Courage and Cost

Democracy is in great danger. The question now is what are we going to do about it.

Democracy is in great danger. The question now is what are we going to do about it? Can we save democracy and reverse the rapid rise of authoritarianism? And if so, how?

Democracy, as they say, is not free, and to save it now at this critical historical moment, will cost us– and that will take courage. Cost and courage are the two words for our lives right now. It is said that courage is contagious. Let’s find out.

I encourage you all to read a remarkable opinion page column in the New York Times, titled How Will We Know When We Have Lost Our Democracy.

The piece starts:

How then can we tell whether America has crossed the line into authoritarianism? We propose a simple metric: the cost of opposing the government. In democracies, citizens are not punished for peacefully opposing those in power. They need not worry about publishing critical opinions, supporting opposition candidates or engaging in peaceful protest because they know they will not suffer retribution from the government. In fact, the idea of legitimate opposition–that all citizens have a right to criticize, organize opposition to remove the government through elections–is the foundational principle of democracy.

One of the co-authors is the renowned democracy scholar and political scientist, Steven Levitsky, who joined me as the guest in our latest podcast episode.

Levitsky points out that dictators no longer gain power with coups, tanks, and armed men (though they do often use violence or the threat of violence against their opponents). They are often elected, due to long-standing grievances and lack of trust in politics. The newly elected autocrats then use and abuse the intuitions of government and society to take over power in every sector.

Political opposition now “comes with a price.” Under Trump’s constant threats, people are now protecting themselves and their institutions, laying low, staying on the sidelines, keeping their heads down, or just bowing their knee to Trumpian power– out of fear of retaliation, retribution, and persecution.

The Trump regime is fundamentally against democracy, putting his and his family’s own power and wealth ahead of all other concerns in American government and society.

It’s not just narcissism over public service, but the enjoyment of inflicting cruelty and pain over any opposition. Trump keeps trying to say, in effect, that resistance to him is impossible.

Donald Trump epitomizes the ultimate corruption of politics and life itself, by a man with no moral principles. And his Christian nationalist supporters represent the corruption of religion itself, for the sake of political power. The Hebrew prophets called these false religionists the “court chaplains” of the king.

In our conversation I was struck by how Levitsky documents the rapid assaults on many sectors of society– universities, law firms, businesses, nonprofits, media, and to many individuals–including former Trump officials- who stood up to his lies about elections and politics.

Levitsky, though not himself a person of faith, strongly believes that churches are the “most important infrastructure” across the whole country that could help save democracy. Which is why he wasn’t surprised by how Georgetown University, because of its identity as a Jesuit university, was the first higher education institution to stand up to the regime’s demands to change their curriculum by removing race and DEI.

With the rapid rise of authoritarianism, we need moral and civic courage in this pivotal moment, with various sectors locking arms together in unity, and coordinating across sectors.

As we witness growing attacks on democratic norms and institutions, we must reflect on our responsibilities—not just as citizens, but as people of faith and moral conscience—to defend democracy and protect the common good.

This courage can’t just come from politicians and others with power and profile– but from all of us.

While we cannot control the outcomes, we can create moments that demand and show our courage. And we have one of those moments coming up on June 10th at the U.S. Senate just two days after Pentecost Sunday, when the Church celebrates the earliest disciples of Jesus finally found the courage to stop hiding in fear and go to the streets to spread the gospel of Jesus.

And that is exactly what we intend to do during our Pentecost Witness for a Moral Budget event on June 10th, encourage Senators to act courageous on behalf of the poor and low-income people in the United States.

Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” which he forced through the House, with threats, despite even Republican objections, has now arrived at the Senate with a moral calculus that shows Christian faith to be at stake.

The bill cuts hundreds of billions of dollars from critical programs for poor and low-income Americans, especially their health care and their food, in order to pay for trillions of tax cuts for the very wealthiest in the country.

This bill is antithetical to the teachings of Jesus, and so we must all act to ensure it doesn’t pass the Senate.

This is a moment to show courage. I hope you will consider joining with us and hundreds of others on June 10th in DC. You can find out more and register to join us here. We need to show Senators that Christians won’t stand by quietly as they hurt the poor, sick, hungry, and thirsty.

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