DISCUSS: America’s Golden Age

In Greek mythology, the Golden Age is in the past, a time of peace and happiness, from which human beings have declined ever since.  In Christian postmillennialism, the term is used to refer to the utopia human beings will construct before ushering in the return of Christ, as in the original last verse of It Came Upon a Midnight Clear (later revised in non-millennial hymnals such as those of the Lutherans):

For lo! the days are hastening on,

By prophet-bards foretold,
When with the ever-circling years
Comes round the age of gold!
When peace shall over all the earth
Its final splendors fling,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing!

Golden Age can also mean “a period of time during which a very high level of achievement is reached in a particular field of activity, especially in art or literature.”

As a metaphor, Golden Age can mean “a period considered the peak in the history of a country or people, a time period when the greatest achievements were made.”   I think Americans usually think of the first years of our Republic as our Golden Age, when “giants” like Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Hamilton, and the other founders walked the earth, winning our independence and designing our remarkable Constitution.

President Trump opened his Inaugural Address by saying “the golden age of America begins right now.”  He ended it by saying, “The future is ours, and our golden age has just begun.”

So our topic for this weekend’s discussion is this:  Whatever you think about President Trump, whether you agree with his aspirations or not, in your opinion, what would an American Golden Age look like?