Americans first? a critique of civil religion

“We are Americans first, Americans last, and Americans through and through.”

We are in the thick of another political season, with November just around the corner. If you don’t recognize the above quote it’s because it comes from the 2004 Republican National Convention. At the time I was deeply struck by the statement, made by Vice-President Dick Cheney. I penned the following reflection shortly thereafter, and felt that it was relevant for us now, four years later, in the run up to yet another presidential election.

The Vice-President was no doubt making a conciliatory appeal to the nation that whether you’re Democrat or Republican, we are all Americans.

Let’s stop and think about this for a minute. Was this just political hype at convention time? An innocuous declaration of our national identity? Or do the Vice-President’s words allude to an inherent conflict for Christian citizens of our country?

Whether you vote Republican, Democrat or Green Party, as a follower of Christ, I believe you and I are compelled for integrity’s sake and as citizens of God’s kingdom, to ask the deeper questions of those that lead our nation and of ourselves as participants in American democracy.

As followers of Jesus Christ, our loyalty to governments and nations is never undivided. From the earliest centuries of the Church the question of allegiance was paramount. For Jesus Christ to be king meant that Caesar could not.

Then as well as now, followers of Christ have a higher loyalty, an allegiance that goes beyond the geographic borders of one’s country and that far exceeds the “trust” that we could ever confer upon any elected official. As Christ’s followers we “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness” (Matt 6.33). As children born of God, we are members first and foremost to a family that is irrespective of race and national identity in its worldwide breadth.

But someone might ask, “Why is seeking God’s kingdom in conflict with being American? After all, we are Americans.” Here are some thoughts of mine that provide food for thought regarding what, I believe, is an inherent tension for us as followers of Christ and citizens in the United States.

As citizens of the United States our highest leader is the President of the country. What is our leader’s mandate? In large part, his mandate is to protect and prosper our nation. In other words, his job is to serve the needs of our country. As citizens of God’s kingdom our highest leader is God himself, manifested in Jesus Christ. In this case, what is our leader’s mandate? At the risk of oversimplification, we might affirm that it is to fulfill His will and bring his lordship to all the nations.

What differences do you observe between these two leaders and their respective mandates?

For starters, they work toward very different ends (or goals). For all the influence and power that the President of the US wields around the globe, his end in everything he does both home and abroad is the financial and physical security of his country, the United States of America. For Christ, his end (or goals) in everything he stands for and is doing in the world is that all peoples everywhere, especially those that get relegated to last place in the world, might know his saving and transforming grace.

Jesus instructed us and modeled for us all the way to the cross, that the way to win the nations is through humility and giving up power. The President must be willing to use might to get what he wants. We place our right hand over our heart and swear allegiance to our nation, while witnessing through our baptism in Christ our sole allegiance to God and his rule. This can, and should, create a disturbing tension within us.

Having sworn our allegiance to live as Christ lived and to seek his kingdom, what do we do when our President pursues foreign policies or economic policies that frankly are void of the humility that we deem inherent to the gospel? If this weren’t enough, then the same President publicly names as his inspiration, the God in whose name we are baptized.

The conflict I see is most apparent, I believe, when Christian Americans “sanctify” or “baptize” the US government’s ends (or goals) as divine or uniquely in step with God’s spirit for carrying out God’s mission in the world. Our political leaders have, in a sense, made this easy for us. They have often quite unabashedly described their leadership as part of a divine plan or in step with God’s design of things.

“We are first, last and through and through citizens of God’s kingdom and members of Christ’s body worldwide.” This is my modest conciliatory appeal to my brothers and sisters in the United States of America. I invite your responses, however you may agree or disagree with it. My hope is to facilitate deeper reflection on our role and impact as Christians in society.

Peace to all!

John Shorack
Caracas, Venezuela
May 2008