Beyond Progressive Bubbles

A fancy academic-sounding phrase sometimes used to describe the politics of Jesus is “prefigurative politics.” This refers to the idea that the desired society of the future is prefigured or already made manifest in one’s immediate life or community. In Luke 17:21, Jesus states it this way: “The kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” The ministry of Jesus and his followers embodied the just and egalitarian world they wanted—a world that was the exact opposite of the Roman Empire. It was utopia in microcosm.

Over the years, I have been part of many beautiful microcosms that certainly made me feel as if I were getting a glimpse of the beloved community, as Martin Luther King Jr. and others have called the kingdom of God. Yet recently, I became momentarily troubled by the idea that sometimes a microcosm stays a microcosm. A progressive utopian bubble stays a progressive utopian bubble. We can start up organizations, create our own media, and have huge online followings, while not affecting one iota of change in relation to the political and economic institutions responsible for societal injustices.

To be honest, as I contemplated this, “prefigurative politics” began to seem largely irrelevant to many of the pressing issues of our time. But then I had an epiphany as I read Theda Skocpol’s masterful book, Diminished Democracy: From Membership to Management in American Civic Life. While the central argument of the book bemoans how “the old civic America has been bypassed and shoved to the side by a gaggle of professionally dominated advocacy groups and nonprofit institutions” that are “rarely attached to memberships worthy of the name,” Skocpol also points to glimmers of hope.

In the history of the United States, democracy has never been just about elections. Between elections, democracy has lived—and continues to live—in membership organizations that exercise power through federated local associations. In a time of authoritarianism, these democratic microcosms are one of our best hopes. They prefigure the world we want.

Climate Hope Affiliates is one of those democratic microcosms that operates as a federation of local groups. In it, I see a glimpse of the beloved community. I see members acting upon a love of neighbor, a love of children, and a love of God’s creation by engaging our political institutions. In the midst of us is the future we desire.

To learn more about Climate Hope Affiliates or to explore starting a chapter in your community, visit www.ucc.org/climatehope.