Question:  Dear Greg,

            I have been struggling (not just this year, but for some time) with a right approach to preaching God and country (if indeed it needs to be preached). 

            I know many Christians believe this is God’s country and that America was founded on Christian beliefs, etc.  As you know, the idea is used to justify Christians taking back control of the government, school prayer, posting of the 10 Commandments, taking control away from the liberals, etc.

            Maybe you can shed some light on this for me or point me to a balanced source.

            Thanks,

            Bob

Answer:  Dear Bob,

            Yes, it’s true that many American Christians believe that this is God’s country (how convenient for us, of course!) and that other countries are not as near and dear to God as we are.  This view led Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson to say that God was punishing America through the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks because we had allowed ourselves to become so perverted.  Of course the vast majority of Christians and non-Christians repudiate Robertson and Falwell’s statements.  They see the lack of logic (whether the logic be secular or biblical) in holding such a view.  But it is the view that Robertson and Falwell expressed and that a small percentage of other American Christians continue to hold.

            How do Christians come to the conclusion that America is God’s special country?  Some of the rationale comes from the faith expressed by our founding fathers.  There is a major debate, however, about the nature of the faith that our founding fathers actually believed and practiced.  Some Christians today--200 years later-- attempt to make the founding fathers sound like early incarnations of Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson.  Such an interpretation is historical revisionism and not even close to factual.  However, the view teaches that our founding fathers were unique among all nations that exist today in giving honor and allegiance to God.  This claim, of course, is partially accurate (one has to remember that there are other overtly Christian nations as evidenced from their charters, constitutions, etc.—such as England, South Africa and a number of European countries).  But it is true that references to God and biblical references were part of our foundation as a nation.

            But what American Christians who hold to this view forget is that the new covenant is for all, that the wall of partition has been broken down, that we are all one in Christ, etc.  Further, they forget that there are now countries in other areas of the world that either have a higher or just as high a percentage of professing and/or practicing Christians as the United States.

            American Christians who like to think of the United States as more blessed or closer to God by virtue of our history and founding fathers also tend to interpret Old Testament references to Israel as having direct significance to American Christians, as opposed to, for example, Filipino Christians.  American Christians who see significance in such references do not claim, of course, that racially pluralistic America is racially descended from the Hebrews.  However, they do see the church as “New Testament Israel” (some even see their specific denomination as more true to these roots than other denominations).  But again, American Christians who have such ideas have a huge blind spot about this topic, failing, for example, to ask where that would leave people like Palestinian Christians, to use one example.

            Of course these ideas blend church and state—something that our founding fathers abhorred, and play directly into nationalism and jingoism—extremes that have no place in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

            American civil religion is a term some sociologists use to discuss a near worship of the state via ceremonies and dates like Memorial Day and the 4^th of July, and it is an interesting study.  That is, some Americans are not actually worshipping God when they speak of “God bless America”, but rather they are worshipping the state, and such an allegiance is idolatry for Christians who acknowledge and worship only one Lord.

            So there is a need for American Christians to understand the difference between patriotism for your country—a secondary allegiance to our allegiance to God—and, on the other hand, nationalism that simply appropriates the name of God and religious forms and ceremonies.  These result in the worship of the state.

            Helping people to see this can be a delicate pastoral task, but it is a part of the gospel.  It is important for Christians to understand that we are citizens of the kingdom of God.  We have to understand that our citizenship is primarily in heaven.  At the same time, it is important for us to be thankful for the nation we live in and to be loyal citizens.  We should give respect to the country that allows us the freedoms we enjoy—among them the freedom of religion and assembly.

            Some thoughts—big topic.  Hope this gives you something to chew on.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht