Location
Community & Grassroots Action
Level of Education
Undergraduate
Keywords
American Exceptionalism, Morality, Culture, Religion, Church, Sovereign, America, Personal Responsibility, Community, Justice
Presenter Names and Speeches.
Mayce Mae Beglau
Abstract
In John Winthrop’s sermon A Model of Christian Charity (1630), he spoke to his congregation of the mission God had called them to. With the creation of a new blended nation, the only way to be exceptional was to reflect the gospel in policy, action, and foremost thought. Philosophers from ancient times to today acknowledge that an individual is made up of the soul and their body. From the soul, comes thought, reason, empathy, and a connection to a divine being who deciphers what is morally unjust. The body is a sinful, self-seeking vessel that does not have the ability to regulate what justice is and how to obtain it. Through Christianity, an explanation is given on how to regulate the two forms and how obtain exceptionalism. Unfortunately, exceptionalism is unobtainable while in the bodily realm, as the divine has gifted free choice, but individuals who repent their flesh can still radiate glimpses of exceptionalism. This may be through assisting those in poverty, practicing divine morality, and becoming a haven for those escaping persecution. American politicians have used political philosophy and Winthrop’s Christian message of becoming a ‘City on a Hill’ to change the definitions of what American exceptionalism and divine morality look like. With the divorce and misuse of these terms, has come the decline of true American exceptionalism.
Included in
American Politics Commons, Comparative Politics Commons, Other Political Science Commons, Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons, Political Theory Commons, Public Administration Commons, Public Affairs Commons, Public Policy Commons, Social Justice Commons, Social Policy Commons, Social Statistics Commons, Social Welfare Commons
City on a Hill: A Reflection on Christian Ethic and Human Morality
Community & Grassroots Action
In John Winthrop’s sermon A Model of Christian Charity (1630), he spoke to his congregation of the mission God had called them to. With the creation of a new blended nation, the only way to be exceptional was to reflect the gospel in policy, action, and foremost thought. Philosophers from ancient times to today acknowledge that an individual is made up of the soul and their body. From the soul, comes thought, reason, empathy, and a connection to a divine being who deciphers what is morally unjust. The body is a sinful, self-seeking vessel that does not have the ability to regulate what justice is and how to obtain it. Through Christianity, an explanation is given on how to regulate the two forms and how obtain exceptionalism. Unfortunately, exceptionalism is unobtainable while in the bodily realm, as the divine has gifted free choice, but individuals who repent their flesh can still radiate glimpses of exceptionalism. This may be through assisting those in poverty, practicing divine morality, and becoming a haven for those escaping persecution. American politicians have used political philosophy and Winthrop’s Christian message of becoming a ‘City on a Hill’ to change the definitions of what American exceptionalism and divine morality look like. With the divorce and misuse of these terms, has come the decline of true American exceptionalism.
