7 Theses on Patriotism and Christianity

Yesterday was the fourth of July; The United State's Independence Day. I, like many Americans, celebrated the holiday by going to a cookout (or two) and, after the sun had set, going to see fireworks. And, like many Americans, this day reminded me of how much I love this "land of the free and home of the brave." I sang along with countless others about "America, the Beautiful" and truly requested that "God Bless the USA."

I love my country. I love of the freedoms I have in this country. I love many of its peculiarities. I love its rich variety of culture and people, among other things. As a Christian, I have often found it difficult to express how this love of country and my love for God are connected without, on the one hand, sounding like my God is my country and, on the other, sounding as if my love is not love at all.

I have too often seen these two concepts dangerously combined or haphazardly separated to be content with trite phrases or simplistic understandings of how this should all work together. So, in an effort to better explain where I stand, I have come up with seven theses on patriotism and Christianity:

1. I am,  first and foremost, a citizen of the kingdom of heaven
In 1 Peter 2:11, we are told that we are "strangers and aliens" in this world. Those who have trusted in Jesus Christ for their salvation have been transferred from a kingdom of darkness into a domain where Christ is King (Colossians 1:13). This means that Jesus has my primary allegiance, not the USA.


2. As a citizen of heaven, I have been commanded to respect all governing authorities above me
Paul makes it clear that all authority is from God and has been put into place by God (Romans 14, see also John 19:11). So, I am to obey those who govern over me. I have a dual-citizenship, belonging first to God, but also to America. Except for those areas where these authorities conflict, I cannot in good conscience before God reject what the USA tells me to do. Of course, there is a place for civil disobedience, but that is another topic for another time.


3. I will love people from all nations, tribes and tongues
 God has a passionate desire that people from every nation, tribe and tongue will come to know, adore and find their joy in Him (Romans 15:9-12; Revelation 7:9; 13:7) . This means that there is no place for jingoism or ethnocentrism. I have no right to love the people in my own country above those from another. God shows no partiality based upon these things and, as His follower, I have no right to either (Romans 2:11).


4. I will not treat America as the new Israel 
I don't think that many American Christians make this comparison explicitly. However, the idea is out there that America is a Christian nation and, because our forefathers and grandfathers followed God, we are a chosen and blessed people, like Israel was. And we have a right to the promises given to them.

There are a number of issues with this line of comparison, but I will simply point out two. First, the new Israel is, if anything, the Church, not America (1 Peter 2). There are different ways of understanding what it means to have moved from the time of Israel to the Church Age, but on this basic point most all agree.

Second, America isn't mentioned in the Bible. Not once. This region of the globe isn't even hinted at. And if you think that we've somehow earned the right to be God's people, go read the Old Testament again, starting with Hosea. You'll realize quickly that that's not how God works.


5. I will be grateful for the right to worship God freely
One of the greatest things about America is that we are able to worship who we chose, how we choose. Sometimes this makes Christians nervous when people of other religions take this right seriously, but we should all be thankful for this gracious liberty and protect others' right to it as well.


6. I will pray for those that lead this nation
This is something that I have not always done a good job of, but 1 Timothy 2:2 makes it clear that it is a good and right thing to pray for those who are in charge of making decisions for this country. May we all humbly pray for our president, judges and other elected officials. Every Christian should be able to lay aside their politics enough to pray for wisdom and guidance for every one of our leaders.


7. I will celebrate the diversity of this nation
America has always had a semi-schizophrenic relationship with diversity. While we clenched, in one hand, a declaration that said all men were endowed with "unalienable rights", we held slaves in the other. While we held up our nation as a "melting pot" that invited the tired and poor from other nations, we limited the rights of many of these people. We even had prison camps for some of them, just because of their nation of origin. We have had many sad moments in our nation's short history

I think this country has always struggled between having its own united identity and inviting people to come from all over the world, like they did in the beginning. Despite all this, our nation is one born out of many people coming from all sorts of backgrounds and situations to find a place of freedom in this land.

So, without trying to make any type of statement on immigration reform (that's a bigger topic than I'm prepared to deal with right now), I just want to say that I am thankful for the diverse faces of this country. God made men in His image, in all of their differences and similarities. This is beautiful, and I thank God that the official seal of this union states "e pluribus unum," out of the many, one.