By: Julie O'Hara on January 16, 2025
Deeply Held Preconceptions and Where They Came From Cartoons and Family Perhaps I’m not the only member of DLGP03 who memorized the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States in song form thanks to a Saturday morning television show called Schoolhouse Rock. The interested can find it on YouTube. Three phrases of the preamble…
By: Christy on January 16, 2025
As I’m thinking about my beliefs on liberalism and just seeing the title of our reading, Why Liberalism Failed by Patrick Deneen, [1] I’m reminded of 14-year-old Sewell Setzer who committed suicide after getting deeply engrossed in a disturbing sexual relationship with a chatbot.[2] Setzer’s mother claims that the chatbot initiated abusive and sexual interactions…
By: Daren Jaime on January 16, 2025
Growing up, I can remember my Social Studies teacher telling us that her class was going to give us an introduction to democracy. I thought the word itself must have a simple definition, but class and life experience later revealed how multi-layered and complex it is. My definition of democracy was linked to a form…
By: Chad Warren on January 16, 2025
“The establishment of our new Government seemed to be the last great experiment for promoting human happiness.”[1] With these words, George Washington acknowledged the imperfections of the United States’ new government while expressing his belief in its potential as one of the best systems in the world—a true experiment in governance. Before diving into Patrick…
By: Debbie Owen on January 16, 2025
I confess that when I read the title of this week’s book– Why Liberalism Failed– I jumped to the conclusion that this was going to be a discussion about why the political party on the left has failed. That would be confusing to me because, in my current context, “liberal” describes people who have a…
By: Kari on January 16, 2025
What do I currently believe about liberal democracy? Initially, I struggled to answer this question. What was causing my mental block? It is the word “liberal.” I grew up in a conservative Christian home. The word liberal was not used positively. Liberal defined people who believe things counter to the Bible, who want to have…
By: Graham English on January 16, 2025
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4.18,19) In this blog, I…
By: Jennifer Eckert on January 16, 2025
Start. Stop. But wait, there’s another question. What about this or that? Articulating my thoughts about liberal democracy proved challenging as I ventured down several rabbit trails. In this blog, I’ll share my initial views on liberal democracy and how they evolved after reading Patrick Deneen’s Why Liberalism Failed. “We have frequently printed the word…
By: Elysse Burns on January 16, 2025
Pre-Deneen Reflections When I think about liberal democracy, I’m reminded of a scene from Almost Famous, a movie I loved as a teenager. Set in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the character Anita Miller decides to break free from her repressive “house of lies” and her overly strict mother in pursuit of a more…
By: Shela Sullivan on January 14, 2025
Exploring, Why Liberalism Failed by Patrick J. Deneen Knew Very Little I knew very little about liberal democracy. History traces its origins to 18th-century Europe during the Age of Enlightenment. This period was marked by a shift in thinking, where intellectuals began to challenge the traditional authority of monarchies and aristocracies. They emphasized principles such…
By: Diane Tuttle on January 14, 2025
Prior to reading: What I believe about Liberal Democracy. When I think of liberal democracy I think back to elementary school where history captivated me. Being in Washington, DC in September 2024 stirred a sense that what the founders of the United States were trying to accomplish was different, important, and life changing for an…
By: Ryan Thorson on January 14, 2025
**What I currently believe about liberal democracy** Its interesting the the first prompt is to write about what I “believe” about liberal democracy, as opposed to what I know. On first glance of the question I had begun to think about what I know about liberal democracy. I reflected on civics and government classes in…
By: Jeff Styer on January 13, 2025
Previous Knowledge When I looked at the term for our previous knowledge assessment and saw liberal democracy, I remembered that I read about it in Jesus and the Powers[1]. I knew that the authors spoke in favor of it, but honestly that is where it ends. The term liberal as used in society today, depending…
By: Adam Cheney on January 13, 2025
Before reading Deneen- Immediately, I recall that NT Wright and Bird wrote that a liberal democracy is the “least worst” option for governance.[1] Each system has its’ flaws, but a liberal democracy might have fewer. One flaw of a liberal democracy highlighted recently is the idea of allowing multi-culturalism at all costs. This has historically…
By: Glyn Barrett on January 13, 2025
Before delving into Why Liberalism Failed[1] by Patrick Deneen, I held a range of deep convictions about liberalism and its societal impact. These convictions were shaped by multiple influences: some rooted in deeply held biblical principles, others shaped by the Pentecostal Church heritage in which I was raised. Additionally, two decades of reading on leadership…
By: Joel Zantingh on December 7, 2024
I just returned from a trip to British Columbia, on the west coast of Canada. Geographically, it is part of the Pacific Northwest Rainforest, and the biodiversity offers a multi-sensory experience of wonder and joy. I love all the ways the topography, flora and fauna contribute to a way of life for those who reside…
By: Noel Liemam on December 5, 2024
Introduction ‘LEADERSHIP: THEORY AND PRACTICE,’ by Peter G. Northouse is a comprehensive resource and reference for the topic of leadership. This book provides the leadership theories along with real-life cases that provides examples to the leadership theories or style presented. In addition, questionnaires are also included with the cases studies to stimulate discussion and deepened…
By: Daren Jaime on December 5, 2024
College was a trying time for me as I was forced to embrace another level of life at a pace that seemed all too quick. This higher academic level led me to anxiety, uncertainty, and knots in my stomach. The major culprit in these feelings was my high school teachers forewarning me of the college…
By: Julie O'Hara on December 5, 2024
In 2020, the local church I then served as Executive Pastor was closed for in-person worship for over 10 months. During that time, a number of large changes took place within the church. The main campus was remodeled, it merged with another church, that campus was remodeled and became host to a growing Christian school.…
By: Christy on December 5, 2024
Succession planning is a critical task for any leader. When succession planning comes from internal staff, thorough leadership assessment supports the best choices and is something that I’ve struggled to master. This week’s reading has given me new tools to use when assessing leaders for succession planning. Leadership: Theory and Practice by Peter Northouse, PhD…
