Where does the state derive its moral authority?

Most people would say it  gets it from “the people.” But what does that even mean?

Perhaps they would say it derives its legitimacy from the “consent” of the people. But virtually nobody consents to every demand of the state.  And some reject its authority altogether. How can we say it derives moral authority from consent if not everybody consents?

Many would appeal to the principle of “democracy” and assert that the consent of the majority provides sufficient moral authority for the state to act. But this raises more questions. What exactly morally justifies one group of people forcing a smaller group to do its bidding simply because it constitutes a majority?

When you boil it all down, the state does not derive moral authority from any of these high-minded political ideals. Ultimately, it asserts all of its moral force and authority through the power of death. People submit to the state because it can and will kill them if they don’t.

Think about it for a moment. The states’ governments enforce every one of their laws at gunpoint. They collect every dollar of revenue at gunpoint. They ensure compliance with every regulation at gunpoint. Enforcement may not start with a gun pointing at you, but if you persist in resisting any law, you will eventually find your head in the crosshairs. The implied threat of violence, up to and including deadly force, lurks behind every government action.

The State as a Principality

Theologian William Stringfellow describes the state as the “preeminent principality.” (See Ephesians 6:12)*

He describes principalities as the “institutions, systems, ideologies, and other political and social powers – as militant, aggressive and influential creatures in the world as it is.” These entities have a life of their own – a “personality” and an individual essence.

People who study organizational dynamics have understood this for a long time. Corporations, institutions and other organizations have their own “personalities,” their own internal dynamics and their own behavioral momentum. Social scientists call this “corporate culture.” It tends to remain relatively stable over time and resists change. People who become part of these institutions tend to eventually embrace the corporate culture and conform to it. Think of the ethos of Walt Disney, or Chick-fil-A, or Apple. Strong leaders can sometimes change corporate culture, but it takes a significant concerted effort and attempts to shift it often end in failure.

Stringfellow takes the notion of corporate culture a step further, adding a spiritual dimension. He asserts that principalities are, in effect,  spiritual “creatures” guided by their own ethos. Most significantly, like individual human beings, principalities are subject to the fall and generally work against God.

The Moral Authority of the State

The Babylon parable in the Book of Revelation ascribes death as the moral reality that rules nations, and all other principalities and powers in this world. (Rev 12:7-12; 13:1-8)

Stringfellow writes, “Death dominates these creatures, and as the preeminent principality, death dominates all states.”

What do we mean by the state? Economist and political philosopher Murray Rothbard defines it this way.

“The State is that organization in society which attempts to maintain a monopoly of the use of force and violence in a given territorial area; in particular, it is the only organization in society that obtains its revenue not by voluntary contribution or payment for services rendered but by coercion.”

Stringfellow describes the state in very similar terms.

“Among all the principalities, in their legion, species and diversities, the State has a particular eminence. The State, in this context, names the functional paraphernalia of political authority in a nation, which claims and exercises exclusive practical control of coercive capabilities, or violence, within a nation.  The precedence of the State hierarchically among the principalities is related to the jurisdiction asserted by the state over other institutions and powers within a nation. Practically, it is symbolized by the police power, taxation, licensing, regulation of corporate organizations and activity, the military forces and the like.” [Emphasis added]

Stringfellow doesn’t mince words. He calls these principalities “demonic.”

We see it pretty clearly in totalitarian regimes – the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, the Roman Empire and Babylon. But the same undercurrent of violence, force and coercion runs through every state – including the United States of America.

Again  – every tax-dollar collected and every law enforced is ultimately under the threat of deadly force.

As Stringfellow puts it, the state exposes the moral authority of the demonic with directness and severity.

That moral authority is death.

“Every sanction or weapon or policy or procedure – including law where law survives distinct from authority – which the State commands against both human beings and against other principalities carries the connotation of death, implicitly threatens death, derives from and symbolizes death … Enumerate the usual prerogatives of the State and it becomes plain that each and every one of them embodies the meaning of death: exile, imprisonment, slavery, conscription, impeachment, regulation of production or sales or prices or wages or competition or credit; confiscation, surveillance, execution, war. Whenever the authority of the State is exercised as such ways as these, the moral basis of that authority remains the same: death. That is the final sanction of the State and it is the only one.” [Emphasis original]

* All of the Stringfellow quotes come from his book An Ethic For Christians & Other Aliens in a Strange Land.

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