Totally Different, All Over Again

This last year, with all of the contention surrounding the US election, civil unrest due to race relations, and the ever constant stream of violence the we see around us; conversations concerning the supreme allegiance of the average American Christian are almost constant. Now, we get to add the statements of an NFL quarterback, Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers, to a long list of contentious topics for us to run and make a pointed, emotional social media post about. Over the last few years, we have had a series of these conversations that typically come up whenever someone either “stands to defend the Gospel,” or “speaks out against social injustice.” Each separate event becomes a diatribe from an armchair constitutional scholar about the extent to which the 1st amendment protects the individual’s right to speak.

Whether it is a business owner refusing to serve LGBTQ people, Black Lives Matter protesting the the actions of police, a pastor threatening to burn the holy book of another faith, or a celebrity speaking out against the actions of their government, we have had lots of “conversations” about our relationship to the political process as American Christians. Mostly, these are just fights where people throw invective at each other, creating a string of ad hominem attacks that have little to do with the actual topic. A post is made, or something happens in the news that touches our nerves and we unload our best “gotcha” lines to sting the other side, often going back and forth on in comments sections like a wordy version of “I know you are, but what am I?”

In total, none of these conversations are all that helpful. As a group we move from one topic to another, laying out long screeds that perpetuate a an us vs. them scenario with no end. The hard work would be with having a long conversation about our relationship as Christians to the nation where we find ourselves living. 

Are American Christians really American christians?

Are we american Christians?

Or are we just Americans who use Christianity to worship our Americanness?

With this recent ignition of the debate, I have witnessed lots of Christians, and ministers specifically, unload into the aether concerning the correct way we are to honor the American flag. Where is the line between civic responsibility and nationalism? (It should be noted, when I say “nationalism,” I’m denoting a a philosophical understanding that I consider idolatrous. Where we worship our nation and its perceived greatness more than we worship God.) As we approach another national holiday, the remembrance of September 11th, we will no doubt be acknowledging its significance in our services. Some will pull out flags to adorn their sanctuary, and those who constantly fly the flag in their sanctuary will make sure to point to it. 

I know some who will preach on that day, and they are rather uncomfortable with how much they will be expected to massage the “American Spirit” of their congregations. Some have voiced that on days like September 11th, their churches are no longer churches, but incubators of support for America. Maybe we need to keep asking ourselves this question about where the word Christian falls when we are called American Christians.