Christian Nationalism
On July 3rd a group of ten people from our church had a conversation about Christian Nationalism. If you’d like to hear the conversation on our podcast, click here. “Christian Nationalism is a political ideology and cultural framework that seeks to merge American and Christian identities.” American identity is good and Christian identity is good but merging them together runs the risk of making what is sacred profane. In other words, by merging these identities, both our call to follow Christ above all else and our commitment to American democratic principles are distorted.
Maybe you’re wondering why we even engaged this conversation? I’m glad you asked! I have personally felt convicted to open up conversations when I see other Christians acting or speaking in ways that damage our Christian witness. In other words, if someone is acting in a way that harms the reputation of the church, l feel compelled to offer an informed and reasonable response to contradict the cacophony of extreme perspectives we are accustomed to hearing.
We learned about Christian Nationalism first from the perspective of faith in Christ as our primary allegiance and then from the perspective of our democracy. We began with John 18:33-37 where Jesus stated “my kingdom is not of this world” as he spoke with a government leader, Pontius Pilate. After that we read Article 6 of the constitution and the First Amendment. We defined terms like patriotism, nationalism, and Christianity to contextualize the definition of Christian Nationalism.
We also explored why Christian Nationalism is dangerous. Critics ask questions like, what is the difference between imposing Christian practices in our country and leaders in Iran imposing Muslim practices on their citizens? Or, how do we know politicians are sincere in their desire to practice the Christian faith and not merely using Christian Nationalism for political gain? We also acknowledged the racial demographics of Christian Nationalism which overlap significantly with the group often described as, white evangelicals.
We concluded the class with opportunities for further learning and action. Here are a few things you can do to learn more and respond to Christian nationalism :
Participate in Bishop Tom Berlin’s challenge by reading the constitution, George Washington’s Farewell Address, Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, and Frederick Douglass’ 4th of July speech. Our bishop invites us to better apply our faith to our shared political life by educating ourselves. When was the last you read any of these documents? I confess it had been a while for me.
Visit the website for Christians Against Christian Nationalism to read their statement. You can even sign your name as a tangible way to speak out.
Click here to listen to a more robust conversation via podcast.
If you’d like to engage the conversation more deeply, reach out to me at PastorMike@SpringChurch.org to set up a time to talk.
I am grateful to be a part of a church that is able to engage in sensitive and difficult conversations because of how deeply we trust in God and trust one another. I believe the Holy Spirit will work through conversations like this one to deepen our own faith and draw new people to faith in Christ.
