phones, the 'Net, and television. During the Founding Era, the PREPONDERANT media was the pulpit.
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That's the only point I meant to make.
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Phil Johnson said...

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Whenever a speaker wishes to develop relationships with an audience, language must be framed in the current context.
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I think Mark is making that point in his post. And, I think his post shows the pulpit fully dominated the public mind.
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Angie Van De Merwe said...

Phil,
I think you make a good and valid point that needs answering.

What is the MAIN public mouthpiece in forming public opinion, today? Isn't it the media, television, and movies?

Phil Johnson said...

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That's the entire idea of the word, media.
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There are all kinds; but, during the Founding Era there were only two--the pulpit and the public square and all discourse was framed from the pulpit.
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Think about that!
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jimmiraybob said...

There are all kinds; but, during the Founding Era there were only two--the pulpit and the public square and all discourse was framed from the pulpit.

Phil, I have to disagree a bit here. Books, pamphlets and newspapers from overseas formed a large part of the information being devoured by the colonists. Not to mention the writings, pamphlets, etc. being produced on the home front (see Bernard Bailyn's Ideological Origins).

And - and it's a big and, don't forget the taverns and theater (Addison's Cato for instance)! I'd say that a large part of what was being said from the pulpits was informed by contemporary issues and debate outside the confines of the church.

There are a number of historical accounts of clergy being driven from their positions by their congregations who wanted rebellion and independence.

Many/most of the colonists during the revolutionary and founding periods didn't actually attend churches, not necessarily that they were irreligious but just too far away - I can't remember the citation(s), maybe someone could help

Phil Johnson said...

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I guess you're right on the books, pamphlets, and broadsides, sic, Poor Richards Almanac and Tom Paine's work.
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And, Taverns, which was where a lot of behind the scenes thinking probably took place.
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I'm glad you brought that up.
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Phil Johnson said...

were?

Jason Pappas said...

The Jay quote says little more than the duty of pastors is to address moral character. Obviously such character acts appropriately in civic affairs as personal affairs. He explicitly says the actual political matter is not properly suited for the pulpit. Do I have it right?

Phil Johnson said...

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I suppose you're right about the Jay quote thinking in literalist terms. But, beyond that, the pulpit was definitely the dominating media of all media in so far as the inculcation of teaching good and evil, right and wrong. Most of our ancestors were taught their views of reality from the pulpit. It dominated their life's experience.
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