Restorative Conservatism

Laying down some basic, formative truths to serve as the foundation for sound thinking, we need to come to terms with where we come from, who we are, and where we are going. First comes the premise that there is a God, and we are not Him. Genesis tells us He is the Creator who made the heavens and the earth and everything in them in six days and rested on the seventh. Then there is the fact that God created man in His image - male and female - to reflect the character and goodness and purpose of God in Creation informs the dignity, respect, and love we ascribe to ourselves and one another. Third we must consider the most basic of human relationships - the two who become one flesh as man and wife. Marriage is the basis of family, and children come as a consequence in most cases. Next, God tells us His purpose for marriage is to produce godly offspring. Children then are supposed to be trained up by their father and mother in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Fifth, man is not basically good. He is not inherently good, nor is he fundamentally good. Rather, as inheritor of a sinful nature as descendants of our first forefather Adam, we are broken, and so is the Creation. This is what is commonly known as 'Original Sin.' The Good News is that God purposed to resolve this thorny problem of our sinful nature by sending His Son to live a sinless life, suffer and die in our stead, and be raised from the dead after three days as a foretaste of the restored Creation God has promised. In these truths we have cause for both confidence and humility. On that psychological tandem and God's favor do human flourishing depend. Therefore, any conservative resurgence which might succeed, in this country or any other, must first work at a restoration of these convictions. All other ground is sinking sand. So also, we predicate love for God and one another on the informed sensibilities in this framework. Only from that fertile ground of these truths do we have some hope of bearing the fruit of loving restoration - for ourselves, our families, and our communities - to a place of peace and prosperity.