Joe Biden’s Altar Call

Joe Biden decided not to run for re-election for the same reason he decided to run for president in 2020.

It became clear last night that Joe Biden decided not to run for re-election for the same reason he decided to run for president in 2020– to defend a democracy in peril. 

We could all see the limitations of an aging Joe Biden again last night, while listening to a  historic speech with an incumbent president deciding not to run again even though he had the primary votes to do so. He didn’t discuss his health at all, nor suggest his aging was the reason he decided not to run again. Rather, It has also been clear in these last few weeks that Biden was still ready to run even since his disastrous June 27th debate.

Fighting against authoritarianism at home and abroad has become Biden’s chosen mission. But for the sake of “uniting my party in this critical endeavor,” Biden decided to “pass the torch” of saving democracy on to a new generation. “This sacred task of perfecting our union is not about me,” he said. I found that extraordinary. He said “there is a time and place for new voices, fresh voices; and that time is now.”

It is an incredibly difficult and exceedingly rare decision to step down from power. A decision which most struggle with and few get right.

But Joe Biden told the nation that “nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy. That includes personal ambition.” What an amazing contrast to the man running for president named Donald Trump for whom everything is about him and his personal ambition.

As a child stutterer myself, I was touched when Biden began his self-description as a stuttering kid from modest beginnings in Scranton, Pennsylvania. But despite his lifelong challenge, he was now sitting behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval office. That’s what America means to Joe, and he wants all  people to also have a chance to do whatever they want to do. “The great thing about America is, here, kings and dictators do not rule. The people do,”  said Biden, raising his soft voice last night. “The idea of America resides in your hands,” said Biden, “now the choice is up to you, the American people.”

It is indeed a very unnatural thing to relinquish power for any reason. But Biden has said over and over and did again last night that America is at “an inflection point.” He rightly described that America’s choices now are between “the future or the past, hope or hate, unity or division.” 

Biden’s words weren’t all clear but his heart was. His love of country over love for himself was something to watch. As was his enduring belief that we are “all are created equal”. And knowing President Biden’s faith, I know he believes that because he believes we are all made in the image of God. . 

Deep personal tragedies in Joe Biden’s personal life gave him a profound ability to have empathy for the sufferings of others. Compassion for others became the touchstone of his politics which came up again with Biden saying we need to treat political adversaries as neighbors and not as enemies. That will be key to the future of democracy.

We know why Joe Biden ran for president. And we know how he has now put aside his own power and ambitions to serve his country and his call to save our democracy. He said what he had to do, and has now asked all of us to do the same. That’s Joe’s civic “altar call” to us right now in the critical weeks and months just ahead.

Check out the brand new companion study guide for The False White Gospel here.