Certain aspects of democracy are quite consistent with Christianity. It accepts our understanding that all are sinful. It tries to rule with a sense of justice and fairness to all.
In a sinful world power corrupts people. Democracy is a way to limit power and to provide a peaceful and regulated process to change governments.
Democracy has an inherent justice and fairness. The people who are governed are the ones who chose the government. In theory, society is not ruled by an elite but by the people.
Yet democracy is very difficult for minorities. The majority are not always right. Disenfranchised minorities often feel the tyranny of the majority.
And democracy’s recognition of sinfulness does not go far enough. For the rule of the majority is a recipe for degenerating society.
In areas of mutual advantage, or where there is little personal cost to the individual, democracies are able to express high moral principles. In matters of major humane treatment - like torture and paedophilia - democracies can appear virtuous.
Democratically elected governments abolished slavery. But it took decades of argument and demonstration of the most barbaric inhumanity before parliaments begrudgingly accepted the need to change. For the last twenty years society has slowly reined in the tobacco industry. Adolph Hitler made laws against this trade before WWII. We have taken more than sixty years to catch up with Hitler!
In the reality of everyday life, democracy adds to our problems rather than solving them.
Inevitably democracy elects popular politicians to power. Their popularity can be based on the superficial issues of their appearance or their presentation. More commonly it is based on their mastery of the mood and desires of the electorate. Their ability to be in-tune with the mood of society is helped by market research. By carefully polling public opinion, leaders are able to lead where the led want to be led.
It may sound good that the elected officials are so sensitive to what the people want, but there is one great drawback. Sinful people want to be given the freedom to sin without responsibility or any sacrificial concern for their neighbour.
It may sound good that the people determine the direction that their society is to take or that society is ruled by the people. But these are just expressions of humanity’s desire to run life without God. They are in reality expressions of sin.
If the leaders are going to follow the opinions and wishes of sinful fallen humanity - then the society is doomed to a downward degeneration. For sinful people do not consider pursuing righteousness for its own sake but only for its utility in protecting their interests. Sinful people are not concerned ultimately for the weak and vulnerable of society.
It is demonstrable that gambling is harmful to society.
It is an unfair taxation system, exploiting the weak and the poor. It brings untold harm not only to the problem gambler but also to spouse, children, parents, siblings, neighbours, employers and fellow employees. It opens our society to corruption at every level. It all too frequently leads to white-collar crimes. Not a few major institutions have been seriously damaged by the problem gambler in their employ.
But yet our society wants the right to have a flutter. And steadily we have increased the gambling accessibility to the community.
The gambling industry is so large that it is now seemingly impossible for the governments to live without their revenue.
To close the casino would be to put over 20,000 people out of work. Which government would have the courage to be responsible for such an action? We are told that without the poker machines the pub and club culture of our city could not exist. Such is our dependency on, and addiction to, gambling.
Gambling is only one such issue. The same can be said about the pornography industry, or the divorce laws and the practice of de facto marriages or cohabitation. We know these things are harmful to society.
The Governments’ have even published reports showing the damage that is being done. We can demonstrate the problems they create for people and the cost to the society as a whole. But all this is irrelevant as long as people want to live in opposition to God’s word. For the Government is lead by popular opinion. And popular opinion is lead by human sinfulness.
Today governments are expressing concern about the problems of alcohol abuse amongst youth and the indigenous population in the Northern Territory - totally ignoring the massive problems of alcoholism amongst the rest of our population.
For a society to be governed democratically it needs some basic moral character that exceeds popular opinion. For popular opinion will always lead our leaders down hill. It was the British jurist Lord Denning who said: "Without religion there can be no morality: and without morality there can be no law"; and "If religion perishes in the land, truth and justice will also."
Christianity lies at the base of our democratic government.
It is not replaceable with a Bill of Rights. A Bill of Rights moves decisions from elected members to unelected judges. And who determines what rights are right. Should we, like the Americans, have the right to bear arms?
But Christians cannot rely upon our past influence on the culture.
It is imperative that we continue to preach the gospel of our Lord and Saviour and to teach the scriptures to our society.
For only when the community has an agreed moral compass can our politicians choose the good of the society over the personal desires of sinfulness.
