Thursday, July 16, 2009

I don't want a "Christian" America

I'm not looking for a "Christian" nation. That's not my hope as I live in this country.

And, if I lived in Iran, I would not want a "Muslim" nation.

In other words, I would not want to live in a theocracy. The recent protests in Iran, after the most recent Presidential election, has brought this to the table more forcefully. The Supreme Leader, in that setting, is powerful with regard to politics and the direction of the nation.

Many in America find this theocratic rule, in Iran, to be unsettling. It creates anger in many. I wonder: would Christians in this country be equally upset if we had a theocracy here if it were Christian? I'm not so sure what the reaction would be. "Perhaps it would be ok as long as it were Christian," some might think.

Not me. For, neither did God intend this to be the case (nation states run theocratically), nor do I believe it to be good or what is best for nation states or governance. God did not intend for Christians to take over a country, rule it, and then impose that faith on others (the Constantinian error, i.e. Constantine becomes Emperor in 303AD and makes Christianity the "officical" religion of Rome). Faith in and relationship with God is always voluntary. We live with pluralism of not just socio-economic, ethnic, and racial dimensions but of religion, as well, in our nation states. We seek to respect those differences, live side-by-side, and work for the common good.

But, we do not impose religion on others- Islam, Christianity or any other faith.

So, I don't want a "Christian" nation. Besides that, it's a myth- that notion. I want to live in friendship and with respect for my neighbors and fellow citizens regardless of their religious beliefs.

And, what I really want is for the church to be the church. To live as faithful communities within this nation (or any nation), seeking to follow Jesus as counter-cultural communities. We don't impose; we invite. We don't coerce others with morality; we endeavor to live what we believe is moral and true.

Forward as groups of "resident aliens."

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