Ideals of American Government: The American Cause

The American Cause

by Russell Kirk

with a new Introduction by Gleaves Whitney

The American Cause is the spine of the new high school Government course for Mater Amabilis™. (Click Civics, Government, and Economics on the main high school page.) I'm adjusting these plans a little for my oldest as I need to fit government into two years instead of three or four, but he's going to read The American Cause and all the amazing primary source documents linked in the course. Combined with American History, this is going to be an excellent foundation in Foundations of American Government.

This book proposes to better understand "the American cause" by exploring the moral, political, and economic principles upon which our government and society are based. It is important to note that Dr. Kirk is not attempting to "convert" anyone to the American point of view, merely define and explain it. He does, however, hope to inform Americans of the principles of their own nation in order to provide a defense (within the individual) against what he saw as the treat of Communist propaganda.

One of the most important and beneficial aspects of our American tradition, indeed, is toleration: and this toleration extends to a sympathetic approval of variety, national and private rights, and freedom of choice, both at home and throughout the world. The American mission is not to make all the world one America, but rather to maintain America as a fortress of principle and in some respects an example to other nations. (p. 12)

Dr. Kirk traces modern American society to three "cardinal" ideas: "the idea of justice, the idea of order, and the idea of freedom." He identifies what those ideas meant to the founders of the United States, including their historical roots in Western civilization and Christianity.

This book is a wonderful explanation of the ideals of American ideas of justice, order, and freedom. I tend to believe we often stray far from those ideals, especially when confronted with the tenets of Catholic social justice. I like that this book provides a counterpoint to what my children may hear from me or the media, and that it identifies the measures we should use when determining what the Constitution meant in the past and how it should be applied in modern life.

The book was originally published in 1956. I think the American economy was closer to our ideals than it is today. I assigned a few articles about the distribution of wealth in 2020 to read alongside chapter 8. His chapter on justice is also a little suspect given what we know of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s. I think his assertion that America was the most just society (in 1956) may be true, but it's also true that it was not as just as we would hope. I think we can say that about today as well. 

What really creates discontent in the modern age, as in all ages, is confusion and uncertainty. People turn to radical doctrines not necessarily when they are poor, but when they are emotionally and intellectually distraught. 

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. I purchased this book used. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.