The Republic Of Distrust

Last month, Kristen Bellstrom wrote for Bloomberg, "When trust collapses, what can hold a nation together? A shared history? A common language? The unavoidable interconnections that come from living in close proximity? Or nothing at all?"

This week, PEW published a new survey showing that Americans' trust in the news media is at an all-time low.

A majority distrust politicians and most of our institutions, including medical institutions, our elections, public education, and even the Church.

We have become the Republic of Distrust.

It has been said, "Trust takes years to build, seconds to break, and forever to repair."

Can trust be restored?

Be informed, not misled.

Bloomberg's perspective.

Bellstrom writes, "This question weighs heavily on American life. It hangs over the biggest issues of the day: our fractured politics and government, the rise of artificial intelligence, the culture wars raging in businesses and schools, the existential threats of climate change and disease."

She continues, "True, we’ve been living through a crisis of trust for some time. Bright spots may appear here and there. (See: the military and small business.) And world-shaking events may have periodically scrambled our feelings about specific institutions; the earliest days of the Covid pandemic, for example, briefly boosted our belief in science and medicine. But widen the aperture, and the overall picture is unmistakable: The trend line goes in one direction — down."

She shows an undeniable decline in trust in our institutions.

From 1973 to 2024, there is a marked decline in trust in Congress, Big Business, newspapers, the Supreme Court, the Church and organized religion, and the US presidency.

She continues: "Now, as the US approaches an election that is, in some sense, a referendum on our faith in democracy itself, the question of trust feels increasingly urgent. How did Americans lose our faith in the integrity of our most cherished and important institutions? And more urgent still: How can we restore it?"

She attempts to answer her own question: "When confronted with a thorny problem, Bloomberg Opinion always turns to the data. But trust is slippery in that respect — there are no hard numbers to grab onto as we might when tracking, say, GDP or unemployment. Instead, we’re left with sentiment. And as any good pollster will tell you, theirs is an imperfect science."

The article then says, "What we learned is surprising, often scary, and sometimes even hopeful. We believe it will leave you with a richer understanding of why we find ourselves suspicious, divided, and uncertain about our future—and how we might start to repair the damage that’s been done."

The link above will lead you to her and those assisting her in the series of articles that will answer the great questions of our times from their secular perspective.

Gallup's perspective.

Yesterday, Gallup published its Signs of the Times survey, which essentially discovers the same issues Bloomberg is pointing out but with fewer attempts to give answers.

Gallup notes that Americans continue to register record-low trust in the mass media, with 31% expressing a “great deal” or “fair amount” of confidence in the media's ability to report the news “fully, accurately and fairly,” similar to last year’s 32%. Americans’ trust in the media—such as newspapers, television, and radio—first fell to 32% in 2016 and did so again last year.

For the third consecutive year, more U.S. adults have no trust at all in the media (36%) than trust it a great deal or a fair amount. Another 33% of Americans express “not very much” confidence.

Gallup concludes with this "bottom line:"

"The United States continues to suffer from a crisis in confidence in many institutions, including the federal government, its three branches, and those who either hold or are running for public office. In addition, trust in the fourth estate -- the mass media -- is at a new low. Local and state governments and the American people as a whole are the only entities garnering trust from more than half of U.S. adults."

In America's national discourse, trust is treated as an abstract or immaterial matter. Everyone acknowledges the breakdown, but nobody has come up with a solution—nobody has even tried. Trust must be earned. Until it is, there will be no progress.

Trust must also be properly placed.

What should faithful Christians do when the foundations are being destroyed?

Psalms 11:3-5 defines our times: "If the foundations be destroyed, What can the righteous do? The LORD is in his holy temple, The LORD's throne is in heaven: His eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men. The LORD trieth the righteous: But the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth."

These verses are part of a passage that addresses David's temptation to run from his enemies. The verse refers to the idea that if the foundations of a nation are destroyed, law and order will crumble, and evil and chaos will ensue. David believed that he would prevail and that law and order would continue because he trusted in the Lord. 

Without a Christian worldview and values, Western civilization—and the outstanding progress, prosperity, freedom, and equality---not equity,  it has produced—does not emerge. And the fullest expression of that civilization has been the United States of America— a nation founded by people rooted in biblical truth who crafted a constitutional republic unlike anything the world had ever seen.

We’ve Lost Our Way

But no one has to tell you that America has lost its way. You see it everywhere you look. You see long-cherished freedoms—bought with blood and sacrifice by successive generations—eroding rapidly. The values that produced unprecedented order, opportunity, and prosperity are mocked and discarded, producing these consequences.

The first thing every believer can do is in Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Seek direction from God first, not government, media, public education, or secondary sources.

The birth of our country was extraordinary. The life of our country can also be as extraordinary.

Faith and politics do mix in this nation. 

Throughout the Bible, God has used His people in various aspects of governance to be a light for Him in this world. From Joseph to Moses to Daniel to Esther and to Paul in the New Testament, God has used His people to influence the governments of the day for His divine purpose. 

Today is no different. 

The Church is God’s force for good in the world and the United States, and this force does not end where government begins. The Church is to go into all the world, not just areas where it is considered politically correct. 

This is the mission of the Church.

Christians must become involved. Seek His direction as to what He would have you do. Run for office? Be an influencer? Support those who are making an impact?

Prayerfully consider what God would call you to do.

If the church rises, the gospel will change hearts, and trust will be restored in our nation.

Be Informed. Be Discerning. Be Vigilant. Be Engaged. Be Prayerful. VOTE.