Christian Nationalism

On Sunday, Charles Clay and Dave Neumann pointed out the historical context around Christian Nationalism as a political approach to uniting the church and the state. By definition, “Christian nationalism is an ideology that is based around the idea that this was founded as a Christian nation, and, therefore, it should be a Christian nation today and should be so in the future" (Brad Onishi).

Christian Nationalism has at its heart a belief in American exceptionalism - namely, that our country, above others, is favored by God. Listen to the sermon to get more the historical and cultural context for that belief. But for today, one of the many scriptures that challenges this idea of exceptionalism is from the book of Acts:

God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. - Acts 10:34-35

Spend some time with this verse of scripture and your own patriotism.

• To what degree do you think America is blessed by God?

• Is America MORE blessed than other countries? (Why/Why not?)

• Is there some other country you think is MORE blessed than America? (If so, why?)

• Can you distinguish between patriotism and nationalism?

• Why do you think so many people think their country is the best?

• What does it mean to go to the polls in November - and to live your communal life in the meantime - in light of the truth that God does not show favoritism to any particular type of person?