I keep telling people that this is a strange time to be a pastor. Lately my vocation has been affiliated with what is being discussed in political circles, and there is an alarming amount of discourse placing the hopes of the Christian church onto American politicians. While I do not believe that matters of the state should be based on, or influenced by, Christianity for a myriad of reasons, that does not mean that Christianity is not political. Rather, the political landscape in place during the time of Jesus and the early church was arguably not in support of this movement, one that was in direct conflict with the preservation of powers and allegiance to any one nation. A movement that preached about the arrival of a child who would upend the hierarchical systems in place so that the lowly would be lifted and the powerful would be humbled (Luke 1:52). A people who pooled their resources to ensure that everyone had their needs met (Acts 4:34-35). A community that followed a man who became an asylum seeker fleeing political persecution immediately following his birth (Matt. 2:13-5). This is what I have found in the pages of scripture. Yet, it is not what comes out of the mouths of those who advocate for a Christian-based political arena.
So, I guess it’s time to talk about Christian nationalism. Again. Concerns about white Christian Nationalism and Christofascism were regularly brought up as issues of increasing disquiet by folks who spoke to the Youth Group during their mission trip to Washington, D.C. And it has become an even greater topic of discussion following recent acts of political violence.
As an experiment, I searched the word “Christianity” and clicked on the “News” tab. The top three articles were about the religious affiliations of the presidential candidates, and a proposed Christian-influenced curriculum in Texas that would offer schools, within an already underfunded education system, financial incentives for adopting the curriculum.
I’m disinterested in naming names, but I imagine a quick search would bring up pastors who have preached from their 501(c)(3) designated pulpits about a recent assassination attempt being divine intervention intended to save a certain political candidate who will reclaim the country. But I will add to what has been said by some in response. It is bad theology to assume that the God of all creation would sway a bullet for a political candidate to benefit a nationalist agenda, but not for children in schools, queer people in a nightclub, or Black people living their lives, like Sonya Massey, yet another Black woman killed in her own home on July 6 by a police officer.
During my final semester at Brite Divinity School, much of my studies focused on Christian nationalism and how the Bible is interpreted across different cultures. One of my required readings was The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism by journalist Katherine Stewart. In the first chapter, she describes traveling with a minister friend who shared a sentiment that is familiar among many who attempt to advocate against Christian nationalism; it is almost impossible to miss the prevalence of social justice themes in the Bible. He also questions where one would find “America's current political landscape in a text that was finished eighteen hundred years ago.” To that I would say that it appears the Christian nationalist movement’s strategy is taken from a practice that has been getting humans in trouble since the first pages of scripture, thinking we can play God and speak for her.
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