A Christian Response to Nationalism

   

 In the early 1930’s, German evangelical churches and pastors formed a group to celebrate and strengthen the connection between “Christianity and Germanness”: German Christians. They believed that God had a plan for Germany, chosen from all the nations of the world. The enemy was seeking to destroy this manifest destiny through dangerous, odd-looking individuals who were stealing the nation’s resources and causing conflict in the streets. The responsibility of a good Christian was to be a good German--- buy German-made products, vote for those who promise to restore Germany’s greatness, and to stand by for when the government would need them. Slowly, loyalty to God was replaced with loyalty to country to the point that these evangelicals rewrote the Bible to make it less Jewish and more German.  Within a decade, these German Christians became “Hitler’s willing executioners” when a Christian nation carried out one the worst slaughters in modern times without surrendering their claims of Christianity.

Appropriate political loyalty transformed into slavish nationalism can twist Christians to commit unspeakable evils. In human relationships, if one person blindly follows another, supporting their every decision, justifying their every misstep, yelling at everyone who may disagree with them, and refusing the admit they have any room for improvement, we would call that person an enabler, a sycophant, or a stalker. It is just as unhealth to love one’s country--- or more often one side’s view of a country--- with the same unconditional devotion.

The concept of linking national identity to faith identity is undoubtedly familiar to any American Christian. The United Sates is the land of “God and country” and “King James and Uncle Sam.” And it is easy to find evidence to support this position. Certainly, many of the early European immigrants to this land were Christians seeking religious liberty and many of the founders and great men and women thr0ughout our history have been people of faith. When faith matters to a person, it produces character which enables them to be better leaders; these better leaders crafted a stronger, healthier nation. This is true of many nations and various leaders they have had.

Nowhere in the Bible are Christians called to unconditionally love their governments. They are to respect them (Rom. 13; I Pt 3:17), to obey them when it does not contradicts the Word of God(1 Pt 3:19-20), to not antagonize them (I Pt 3:19), and to pay taxes (Mt 19).  Much of the Bible is spent on the people of God defying whichever government they were under. The Judges led the Israelite people in one rebellion after another. The prophets spent their entire careers critiquing their homelands. The three Hebrew children nonchalantly went to the furnace to defy a Babylonian king. Esther broke laws when she waltzed into her husband’s throne room uninvited. Peter and John looked their judges in the eyes and declared they would not obey them because their faith compelled them to “obey God rather than men” (Acts 5). And the list goes on. The Bible is full of rebels.

“The kingdom of God” is a major theme in the Gospels--- it is what John the Baptist foretold and the message Jesus preached. The disciples were confused by this “Kingdom of God” because their leaders’ interpretation of the Old Testament taught them to look for an earthly kingdom. They were so certain that the “Kingdom of God” had to come on this earth that they fought over which government position they would have (Mk 10). When Jesus was dragged before Pilate, the kingdom of God was again mistaken for an earthly kingdom, but Jesus explained that, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). It did not clear things up. When Jesus was crucified, it was because he claimed to be King of this kingdom--- and there could be no King but Caesar.

While not earthly, the Kingdom of God is undoubtedly political. It is so political that generations of Christians (including Amish and traditional Mennonites) have found it unchristian to pledge any loyalty or hold any post in any earthly government. As citizens of heaven, how could they also be citizens of a fleeting, earthly country (Phil 3:20)? For them, the nations of this world with their mortal power and inherent corruption contradict the Kingdom of God (Ps 2). For decades, these people have lived out their faith by refusing to pledge their alliance to the United States, participate in pollical affairs, and sing or even stand for the national anthem. In their minds, if we are called to worship the King of Kings, how could Christians justify standing and singing a worship song to the icon of an earthly kingdom?

Most Christians choose to live out the Kingdom of God in this world by living in tension. They are citizens of the kingdom of God, but also are Koreans, Americans, Brazilians, and Ghanaians.  These Christians recognize that many of the ideas of government--- using violence to protect a country or enforce its law, taking money from people by force, making some people (even elected officials) more important than others--- are not of the kingdom of God. As part of the kingdoms of this world, they will perish when the new earth comes. But they also see a grim necessity to some of these until that new earth arrives. They see an opportunity to use the vehicles of government to improve people’s lives, not just oppress. And they believe the best way to curtail the worst aspects of human government is from within.

The only nation on earth that can claim special commission from God is Israel--- a people chosen by God to show his light to the nations of the earth (Ex 19:6). Yet, they could escape the corruption of earthly powers. The Torah is the law literally given from the mouth of God on a mountain top; however, most biblical scholars believe that the Jewish people never lived by it. If they did, it was only a short period of time during the life of Joshua and immediately after. After the death of Joshua and the generation who knew him, Israel turned their backs on God and his laws (Judges 2:8-17). And based on the rest the Old Testament, while they had many revivals, they never followed the Law in its pure form again. All their governments--- even the great ones under David or Hezekiah--- were hybrids of goodness and evil in need of a constant stream of prophets reminding those in power that God, not some human leader, is King.

There is no reason the United States of America could somehow be exempt from tension that every other nation in history endures. That, somehow, Jesus’ Kingdom is of this world and it stretches from sea to shining sea. That the God who told us to store treasures in heaven suddenly cares about buying American-made products. Or that the bodily position of a person during a song is the most important standard by which we can measure one another’s characters. Christians should expect that the American government will be the same hybrid of evil and good that myriad governments before it have been. If their faith allows them to be active in politics (as mine does), Christians should work to promote the good and join with the prophets of old in denouncing the evils within it.  As “foreigners and exiles” in this world, we can echo the Rich Mullins song when he sings of America, “I’ll call you my country and I’ll still be lonely for my home” (I Pt 3:11).