Lord Acton
A common saying in my language is a paraphrase of Lord Acton. It is usually summarized, “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Here is the actual quote:
These words from the 19th century historian and thinker were an effective warning as to what was coming. The 20th century saw the greatest consolidation of power that the world has ever seen, which has, of course, continued apace. Crony capitalism has essentially ruined the free market in many sectors. Growing federal government and massive social engineering projects have effectively destroyed hundreds of cultures across the West. A guest on my show several months ago called what the US government did in the early 20th century a “cultural genocide.” We don’t know it, but we are living on the ideological ruins of greater men who came before.
Collapse and Ruin
After the Roman Empire collapsed, people continued to live among the ruins. For a time, they carried the memory of that once-great (by worldly standards) culture. After a time, average people had no real conception of what had been lost. They took for granted the ruins around them, not particularly curious about who had created them. They lacked the resources to create such beauty on their own, instead erecting meaner edifices around the worked stone and marble that the Romans had left behind. That is metaphorically the case today in the West among those who enjoy the ruins of a once-great (by worldly standards) civilization.
Part of this is because of the especially adept ways in which Satan ensnared the hearts of men under the thrall of scientific and technological advance. Part of it is because of the cowardice and spinelessness of those who should have acted more boldly and spoken more zealously. Part of it is also because even the wisest sages of the past were mistaken in their notions of the truth.
I consider Lord Action’s wisdom, though compelling, to be insufficient. Indeed, this hatred of power easily led to a hatred of hierarchy. Hatred of hierarchy, of course, undergirds Marxism, that heinous ideology responsible for the deaths of millions. The anecdote is told that one crab can easily crawl out of a bucket, but when one adds more than one crab to the bucket, none will escape, as any that come close to escaping will quickly be dragged back down by those below him. Likewise, a culture obsessed with stopping the accumulation of power simply creates a new power structure after a series of bloodbaths. Eventually in any Marxist society there has to be a ruler who guarantees that all are equal, though some inevitably become more equal than others. There is no way to ensure an egalitarian society. Attempts to do so crush the human spirit as well as many human bodies along the way.
Acton was right to be concerned about the accumulation and centralizing of power. I believe one would be wrong to then conclude that power should not exist.
Now, consider this quote by Frank Herbert, the author of Dune:
That is a somewhat different spin on the Lord Acton concept, isn’t it? It is a sort of chicken and egg conundrum: Where do things begin? Organization or corruption? The two go hand in hand. A new institution might start off well, with all the right people, sharing power and responsibility for the good of the whole. But then those people quit or die, and the only people to fill those well-established positions are those pathological people who desire power, prestige, prominence. They learn to feign humility so as to gain power, maybe even to maintain it, but their impact on the institutions they lead is corrosive. Everything begins to fray around the edges, even as they talk a great game about all the good they are doing. Finally, what is left behind is a shell, unvalued and hated by the people because of its broken promises and betrayal of its own heritage. This can be seen in groups far and wide, from the National Rifle Association to the National Civil Liberties Union, the Southern Poverty Law Center to the Federal Bureau of Investigations.
What is the collective response? A shrug. Depleted trust in institutions. Alienation as individuals retreat into their homes, where the only person left to betray them is themselves.
Is there any remedy to this seemingly inexorable trend? Our culture has, for a time, hoped that perpetual revolution would be a solution: The hubris to believe that despite the failure of previous generations, we would actually succeed where they had failed. We would so innovate and strive as to find ourselves unlimited in ways that previous leaders had been. The silliness of this idea is plain when one contrasts the resolve and fortitude of this generation with those that came before. No, this is no solution. A solution that depends upon the ignorance and pride of entire generations is doomed to fail, and rightfully so.
A Simple Solution: Socially-Conditioned Humility & Transparency
I believe there is a solution. It has two prongs. The first is that we make it unseemly to desire power. Those who are elected or otherwise placed in positions of power should never position themselves for it or work toward it in any capacity. They should be nominated and supported by those who see and acknowledge their virtue. Any signs of the love of power should be corrected, and harshly. People in positions of power who clearly learn to love it should be removed. Those in power should likewise not benefit inordinately from their position. The fact that insider trading, whether done by Nancy Pelosi or Dan Crenshaw, is shameful. High salaries for public servants are a scandal.
