Reflections on the Crisis Facing Modern Democracies

The view is gaining currency that modern democracy is facing a crisis. This article offers a perspective on this theme. The article argues that the crisis is not about which political perspective comes to power, or which policies governments should pursue. Arising from the foundations of the democratic system, the crisis emerges from the supreme prominence given to an absolutist interpretation of freedom, which is a defining feature of the modern democratic state. This leads to a contentious pluralism, marked by the emergence of a plurality of worldviews and a spirit of relativism, that have become characteristic features of many democratic nations. The article identifies at last three causes of this crisis of worldview pluralism: the relationship between freedom and pluralism, a loss of confidence in reason, and the failure of public deliberation. After introducing the notion of a worldview, the article goes on to consider the prominence of both religious and secularist worldviews and rejects several arguments from secular liberalism for excluding religion from public life. We draw out the implications for church and state and look at how democracies must proceed in the light of the crisis and the new realities that are a consequence of pluralism.