Flags in the Sanctuary: Excursus: Christian Nationalism

 Or, "What the h-e-double-hockey-sticks is Christian nationalism?"

A concern often connected to the propriety of the flag in the sanctuary, and one which is making the rounds in media circles these days, is that of Christian nationalism. For most people "Christian nationalism" is a scare term: We say it or write it in order to signal that the people getting that label are dangerous.

Now, perhaps the danger attached to the term is warranted. I hesitate to make ethical arguments by using Hitler as a counterexample or bottom of a slippery slope, but history here has a fine point: the Nazi party branded itself as the party of "German Christians," and made it clear that Christians in Germany had better be loyal to the Nazi party. So wedding nationalism and faith can be a problem. As far as I know, we don't have a "Christian Nationalist" political party in the US. So what do we really mean by the term?

Most voices in the public sphere, in my albeit small-sample-size experience, are not using the term precisely. So let's explore some options for precision.

1. Christian nationalism = belief that Christians should support nation-statehood as the best way to understand sovereignty of peoples and boundaries for rule of law. Given that most of the developed world sees states as "nations" in the modern sense, this one is boringly common and probably not worth our worry. Unless someone wants to go back to Christian monarchy, in which case we should definitely talk.

2. Christian nationalism = belief that the United States was founded on "Christian principles" and therefore should be guided by those principles in its public entities. In weighing the validity and danger of this option, one has some critical decisions to make. When we talk about "Christian principles" of the US's founding, are we talking about the beliefs of 18th-century political leaders or the principles that can be extracted directly from founding documents? If the former, then one has some heavy lifting to describe exactly which Christian principles guided all of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, etc. There is no guarantee that these folks would stand up to our tests of orthodoxy. If the latter, then it's worth starting our work by combing through the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution to find references to those hallmarks of Christianity: God, Jesus, the scriptures, the Church, etc. We might have to reframe our thesis.

Strictly speaking, the national buck stops with the Constitution, so whatever Christian "shoulds" we try to foist on the US that doesn't have any backing in that document is likely (or should be) doomed to fail.

3. Christian nationalism = belief that Christianity ought to be the official religion of the United States or that only Christians can be genuine Americans--perhaps for reasons linked to #2 above or for reasons of personal or tribal power. This one brings some danger with it: If folks in power believe that non-Christians are second-class citizens then bad things begin to happen. Though the First Amendment forbids establishment of a national religion, lots of cultural power can be wielded without legal sanction.

4. Christian nationalism = belief that being Christian means being completely loyal to the United States, or, in more common terms, strongly patriotic. This is a sort of converse of #3; it may result from a sense that God gives the US a "special" status in world history to do something especially cool. This one also carries some danger because of the problem of idolatry (being unconditionally loyal to something besides God). However, a quick look at the ministry of Jesus and the prophets before him reveals that God had persistent critiques of all people groups and human-made entities, so the US is likely not an exception. As always, when we find ourselves thinking that [entity in question besides Jesus] can do no wrong, we ought to have a moment of self-examination.

Those are the distinct definitions that jump to mind; I hope they are useful in your thinking about the cultural moment we live in. When you hear someone use the term "Christian nationalism," or you use it yourself, which one of these is in play? Or is it some different one? Given the range of meanings it's probably wise for us to clarify what we mean, lest we just dump more words into the swirling toilet-bowl of media chatter.

Next time, as a final meditation on flags in the sanctuary: What's up with that "Christian flag" on the other side of the room?

~ emrys