In her book Patriotic Grace, Peggy Noonan observes, “For more and more Americans, politics has become a religion. People find their meaning in it. They define themselves by their stands." While expressing the matter differently, a number of theologians and philosophers agree with Noonan. As fundamentally liturgical and eschatological beings, we are by nature worshipers—we want to give ourselves to something ultimate. In rejecting God and thereby denying eternity, however we "absolutize the temporal." Politics becomes the end-all be-all of our existence. Nevertheless, I think Samuel James's article is compelling. Maybe it's not idolatry. Maybe it's boredom. See what you think. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.
