The True Meaning of Government
When someone uses the word “government” in everyday conversation, what is normally meant is “civil government” or “the Federal Government.” We have gotten far away from thinking of governing or government in any arena other than civil government, to the point that we never use the qualifier “civil.” That is unfortunate because throughout history the term government meant so much more. Especially in the culture of the late eighteenth Century when our founding documents were written.
The first and most foundational kind of government is self-government. This means that each individual has a moral compass, integrity and self-control. Each person takes personal responsibility for themselves, for their happiness, prosperity, morality and for their own “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” It means that a person’s word is their bond. It means that we can interact with one another with the understanding that each person assumes personal responsibility for their actions. We shouldn’t depend on the church, civil government or voluntary associations to govern individual behavior; we depend on the individual to govern their own behavior.
Built on the foundation of self-government is family government which, along with self-government, is the foundation of a civil society. The family provides belonging, physical protection and economic security to the man and woman who form the family and also provides the best environment for the raising of children into responsible adults. Some have suggested that the main point of the family is to produce the next generation and protect it until adulthood. Just as important, though, are the great benefits of belonging, protection, and security. (See the posts in our Love and Marriage series here, here and here).
For most of human society, young men and women stayed in the home of their parents until they married. A single woman may have lived with another family when she took a teaching job or other appropriate position. An older boy or a single man likewise might move in with another family while he is apprenticed in a trade. The older generation were cared for by their adult children, often moving in with them. Whether living with their children or near them, these older adults were cared for by their families. This included parents, aunts and uncles.
There were some single men or groups of single women living alone but the norm was to go from the families in which they were born into a new family they were forming. The family unit was fundamental to society. In out modern times, with greater mobility and interconnectedness nationally and globally, we have seen a dramatic increase in single adult men and women living alone or with roommates but that was traditionally not the case. And hopefully, those young men and women still have a strong connection to their families that bridges the gap of distance.
Finally, built on the foundation of self and family governments, are church government and civil government. Each of these is a separate form of government built on self and family government, and neither of them is dependent on either of the other two. There are also voluntary associations, which are not governments but do play a role in the governing of society.
Once we have established a society in which individuals are self-governing and are situated in a family government, the layers of church government and civil government can be added. Church government brings individuals and families into a corporate environment of worship and spiritual development. Individuals and families are also directly involved in worship and spiritual development but the church adds a more communal element to them. And the Church also provides a corporate voice for godliness and morality that carries a significant weight in society. The Church is designed to be salt and light in the community and provide godly advice and direction, being the corporate conscience of the community.
The US Constitution makes a place for the voice of the Church by guaranteeing free speech (which includes the Church and other organizations in addition to individuals). Churches are protected from civil government interference (this is the true meaning of the “separation of church and state”) with unhindered authority to speak to social and political issues. The Church is a separate form of government and has its own realm of authority in society.
I will make a brief mention of voluntary associations. They aren’t governmental but as associations of like-minded people, working for humanitarian or community goals, they can be a force for good in our society. There are fraternal organizations that sponsor benevolence programs in the community in addition to having a social function. There are business organizations that work to improve the business climate to increase the prosperity in the community. There are issue oriented groups that work to help the poor, homeless and addicted, combat human trafficking, improve our schools or run mentoring programs to give guidance to our youth.
Finally, we have civil government. This, along with Church government, is the other broad government in society. Civil government includes the local, state and Federal governments. Our US system of government is set up on the decentralized Mosaic model of having leaders over 10, over 50, over 100 and over 1000 (Exodus 18:21-23). Capable honest men who fear God and hate bribes were selected to be these leaders (verse 21). The smaller groups are like our local governments, and the larger groups like State and Federal governments. The importance of this model is that it is bottom up, with governance being a the lowest level possible.
The primary form of civil government is local government, with school boards, town and city councils, Mayors, County Supervisors or Commissioners, and other officials operating at the local level. This is the civil government closest to the people and as such is in the best position to develop regulations and run programs that meet the specific needs of their local communities. Then we have State Government, comprised of representatives from each locality in the State, and including the executive functions needed to implement the laws of the State legislators. Finally, we have a Federal Government, composed of representatives from each State, and including the executive functions needed to implement the laws of the Federal legislators.
Each level of government has its specific responsibilities, with the local governments designed to be the largest, State governments being next and only a small, limited Federal government being needed, primarily for military defense of the nation, interactions and relations with other countries, arbitrating between States on issues of commerce and few other areas. The closer to the people that decisions can be made, the better. And while our Constitution has a clause stating the Federal laws have primacy over State laws (Article VI), it also emphasizes that the role of the Federal government is limited to 18 specific areas in which the Congress can exercise power (Article I, Section 8).
To ensure that their meaning was clear when they limited the scope of the Federal government in Article I of the Constitution, the framers added in the Bill of Rights that “the powers not delegated to the to the United States by the Constitution, not prohibited by to the States, are reserved to the States respectively or to the people” (10th Amendment). This limits the Executive and Judicial branches as well, since they are tasked with only implementing the laws passed by Congress and ruling on issues of Constitutionality.
If we would be a nation of individuals who are self-governed, who play their assigned roles in family governments, participate in and support the Church’s role as the conscience of the community and are active participants in the civil government process, especially at the local level, we would be safe from all of our nation’s enemies, both foreign and domestic.