Did the Covid-19 Pandemic Trigger America’s Cultural Crisis?

As all Americans know, our country is not in a good place. The world knows this too. What may have happened here is both unique to the U.S. and a repeat of previous social and cultural “distempers” at other times and in other places.

It feels as if we are in the midst of something more religious than secular, more emotional than rational; something like a seeking of salvation, proving our goodness to a higher power.

The intersection anywhere of principles with culture, politics and the economy is very much the center of concern for the Caux Round Table.

There is a very American tradition of religious awakenings. One preceded our seeking independence from Great Britain. Another came before our Civil War.

In this commentary, I have attempted to fill in the blanks of an explanation of our current crisis as something similar, some seeking of both individual and mass redemption when confronting the coronavirus pandemic.

I would be particularly interested in learning your perspective on the widespread distemper among Americans.