Should Christianity Be Nationalistic?
Posted: Wednesday, January 13, 2010
by Terry Mitchell
http://commenterry.blogs.com
I am amazed at the number of so-called "Christian" denominations and churches that have seemingly morphed into ultra-patriotic arms of the Republican Party. This is anathema to the teachings of Jesus. He was and is not a member of any political party. And He never intended for His doctrine to become synthesized with nationalism. Many of Jesus' teachings were the antithesis of such a thing.
Despite of all this, I have heard countless sermons preached from the pulpit that have been either partially or completely devoted to patriotic themes. Many of these sermons have been preached by pastors standing in front of huge American flags, which were used as backdrops to help get their point across. The irony here is that most of the pastors who do this are fundamentalists who profess a belief in the infallibility of the Word of God. They also claim that their theology is based entirely on Scripture. Hmm … I wonder where exactly in the Bible they find their basis for such nationalistic sermons.
I bet they would have little tolerance for any pastor preaching a pro-environmentalism sermon, although he would have just as much of a biblical foundation for it they have for their patriotic sermons. In fact, many fundamentalist Christians will often accuse environmentalists of idolatry for "worshipping" the earth and those things pertaining to it. However, many of them play the hypocrite by bowing down to the U.S. flag and other symbols of our country, as if they were graven images.
Don't get me wrong, patriotism is not a sin and there's nothing wrong with honoring the American flag. They are both good things. It's just that one's patriotism should be kept separate from one's Christianity. In addition, as Christians, we must guard against idolizing our country or our flag. The First Commandment demands it.
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Top-level comments on this article: (8 total)Good points to ponder and then I am thinking about where the lines come for instance in Nazi Germany - killing Jews was the party line there - yet good Christians Like Corrie Ten Boom drew a line and took part in helping the Jews which was right and godly thing to do....and I would vote for anyone who supported Biblical views on life and societal issues no matter what their party.... hum, you've got my thinker thinking here...MarijoMarijo, I think Christians should indeed take stands on moral issues. If we don't, who will? We just need to be careful to avoid mixing nationalism (our love for our country) with our Christianity. As always, thanks for reading and commenting.I do understand that - and clinging to one political party for the sake of the party is no good - we need to vote our conscience and we definitely need to vote and pray and pray before we vote - only when He comes to rule and reign will we have perfect government and I think that can't happen too soon, eh?Marijo, I agree 100%.
Hi Terry,There is an excellent book out called, "The Myth of a Christian Nation" by a Pastor in Minnesota, Greg Boyd. It is exactly along these lines. If you haven't read it, it's very worth the time.Thanks for writing this.That is an awesome book, I'm going to see if it's in my library today. Somehow, I don't think Jesus meant to polarize nations along political or ideological lines.Jean, thanks for reading and commenting. I've heard of that book, but I haven't read it, although I probably should. Interestingly enough, it was someone's (perhaps yours) mention of the book in a SearchWarp article several months ago that got me thinking about this subject.
This is an excellent subject. I thank you for bringing it into the light. Politics has a way of not only appropriating religion, but also language. Parties capitalize on ownership of certain concepts. Not just Christianity, but words and concepts like "patriotism", "freedom", and even designate themselves as God's emissaries on earth. But, who told them that? What authority allows me, for instance, to appoint myself the unique and authorized version of divine providence? The ugly truth is such appropriations are motivated by power and selfishness, giving only the superficial appearance of righteousness, but having little genuine concern for general goodwill toward all people.Gregory, you make an excellent point here. No one party, group, or person has cornered the market on patriotism or morality.
Good article Terry, I believe Jesus plays a personal role on our lives. Not requiring a church audience to worship him once a week.Yes, David, I believe the same thing. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Great article. Well done.Separation of church and state is a wonderful thing. As an atheist and secularist I must say that religion in politics is clearly a good thing.I applaud your courage in criticizing an aspect of religion. For some reason you just can't do that. Even as much as it needs said.Conner, thanks for reading and commenting. However, I think you may be partially misinterpreting my motives behind writing this article or perhaps reading too much into it. I am not a proponent of the separation of church and state, at least the way it is generally understood.The Founding Fathers did not intend to keep church and state completely separate. They just wanted to make sure there no was state-sponsored or state-mandated religion or denomination. They would have had no problem with Christian messages and symbols in public venues (ex., schools, government offices, etc.) and neither do I.I also think it is quite appropriate for Christians and churches/denomintions to take stands on moral issues such as abortion and gay marriage. I just don't think the Christian church should be nationalistic or get too cozy with any political party. Christianity is without borders or politics. That's all I'm saying.I think Terry's understanding of the Founding Fathers' intentions tends to the narrow side. Where he says, "They would have had no problem with Christian messages and symbols in public venues" should have been more broadly phrased that they should equally have no problem with religious symbols belonging to other religions, even those antithetical to Christianity. To show bias in favor of Christianity is exactly what the Constitution protected from, an official state religion.The reason why this was so was that in the Revolutionary Era, there were multiple sects of Christianity competing for supremacy, and each was antagonistic toward the other! The Protestants of Massachusetts and the Church of England in upstate New York and the Quakers of Pennsylvania and the Catholics of Maryland were all at odds with each other, rather than living in an idealistic, blissful Christian harmony that never existed except through a fictitious idealized history. You can see where this leads, that an Alabama courthouse judge would really be intolerant of a display of the Wiccan Crede, let's say, or witnesses swearing on the Koran instead of the Bible would not be tolerated so genteelly. All who care to understand will find Susan Jacoby's Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism and Steven Waldman's Founding Faith: Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America informative and useful in the continuing struggle for religious freedomGregory, you are right when say the Founding Fathers would "equally have no problem with religious symbols belonging to other religions, even those antithetical to Christianity." However, Christianity has always been the dominant religion in the U.S. What did all of those competing Revolutionary Era denominations that you listed have in common? They were all Christian donominations. I'm sure there were other religions represented during they Revolutionary Era, but they were minor factors.
I think that Christians are just misinterpreting Jesus altogether. You are right, he never advocated for supporting anything political.I think religion as all about wanting to have some control over life. If Christians bring their ideas of morality into politics, they feel like they have a more powerful place.Lily, please explain why you say Christians are misinterpreting Jesus altogether. Do non-religious people have some special understanding of Jesus that Christians don't? Do you have a personal relationship with Him?You have a distorted view of religion. Yes, some people pervert religion into a control thing, but sincere religion is not all about control. And misguided religious people have not cornered the market on the control stuff. There are plenty of non-religious people that seek to exert control of their own. How else can you explain the fact that most religious references have been banned from public schools and replaced by almost total secularism?
Thank you for writing this Terry.Aaron, you're welcome. I'm glad you liked it.
Hi Terry, better late than never (me reading, not you you writing) lol. Excellent piece. I do feel the same way, I think some groups go over board and tend to worship the creation rather than the Creator - in this case our nation and our flag. Blessings to you and happy new year!!!Hi Teresa. It's nice to hear from and I hope have a happy new year as well. Thanks for reading and commenting.
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