The Establishment has become the focus of this Presidential Election cycle. In the Democrat Party, Sen. Bernie Sanders drummed up massive support to confront it, resulting in major adjustments to that Party’s political platform. In the Republican Party, Donald Trump himself is testimony to the overthrow of the Political Establishment. And now, America as a whole is considering between two options: Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, the Establishment or the Anti-Establishment.
What is the Establishment?
Before American voters settle on whether they will vote for the Establishment or the Anti-Establishment, I think it’s important to identify what it is. Only then can we truly decide what to do about it.
From the Preamble to the US Constitution we read:
We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
We the People ordained & established the Constitution. The US Constitution established the Establishment. Therefore, We the People established the Establishment and commissioned it to act within the bounds of the Constitution. The Framers established the Establishment in order to accomplish the goals of the Preamble: to make America Great.
Clearly, the Establishment has failed to even come close to keeping the Charge of the Preamble. Undeniably, it has failed to do those things which form a More Perfect Union.
No One Can Honestly Say the Establishment has not Failed
Day in & day out we are beaten silly, killed and dismayed by examples of injustice. We see all the internal strife in our Country and are assured there is no domestic tranquility. Fear is rampant because many don’t believe the Establishment is doing a good job at keeping us safe. Social disparities in education, healthcare, employment, and etc. demonstrate that the general welfare has not been well-promoted. And, the economic disparities between Wall Street & Main Street are a clear example that the blessings of liberty have not been secured for ourselves and our posterity.
So We the People are rightfully at odds with the Establishment that was birthed by us. But what is the solution? Do we destroy our creation? Or do we reform our creation?
The people are understandably separated from the Establishment. And there needs to be a rapprochement that leads to reconciliation.
Reconciliation is a concept we talk about – or should talk about – frequently in the Christian Faith. Reconciliation is becoming one…it is “oneness.” And it is accomplished by two things: repentance & forgiveness.
When we repent of how we’ve fallen short & forgiven those shortfalls, we can come together and move forward – together. Those who have fallen short of their obligations to a union must repent: apologize for their failure and make reparation for their failure, so they can fix the problem. Those who have been victimized by the shortfalls must forgive: receive the reparation graciously and accept the apology of the one who failed.
There must be reconciliation between the Establishment and We the People
If the Great Experiment of America is to survive, there needs to be repentance & forgiveness.
- People to people: for we have failed each other in our commitment to forming a More Perfect Union and ensuring that the Establishment works for all of us and not just for ourselves.
- People to Government: for We the People have failed to hold the Establishment accountable. Rather, we’ve allowed it to run amuck and abandoned our responsibility to the system we created.
- Government to People: for the Establishment has failed to uphold its Charge, given it by We the People. It has fallen away from its ordained & established purpose.
Do you still believe in and hope for the formation of a More Perfect Union?
Do you believe that such a union is even possible by human beings? Or are the words of the Constitution merely a wink and nod to the worst of humanity? Are those words really a cover for racism, bigotry, xenophobia, fear, anger and hatred?
If those words are merely a wink and nod to our worst character, then by all means: give up on the Ideal of America and destroy the Establishment that was created by the Framers of the Constitution. But if you believe in those words and aspire to form a More Perfect Union, we cannot destroy the Establishment for we know that another one would have to be built to replace it. Rather, pursue reconciliation with it. Seek the repentance of the Establishment and ready yourself to forgive it. Repent for your own failings toward it (your political apathy at all levels of Government, your concern only during election season, your preference for policy that benefits yourself to the detriment of your fellow countrymen & women).
Does the Preamble say “We the People,” when it really means “We the White People,” or “We the White Male People?” Or do those words really compel us to look at ourselves and how we aspire to a higher calling that is greater than our own needs?
What do you say?
