Two Cheers for Democracy from St. John Paul the Great: Rhonheimer, Kraynak, and the Unfinished Agenda of Dignitatis Humanae

Abstract

Genuine democracy . . . can come into being and develop only on the basis of the equality of all its members. Before the demands of morality we are all absolutely equal. An alliance between democracy and ethical relativism would remove any sure moral reference point from political and social life, and on a deeper level make the acknowledgement of truth impossible. Indeed, “if there is no ultimate truth to guide and direct political activity, then ideas and convictions can easily be manipulated for reasons of power. As history demonstrates, a democracy without values easily turns into open or thinly disguised totalitarianism.” St. John Paul the Great, Veritatis Splendor