Is America a “creedal” nation, or one bound only by a unifying culture? This is one of several debates roiling conservatism these days. Conservatives may find solace in thinking, well, unlike our liberal brethren, at least we’re not facing a takeover by communists who hate America. But this debate is vital.A new report by my friend and Heritage Foundation colleague Jay Richards settles the issue brilliantly. “We should reject the false dilemma that pits the American creed against American culture. Rightly framed, they are partners in the same story,” writes Richards.Heritage has been writing on this subject pretty much since its creation in 1973. In my time there, David Azerrad and Arthur Milikh — with David now a professor at Hillsdale and Arthur the senior bureau official for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs — wrote insightful papers and articles.
I myself have broached the subject here, here, and here. One of the themes I have highlighted is the use of immigrants to tear down both the creedal and cultural aspects of the United States at the same time by denigrating the assimilationist ethos that has always been part of the immigration process, particularly at peak periods such as the Ellis Island era.The wisdom of Richards’ approach is that it frames the issue within today’s politics and needs. It provides not just a forensic incision of the question, but a much-needed road map for what to do.“To capture and preserve the meaning of American citizenship and of our American heritage for the next 250 years, we should work to preserve the people, the place, and the principles that together form an indivisible whole,” wrote Richards, who has a doctorate in philosophy from Princeton Theological Seminary.Richards starts the paper by juxtaposing the two superficially opposing views at their most raw. “Our nation is not founded on a religion. It’s not based on a common culture, even, or heritage. … We’re a creedal nation.” That was how one of our most libertarian Supreme Court Justices, Neil Gorsuch, put it in an interview with Nick Gillespie, editor of the nation’s most prominent libertarian journal, Reason.That comment lit up X for days, with the usual mix of light and heat. Among the comments that provided the most enlightened views, Richards provides those from two of my favorite Italian Americans, Christopher Rufo and Antonin Scalia. Christopher Rufo and Antonin Scalia. (Washington Examiner illustration; Getty Images)
