The following article was also published on Wrecked.org on 07/07/09. If you are interested in following the discussion there, please click here.
________
For many of us, whether we would express it this way or not, America is (or close to) a Christian nation. It is true that many of our foundational values as a nation, as expressed in the Constitution and elsewhere, appealed to Christian principles. Ideas like inherent value, equal rights, freedom of religion (whether for or against Christianity), etc. – these are ideas that we hear about in church in varying degrees. 
There are also campaigns, of sorts, being led by some Christians who genuinely believe and/or want America to be a Christian nation because they are convinced that if we could convince others of this, then many of the problems plaguing our nation (divorce, abortion, homosexual agendas, etc) would be fixed.
This belief in a Christian nation is further sealed in our hearts by the Pledge of Allegiance:
I pledge allegiance to the flag
Of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, under God, indivisible
With liberty and justice for all
Liberty, justice, indivisibility…all under God? While many of us would agree that to be a patriot does not necessarily cause one to be a Christian, it is almost considered blasphemous to consider that a Christian living in America may not be very patriotic. Many of our churches, in fact, are led by former military men and women whether as clergy or lay people.
The American qualities present within Christianity are particularly emphasized on the Fourth of July weekend. For example, at my church over the past weekend, there was a man dressed in full military garb who gave a short speech about why he serves his country, how he loves his country, how he is thankful not just to enjoy his freedoms, but to fight so that others might do the same – it was an inspiring speech. To conclude his speech, he led the congregation in the pledge of allegiance, him saluting the flags onstage and the congregation holding their hands over their hearts, hats removed (it was an outside service), pledging their allegiance to a flag, a country.
Pledging allegiance to a country…in the middle of a service designed to honor God.
I know it may not be popular to do so, and I know that there are many who would disagree with me, but saying the pledge of allegiance in a church service is idolatry – worshipping someone, or something else, when we should be worshipping God.
Its not that I am against the pledge of allegiance altogether; in fact, I think it to be a great and valuable resource to the American people. I say it now and again myself, depending on the circumstances. But we need to take a serious, reverent pause before we consider saying the pledge of allegiance during our worship services. Such an act, while it may not seem like a big deal, is a huge deal. Perhaps, even, the fact that it seems so small is what makes it a big deal – when we treat God and his presence as something trite, normal, or trivial, we are putting ourselves into a very dangerous position with Him as we are prone to abuse the very one we are meeting to experience and glorify.
I want us to imagine how Jesus might have responded if the Jews of his day had been pledging their allegiance to Rome in the midst of their sacrificing in the temple. I can’t imagine he would have allowed them to compartmentalize the two; even had Rome had an “under God” clause in it (by the way, in case you were unaware, the words “under God” were not added to the pledge of allegiance until the 1950′s – see more here). Or perhaps we should consider how God might feel if we replaced “flag” and “nation” with “currency” and “wealth” – no that’s too stark a difference in our minds. How about we replace “flag” and “nation” with “denomination” and “beliefs”? Now we’re getting a little uncomfortable, aren’t we?
I want to make something clear: I’m not advocating for an anarchist mindset or one where we become disrespectful of our history, our nation, or those who sacrifice so much to protect our freedoms. We should vow to our nation, promising to sacrifice for her. We should be thankful for those who have sacrificed on our behalf. We should even, dare I say, celebrate our nations birthday – but when it comes to pledging allegiance in a church service, that should be reserved for God.
The reason is simple: pledging allegiance to the State in the same breath that we are worshipping God leads to a conflict of interest. What happens, for example, when keeping our allegiance to the State results in being in opposition to God? What happens when our commitment to Christ necessitates a forsaking of our nation? It is all too easy to assume that we would be willing to make the hard decision, but more likely we’ll attempt to walk the middle line and thus compromise both our allegiance to our nation, and our commitment to God resulting in a lukewarm patriotism and a lukewarm faith.
Further, when any symbol is compared to, set aside as equal to, or pledged allegiance to when a cross – the very instrument that was used crucify the god-man who died a brutal death so that we might not suffer the punishment for our sins – is in the room, we have problems.
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: | America, Church, Idolatry
I pretty much agree with you, but the language might be a bit stronger than how I’d put it. Saying the Pledge in church is more just an awkward crossover than idolatrous. To me, it’d be as random as saying the Pledge at a birthday party or when you’re using the bathroom.
The Body of Christ should be a higher priority than any nation on the earth. People can argue all they want about the US being a “Christian” nation, but the Church still stands as the only body of people on this planet that God actually established, ordained, and sustained. I agree with you there. Really, I think it’s just a sign of immature faith to include celebration of nationality in a worship service devoted to God. It’s like a relic from old American churches that really should be reexamined and challenged by Scripture and some unbiased reasoning. If a lot of people were to do that, I think they’d realize that saying the Pledge like that is rather pointless and ineffective compared to the power of worship and receiving blessings from the Lord through that. If you pledge a flag, it’s still gonna be there regardless. If you pledge God, He’ll change your life.
Dan, good thoughts and thanks for the discussion. I think we agree on the second part of your comment, but I did want to respond to the first part.
