Independence Day overshadowed by 16 mass shootings: A reflection on the foundational question of our time
The Daily Article
The Denison Forum
4.9 • 576 Ratings
🗓️ 6 July 2023
⏱️ 7 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Sixteen mass shootings resulted in 15 deaths and nearly a hundred injured across 13 states and Washington, D.C. this past July 4. It’s also been two months since the deadly mass shooting at the Allen Premium Outlets in Allen, TX. Such violence reveals our fallenness, and Dr. Jim Denison considers how much our fallenness plays into the “secular religion” of democracy replacing Christianity.
Author: Jim Denison, PhD
Narrator: Chris Elkins
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Greetings and welcome to the Daily article podcast on this Thursday, July 6th, |
| 0:07.7 | 2023. Today's article is written by Denison Forum co-founder and CEO, Dr. Jim Denison, |
| 0:14.1 | and narrated by Chris Elkins. Today marks two months since the Allen Premium Outlets mass shooting left eight people dead and seven injured. |
| 0:23.6 | Since Allen is just north of Dallas, the shooting felt even more personal to me, not to mention that those who live there are still grieving. |
| 0:32.6 | This tragic anniversary follows a tragic 4th of July, during which 16 mass shootings killed 15 people and injured nearly 100 more across 13 states and Washington, D.C. |
| 0:45.5 | Such heartbreaking news on our nation's birthday calls to mind C.S. Lewis's perceptive comment regarding democracy. |
| 0:53.2 | Quote, you may think all men so good that they deserve a share in the government of the Commonwealth, |
| 0:58.5 | and so wise that the Commonwealth needs their advice. |
| 1:02.0 | That is, in my opinion, the false romantic doctrine of democracy. |
| 1:07.1 | On the other hand, you may believe fallen men to be so wicked that not one of them can be trusted with any irresponsible power over his fellows. |
| 1:16.2 | That, I believe, to be the true ground of democracy. |
| 1:20.3 | As we continue our Independence Day focus on America, let's think about the true ground of democracy in light of a question I believe |
| 1:29.2 | every believer in our country should consider. Jacob Wolfe, a government professor at Regent |
| 1:35.1 | University, who formerly taught at Princeton, writes in the publication, public discourse, |
| 1:40.6 | that democracy, quote, has become a secular religion complete with its own dogmas, |
| 1:47.0 | practices, clerics, and eschatology. In his view, Wolf continues, progress replaces providence, |
| 1:54.4 | humanitarianism replaces charity, and mind or reason replaces God himself. End quote. |
| 2:01.7 | The more Christianity declines in our culture, the more this secular religion which he identifies |
| 2:07.3 | as democratism is rising to replace it. |
| 2:10.7 | Wolf rightly responds when he says, democracy, like many good things, is destroyed if it is |
| 2:17.1 | elevated above all else. |
| 2:18.9 | Democracy is valuable to the extent that it is placed in its proper position and context, |
... |
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