In a letter addressed to the Christian Jews in Asia minor, the apostle Peter wrote, 'Honor all men; love the brotherhood.' "In these two brief sentences", notes author John R. Gunn, "we find the two basic principles of democracy.
Honor all men - this is what the founders of the American Republic had in mind when they declared that all men are born equal. They were speaking in denial of the old world idea of class distinctions and preferment on the basis of birth. They were challenging the principal of the divine right of Kings - treat every man as a king; give every man a chance; keep the door open so that all, the high and the low, the skilled and the unskilled, shall have equal opportunity. Where this opportunity does not exist, democracy is a sham.
Love the brotherhood - work together for the good of all. Treat one another as members of a common family. You can't omit love from democracy and make it work - it simply isn't practical. The law of love is the law of nature, as well as the law of God, and is not to be subordinated to any so called law of necessity.
Democracy is not primarily politics, nor election by a majority. Democracy means that we are united in a social body in which we live together, work together, suffer together, triumph together, perish together - in which we belong to one another. Democracy is the conviction of the worth of ordinary people. The conviction that there will be amazing results from unlikely sources if the doors of opportunity are thrown open wide enough to challenge and inspire all people."