I find it…interesting…that you use the analogy of saying the pledge at a birthday party or when using the bathroom, but only because it demonstrates one of the points I was attempting to make: that perhaps we take God and his presence too lightly, like something that doesn’t really matter. Perhaps if we were really aware of who it is that we were honoring when we gather in a church setting we might act different? I say this to myself as much as to you…perhaps we need to re-discover real reverence?
Yeah, I agree with that. Forgot to bring it up. It’s so easy to get sucked into the Mayberry mentality about God because it’s so prevalent. I grew up in that and I’m just now getting away from it. In that kind of environment, there are no answers to the tough questions because nobody wants to bother with answering them. It’s easier to be a good Christian according to the gospel of hearsay, rather than Scripture. My family is a fine example of how bad theology is passed down through the generations, I think. It’s sad because my grandma reads through the Bible once a year and has done it for the last 75+ years, probably.
I am going to disagree with you that America is a Christian nation. It is a common misconception that the Founding Fathers (capitalized for identification) were largely Christians. This simply isn’t true – most were secular humanists, deists, and a few (such as Thomas Jefferson) were atheists. The documents on which America is founded were inspired by reason and personal profit. They could not help but write the documents to satisfy their personal interests. But I digress, while the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution may indirectly reflect some values that Christians claim to possess, you cannot make the argument that America is a Christian nation.
Further, I do not sympathize with those who desire a Christian America. This would only further undermine the integrity of the nation. Dare I say it, but the church in America does not accurately reflect who Jesus was and what He came to do. I’ll allow for some churches that actually carry themselves in a way respectful to God, but for the most part, I’d say that the reason so many people hate religion is because of the church in America. Making America a Christian nation would do nothing to alleviate the “problems plaguing our nation.”
I’m going to go a step even further, and question why Christians think it necessary to be patriotic, support the military, etc… I consider myself to be a Christian, judge me as you wish, but I do not support the military in any form, nor do I hold the country in high regard. I know my United States history, and I am ashamed of what my country represents. America is genocidal, intolerant, unthinking, and corrupt, to avoid the more provocative accusations.
I too would have a problem with saying the Pledge of Allegiance at church, though for these reasons, and not so much for the idolatry aspect that you’ve written about.
To clarify, Evan, I actually don’t think America is a Christian nation. I disagree with that notion vehemently. However, many do think that, but many more think it is CLOSEST TO a Christian nation – I’m thinking that more fall into the latter category than the former, but I could be wrong.
I also agree that making America “Christian” (if such a thing were even possible) would not alleviate the problems we face which is why I am very resistant to any attempts to Christianize America – to me it seems like a waste of time and a distraction from what really matters.
Finally, I find it interesting that you would even question Christian patriotism. How do you balance that with Paul’s teaching on submitting to the government, etc.?
I assume you are referring to Romans 13:1 – “Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist are instituted by God.”
I do not know how to address this. Paul seems pretty straight forward in his argument.
But, it seems unlikely that God will really call one into judgment for opposing government. Jesus was subversive, He went against the established authorities. I can’t imagine that God is opposed to us doing so.
When Paul writes to Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:5-11, he essentially says that “the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. Some have deviated from these and turned aside to fruitless discussion.” (Read the rest of it yourself…). God institutes government under the three ideas listed. But it turns away from his pure intentions. That is where I find my justification for opposing patriotism.
There is a difference between support and patriotism. I support government officials, I pray that they seeks guidance from God and that it serves it’s purest purposes. But I do not respect their judgment, if that makes sense.
Government on Earth is man. Officials may be instituted by God (per Paul’s warning), but that doesn’t grant them a blank slate to do as they please and claim it as God. President McKinley claims that he went down on his knees and prayed one night, and God told him to invade the Phillipines. Thousands died. President Bush claims to have received guidance from God to invade Iraq. Thousands died, and still are.
It is an act of ignorance and apathy to be patriotic. If we had something to be proud of, something where we could say, “Job well done, America. Job well done, government. You truly sought God and acted on His will, and you’ve done good,” then I would say patriotism is justified. But to support our nation for what it is now, that I consider foolish.
Mind you, this is entirely my interpretation and opinion. I would be greatly interested to here your ideas.
I don’t know that I would go as far as you do (which surprises me, actually). Here’s my thought:
The government has been given its power to execute justice – Paul is clear on that. Unfortunately, he doesn’t make a distinction between good and Christian governments and other, oppressive governments. In fact, given that he lived under the Roman government, he almost certainly didn’t intend to distinguish between the two. So, at some point, to some degree, we have to affirm the same as Paul – that the government that is in place should be respected…at least to the extent that it doesn’t cause us to sin or demand our allegiance over God. This is not a black and white issue…government’s actions frequently fall in a gray area where one person can support it and another cannot.
Further, Jesus’ instructions for example (these are often used to oppose things like capital punishment) to turn the other cheek is not instructive for the government. The teaching was meant to be applied on a personal/communal (familial at best) level, but he wasn’t saying anything to the government. He even paid taxes.
Jesus didn’t oppose government authority as much as religious authority…we need to be clear on that. And he did so for a very specific reason. But the fact of the matter is that, even given all of America’s shortcomings, there is much to be proud of in America. We’re not a perfect nation, but we do a lot of things right.
We need to be careful to affirm the good and condemn the bad in the same breath, but we don’t need to choose one over the other.
Excellent discussion!