Celebrations of Empire Are Not New; We Must Choose Who We Will Worship

A local real estate agent put American flags in our yard last week. We found them after a quick trip to the grocery store. My daughter pulled them up after words that communicated a mix of wonder and disgust. Things that I have said and done taught her to do this. She is a living mirror of my deepest theologies. She does not already have a conclusion in her nine-year-old heart about the idols of this country, but she knows what mine is. Selah.

There is Nothing New Under the Sun

Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, 

“What has been will be again,
     what has been done will be done again;
     there is nothing new under the sun.

These words are true for the rises, reigns, and falls of every empire and the people who reside within and under them. They are true for the followers of Jesus whose call and commission is to resist empire’s temptations, taunts, and torture. 

This passage was true for the disciples in Rome after Jesus ascended to Heaven and Holy Spirit fell. And it was true when this nation was founded and claimed sacredness, exceptionalism, and holiness; and when it chose to exterminate Native people, enslave African men, women, and children, and subjugate anyone who was not male, did not own land, or was not racially assigned white. 

The early church had a choice, and now I do. Selah.

Following Christ and Resisting Empire

This passage was true when I pulled into our yard and had to decide if this red, white, and blue banner would stay in our grass. This scripture and its implications are true when I am told to stand for the national anthem at a high school football game.

There is nothing new under the sun. So the commandment to take up my cross, deny myself, and follow Jesus is true for me today. The battle during the time of Our Savior’s birth, life, state murder, and resurrection was not against flesh and blood – neither is mine. The myth of White American Folk Religion persists, and we are invited to willful ignorance, quietness, complicity, and celebration – just like Daniel. This was the offer to Jesus when Peter said, no you won’t be crucified. Collective pride, communal selfishness, and exploitative ambition are the offerings of the idol today. 

I am choosing to say no, and I believe every follower of Jesus has to as well in their context in their own obedient way. We cannot serve two masters – God and mammon. And the god of America is mammon.

To celebrate America’s 250th anniversary without reservation, reflection, or sincere wrestling is to bow down when the trumpet sounds. To be silent during genocide, ethnic cleansing, is to live in the updated identity of MLK’s White Moderate. To embrace the benefits, convenience, comfort, and security of the US military without question or hesitation is to live in Peter’s desired reality, where we are on top, working to get there, or protecting our position. 

This sits in stark contrast to the Gospel of Jesus that seems to prioritize those on the bottom, those outcast and in some way last and least. Jesus says to love your enemies and pray for them, not to pummel, punish, or pillage them for your own profit, gain, or comfort. 

What I am saying is not new or novel. It’s just my turn. So, I have to ask myself what will be my testimony?

If anyone claims to follow Jesus, we must ask ourselves, to what Kingdom are we bearing witness?

Reflection

Here are some questions to help you reflect:

1. Read the Beatitudes in Matthew 5 and consider the question: who and what does Jesus call blessed? How does that compare and contrast to what your family, culture, or country calls blessed?
2. How do you think the disciples felt hearing Jesus’ words? How do you feel considering this teaching from Jesus?
3. In the Lord’s Prayer, it says, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done.” What are the marks of God’s kingdom from the Sermon on the Mount? What would you see and hear around you and in the world if those prayers came true? 

God-willing, my daughter and I may be alive in 50 years for the 300th birthday celebration of this country. My sincere hope is that this country is better and that we are here to see it. Not because I believe this nation should be Christian or because I hope we finally become that shining city on a hill. I hope it gets better for all people because every person is made in the image of God and worthy of love, dignity, honor, respect, and a profound assertion of their worth and value at every level – individual, intimate, interpersonal, institutional, and ideological. And I will celebrate every expression of that with worship and praise to Our Good God and blessed pursuit of His kingdom. 

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