The Trinity Forum Update

In this Update we announce our Summer Trinity Forum Reading from Alexis de Tocqueville and report on our recent events in Atlanta. 

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Faith and Freedom

Democracy has not always been associated with freedom. Most thinkers from ancient Greece until the American Revolution viewed democracy as little better than mob rule. The French aristocrat Alexis de Tocqueville was a student of government and knew these arguments well. And the executions of many of his relatives during the French Revolution gave him a personal understanding of the compatibility of democracy and tyranny.

Yet he went to America in 1831 looking for democracy. He wanted to know why a democratic government was succeeding in the United States when it had failed in so many other places, not least France, which had just gone through another revolution in 1830.

The official reason for his visit was to conduct a survey of American prisons in support of French efforts at penal reform. He completed that report, but more importantly collected over a nine-month journey fourteen notebooks filled with interviews and documents that he later distilled into a classic work of political analysis.

Tocqueville famously found three reasons for America’s success: its circumstances and geography, its government structures and laws, and its unique customs. Of these, he emphasized, the customs—the “habits of the heart” of the American people—were by far the most important. He traced America’s unique national character directly to the role of faith (itself freed from government control) in the young republic.

Tocqueville also saw dangers in the American experiment. He was particularly concerned about the possibility of its democracy following others into despotism too, whether from the tyranny of a majority or the natural tendencies of government to centralize control. It is from these dangers to liberty that he turns again to religion: “Despotism may govern without faith, but liberty cannot . . . How is it possible that society should escape destruction if the moral tie is not strengthened in proportion as the political tie is relaxed?”

His concerns are prescient even for our own day, for underneath our current political struggles lie questions of the proper balance between liberty and equality and of the proper role of government. In such a context, we should celebrate and defend our liberties by reflecting on their sources, and Tocqueville’s view of the necessary connection between freedom and faith is indispensable in such a task.

Liberty regards religion as its companion in all its battles and its triumphs, as the cradle of its infancy and the divine source of its claims. It considers religion as the safeguard of morality, and morality as the best security of law and the surest pledge of the duration of freedom.

As such, we are particularly pleased to announce our summer Reading, with selections from his Democracy in America. It includes some of Tocqueville’s most pointed insights into the once-unimaginable American experiment. A foreword by our Founding Chairman Alonzo L. McDonald invites us to relate Tocqueville’s findings to present-day challenges and helps us consider how the our character and institutions have changed since Tocqueville’s time.

As we in the U.S. approach the celebration of Independence Day, we hope you find this resource helpful in reflecting on who we have been—and who we should become.

Warmly,
Cherie Harder
President

Further Reading

Our new Reading on Tocqueville’s Democracy in America will be shipping shortly to members of the Trinity Forum Society. Join the Society today! And if you would like friends or colleagues to receive this and our other Readings, consider giving a Gift Membership to the Society.

You can also order additional copies of the Reading from our online store.

• Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville, foreword by Alonzo L. McDonald (The Trinity Forum Reading, Summer 2010). Forty-eight pages with discussion guide. Quantity discounts are available for orders of ten or more copies.
• Our seminar curriculum, The Great Experiment: Faith and Freedom in the American Republic, is also a wonderful resource on themes of faith and freedom.
• Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, translated by Harvey C. Mansfield and Delba Winthrop (University of Chicago 2000); a one-volume edition.
• Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, translated by James T. Schiefer (Liberty Fund 2010); a four-volume bilingual historical-critical edition.

Great Atlanta Events!

The Trinity Forum was delighted to host a Forum and Evening Conversation in Atlanta last week! Our Forum on When No One Sees: Character and Leadership in an Age of Image sparked fascinating discussions on the importance of character. Led by Senior Fellow Fred Harburg and Cherie Harder, participants discussed George Washington, Winston Churchill, Job, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and many other profound thinkers and heroes of character. The Forum, hosted by Trinity Forum Trustee Price Harding, was held on June 17-18 at the beautiful Atlanta History Center.

On the evening of June 17, Forum participants joined other leaders from the Atlanta community for an Evening Conversation at the Intercontinental Buckhead on “The Art of Productive Dialogue.” Fred Harburg spoke about the different types of conversations in our daily lives and the importance of engaging in “productive dialogue.”

His talk was followed by a lively time of Q&A in which participants shared about productive conversations from their own lives. Responses to the Forum were enthusiastic and we hope to return to Atlanta in the near future! You can see more photos from the events at our Facebook page.

Forums and Conversations are powerful ways to engage your friends and colleagues with conversations that matter. As one participant noted: “The discussions give one greater insight and deeper appreciation for one’s unique place in life and what it means for me to participate in what God has done on this planet.” If you are interested in hosting a Forum or Conversation in your local community, please contact Beth Chapman.

Volunteer Opportunities

We’re looking for a few good volunteers to further the mission and work of the Trinity Forum! If you have time and talent, we’d love for you to join us. We are particularly interested in volunteers with skills in the following areas:

• Graphic design
• Desktop Publishing (particularly with InDesign)
• Web design
• Marketing
• Archiving
• Grant writing
• Foundation research
• Photography
• Videography

We would love to have you join us and contribute to special projects in our Washington office. In addition, we are seeking volunteers to help with our Washington, DC events, or general tasks around the office. See this page for details. For more information or to volunteer, please contact Drew Cleveland at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Join the Trinity Forum Society

If you have not yet become a member of the Trinity Forum Society, we encourage you to sign up today! Become a part of a community dedicated to advancing our mission of personal and cultural renewal—and receive the very best the Trinity Forum has to offer in the form of thoughtful Readings, insightful articles, exclusive invitations, and exciting events. Your support and involvement are essential to the continuance of our work.

In the next month alone, Trinity Forum Society members can look forward to receiving our Summer Reading, and receiving an exclusive podcast interview with Eric Metaxas on the life and work of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

To join the Trinity Forum Society or for more information, please visit our website at www.ttf.org/society. We hope you will join us!