The sacrilege of American Christianity
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We are 3 days into the 2020 election night marathon. Ballot counters have headed home and counties are preparing for the next day of work that will undoubtedly redefine the face of American democracy as we know it. It seems as if the country is upside down. But in the week that culminates 4 years of political unrest and division like never before, where is the ‘American church’?
Well, the ‘American church’ can be found in front of election departments donning MAGA hats and praying for ‘justice’. If you do not cross them there, perhaps you will encounter them leading “impassioned prayer services” as a means of securing President Trump’s reelection. Or maybe they are posting their Pinterest-ready think-pieces about the fraudulence of the election coupled with an ill-fitting image of the crucifix and the flag.
I wonder, where was the ‘American church’ when the time came to pray for and with the families of the victims murdered at the hands of police brutality, this year alone? I question, where was the civic compliance by the ‘American church’ to pause large public gatherings with the spread of the Covid-19 outbreak? Where were the statements from the ‘American church’ throughout the last decade when the country was forced to reckon with the realities of racial injustice and violence?
Unfortunately, but to no surprise, the American church was where it has always been — in its carefree and comfortable bubble, cushioned by ‘conservative’ government interests that suited them and their rights.
Now, when I say the ‘American church’ I am not indiscriminately referring to churches in America. I am directly speaking to a wide group of individuals who, for lack of better words, are essentially religious-nationalist extremists.
The ‘American church’ is the religious folk who claim Christ first, with the country as a close second, dare I say coequal. These are the people who’ll fight for the protection of rights (solely their own, that is) and will Bible-bash you with contextless verses in a sorry attempt to corroborate their argument. These are the groups that you’ll see slow to admonish race and gender-based violence but quick to raise hell when it comes to abortion and LGBTQ+ rights legislation.
These are the people that (most likely) come to mind at the mention of Christianity in America. I could warble about how they do not represent all Christians, but that song has been overplayed.
The reality is that these people are the face of American Christianity in every way. They unknowingly embody a history of the weaponization of the Christian religion to suit the agendas of the elite, dating back to the 16th century and in some countries as early as the 4th.
American Christianity is cancerous. It is destructive. It is in every way anti-Gospel for it teaches self over other, apathy over justice, and pride over humility. American Christianity is blinded by its own image; it sees and seeks no other path apart from that which sits comfortably in its Church-State doctrinal sphere. American Christianity is at its core void of truth, void of love, and ultimately, void of Christ.
As a Christian in America, where does that leave me?
Being a Christian in America, aware of the realities of American Christianity is perhaps at first disheartening. There are no words or actions of mine or any other religious person for that matter that can atone for the horrors that have been committed in God’s name throughout history. In human hands, it is unredeemable.
But then, being a Christian in America free from the falsities of American Christianity is a responsibility. Christians in America bear no extra burdens in the West than in any other country in the world and we all have much work to do. If anything, we are in a rather comfortable position, as we face no real persecution that is comparable to what occurs in countries like Iran, North Korea, Libya, or Sudan.
As a Christian in America or anywhere else, the goal is not self, or ‘rights’ or even religious freedom. Christ is the goal. And if Christ is the goal, then love is the goal. And if love is the goal, then patience, kindness, self-sacrifice, forgiveness, justice, truth, persistence, faith, hope, and endurance are the goal.
I wrote that the horrors of Christianity in the West are unredeemable, and I believe this to be true. We may acknowledge it, condemn it, even take responsibility for it. But we can never redeem it, and we have not been called to.
Instead of clumsily tripping over apologies for the past, may we shift our focus to righting the wrongs before us now. May we learn to join with our communities (regardless of religious or political inclination) to fix that which is broken, free the imprisoned, and protect the vulnerable.
May we be free from blind allegiance and insensitive clichés. May we return to the mandates of the Gospel to guide us, and turn away from the leadership of partisan politics. May we decenter ourselves from every trending conversation or political development and learn to listen. May we learn to pray, to give, to stand, and most importantly to love.
