The Naked Public Square: Religion and Democracy in America

For $ 1 in a clearance bin I found a signed copy of Richard John Neuhaus' famous 1986 book The Naked Public Square: Religion and Democracy in America (2d. ed.). This is one of those books I had seen cited hundreds of time in legal scholarship on religious freedom but hadn't actually read until now, though I enjoyed reading (and completely disagreeing with) Neuhaus' work in First Things until his recent death. The central thesis of the book is that liberal democracies cannot survive with a "public square" (i.e., public debate and discourse about political and social issues) that is divorced from religion. According to Neuhaus, the shared conception of morality and values is what binds disparate people together and provides legitimacy to the results of the democratic process. In the absence of this shared morality, something else will step in to fill the void: the state as a totalitarian project. I think what I like most about the book is that Neuhaus really strives to be fair. The book is not a polemic against liberalism and Neuhaus has a great sense of the internal debates that go on within liberalism, fundamentalism, and mainstream Christianity. The book is also deeper and more encompassing than you might think from citations made to it: it's as much a warning about the rise of the "new religious right" as it is about secularism. It's definitely worth reading, even if you can't find it for a buck. The only disclaimer I'll make is that some chapters show an ugly anti-gay sentiment and (from my post-Cold War perspective) a surprising paranoia about Communism.

Richard Neuhaus' The Naked Public Square can be summed up no better than the quote that is on the front of the book: "The book from which further debate about church-state relations should begin." The book's contents are not for the young or those with short attention spans: however, his point is excellent, and twenty years after the writing of this book, Richard Neuhaus appears to have hit the nail square on the head. The primary purpose of The Naked Public Square is to alert the reader to the coming of a new era in the United States. The era is not good or new: instead it is an evil that, here, now, sweeps across portions of the world. Europe, Russia and China seem to have already fallen victim to it, and the United States is the last great world power to meet it. The terror is, of course, this naked public square. It is naked because it is without overarching belief, consensus, personal morality, or real, organized religion. It's a place where God cannot be mentioned, where vicious revenge is taken on any individual or group that may attempt to bring their religion or worldview into the mainstream. It's a place where the law needs only the justification of power to hold it's place, where the authority of the Bible, the church, God, and all other things that lay claim to authority not of this world are scorned as "intolerant." This naked public square indoctrinates every man to believe everything spiritual is relative, and that it is wrong, pointless, rude or all three to convince another individual to think his way. Religion is prevented from becoming solidly organized as a force that could challenge the moral legitimacy of the government or the culture-forming, powerful elite of society. Neuhaus says it would be enforced by the least likely of people: libertarian judges. Though all of this seems rather depressing, Neuhaus reminds us that this naked public square is not unavoidable. This is a time of turmoil and a time when this country can choose a direction, and we must choose before someone else chooses for us. The Naked Public Square is thought provoking, deep, interesting, and packing a huge dose of truth. I would recommend that every American or European read it to enlighten themselves and to remember its message every time they go to the polls.

This book put my faith to the test: Can I be in the world, but not of it? Neuhaus' "naked public square" refers to the public spaces in American life, which are naked or empty because religion and religious values have been systematically excluded from the public arena and from determination of public policy. This book should be given to every politician-does anyone have a few hundred thousand dollars so we can do that? Get the book and learn how you can clothe the naked public square.

I do not agree with everything that Neuhaus says, but when you read what he writes you will see his perspective laid out clearly and can make up your own mind.

No one writes like Neuhaus on current issues of religion and politics. A former Lutheran minister and now a Catholic priest, he has been on both sides of the Protestant/Catholic divide. This gives him a unique perspective on issues of common concern to all, and has placed him in the forefront of ecumenical efforts. I highly recomend this book as an investigation of how religion has been marginalized by the modern misinterpretation of the First Amendment's "no establishment" clause, thus leaving our Public Square bereft of foundational values