Everyone seems to have a solution for “restoring” America. Take power away from liberal intellectuals, say some, and put “ordinary” people in charge.
Or make this a white-run, Christian nation.
Or insist on leaders who are intelligent and informed.
Or stop wasting American lives in pointless wars.
Or restore traditional marriage and family life.
Or allow new forms of marriage and family.
What these solutions have in common is a belief that America needs “restoring,” that something is fundamentally wrong in America, that America has lost its way and is in danger, and — here comes the money pitch — that they alone know how to fix it.
In marketing it’s called “selling the problem.” Before you can sell diet products, first convince people they are fat. To sell hatred, first convince people they are being hated.
In religious history it’s called “scapegoating.” Denominations stir solidarity by declaring themselves under attack. To stir rage among working-class Americans, tell them that the college educated look down on them.
In everyday life it’s called lying. To rescue a dying candidacy, fabricate stories about illegal immigrants and blame them for falling property values and distressed retirement portfolios. To stir anti-Islamic rage, misstate the facts about a cultural center planned for lower Manhattan.
We buy it, because we sense that something does need restoring. Something is wrong. We aren’t sure what. Money seems unusually tight. Jobs seem scarce. Our children don’t have bright futures. Yet another government seems helpless. Bewildering enemies point weapons and vitriol our way.
As we feel “nameless dread,” politicians, charlatans and demagogues are eager to give us the “name.”
Rather than think clearly, we give in to passions. Rather than seek facts, we welcome invective that expresses our fears. Rather than honor the complexity and ambiguity of the world we live in, we grasp at simplistic notions.
A maybe-truth that happens to agree with one's predispositions and fears is more satisfying than an actual-truth that requires one to think again.
It’s time to scrutinize the restoration experts.
Tom Ehrich is a writer, church consultant and Episcopal priest based in New York. This article was distributed by Religion News Service.