The second prong is that of transparency. There should be no secrecy in leadership. If there is something that can only be done in secret rooms behind closed doors, it simply shouldn’t be done. If there are meetings in which business needs to get done, but it cannot be done unless those who deliberate are protected from scrutiny, then either those meetings shouldn’t happen, or the people wanting to hide shouldn’t be in them. Confidentiality, discretion, and other words like these indicate dishonesty, untrustworthiness, and manipulation.
It is true that some things just are not possible when the naked pursuit of power becomes unseemly and nobody is allowed to lead from behind closed doors with big salaries. I am okay with that. Rather than this boom and bust cycle of creation and destruction, I would rather have more mediocre leadership that maintains over time. If it means that we don’t get the passionate, charismatic, obsessive leadership of this present order, I am okay with that. I don’t need a charismatic genius at the top. Give me the humble, mundane, reasonably capable leadership of those average men and women who garner the respect of their neighbors.
The only thing standing between us and this cultural shift is pride. Some deep part of us likes the leadership of the tyrant. We like the political games of those who engage in double speak. The narratives of those who maintain a good public image while being demonic in their personal lives mark the American landscape in particular. While many act scandalized by such things, in a deeper sense, it is what our society craves. We are like the girl who is abused by her father and then grows up to date and marry a series of abusive men. At a certain point we have to look in the mirror and see that we actually self-select for abusers.
In the realm of business, especially in America, there is almost no way to check power outside of popular efforts at conscientious consumerism, marked most dramatically by bans. In the realm of government, some of this shift seems more possible, though very difficult. It is particularly in the church that I am concerned. I do not think leadership in the church should be rich, desirous of power, or obsequious in how it performs it job. Men and women of unimpeachable character should be elevated by others, who will lead humbly and meekly, showing their work for all to see. If we cannot find such people, then we are in dire trouble. If we can find such people, then shame on us if we privilege power hungry, materialistic, furtive people over them.
I do not want to be a jaded old man, hunkered up in his house, railing against the government and the church until I die a solitary man. I want to belong to institutions that bring me into healthy and holy relationships with others. I want to be a social creature, engaging in blessed relationships with others under the aegis of genuinely benevolent corporations. While this is surely not to be found in perfection prior to the coming of our Lord Jesus, I believe we can do better. It requires a collective decision to get off this ride, and to disown those voices that try to suck us into the allure of this dumpster fire of modernity.
Is this a pipe dream?
There are some visions that are so alien to human nature that they cannot be seriously entertained. Marxist Communism would be one of those. Transhumanism would be one. I don’t think my approach to power actually is one. I learned of a Japanese governor when I was in college, who took a low salary and did business in an office with walls of clear glass, all of his phone calls and conversations being available to the public. His administration was beyond reproach. His district did not collapse. Humans do not fall apart when exposed. Rather, it is only when exposed that we can properly be convicted of our sins, repent, and walk rightly:
“For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.”
- Luke 8:17
“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
- John 3:19-21
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
- Matthew 5:14-16
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
- 1 Timothy 6:6-10
Spot. On!
Brother Jeffrey, because I came of age during the beginning of what I perceive as the cultural collapse of this nation, I’m going to have a slightly different view than yourself. It was my generation that aspired to usher in the new age of peace and prosperity. Many of the so-called radicals of the sixties are now in the halls of power within the government, business and the Institutional Church. I agree with your take on transparency and humility, but these types of individuals will never be placed in authority especially within the government and business. That’s because these institutions are of the world, and the world dos not operate like that. I believe that a positive change for the government would be to just outlaw lobbying, which in my opinion is just a form of legalized bribery. As for the abuse of power in the church; only individuals who display the fruit of the Spirit in large measure should be placed in positions of authority. I believe that St. Paul summed up the reason for our societal decline, “But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” I don’t think it’s a coincidence that most now apostate denominations in their infancy were once comprised of people on the lower rungs of the societal ladder. Nor is a coincidence that the Old Testament people of God turned away from Him during times of prosperity. Hopefully it won’t require some sort of persecution to bring about a course correction for the Institutional Church, but that’s certainly an available option.