March 24, AD 2011

America's Image Problem
Frank Allnutt

It’s an old anecdote with several versions. Here’s mine:

Three men were standing in silence on a precipice of the Grand Canyon, taking in the sights.

One, an awe-struck artist, spoke up after a time of silent contemplation—to no one in particular but to anyone within earshot: “What a magnificent spectacle! Just look at the rugged rock formations and rhythmic waves of sandstone layers—and those incredible colors! I can’t wait to start painting!” With that he began setting up his easel and canvas.

“Humph!” grunted one of the other two. In a harsh tone that made no attempt to disguise his disgust, he bellowed: “It’s the worse case of erosion on the face of the earth, and it’s all the worse because of global warming and man’s selfish disregard for the earth’s fragile environment.” He reached for the camera slung around his neck and gleefully sneered: “Wait till people see this on my blog!”

The third man was a grizzled old cowboy. From beneath his worn and floppy wide-brimmed hat, he cast a perturbed glance at the environmentalist. Then, squinting in the bright sun, he resumed scanning the vast expanse of the canyon. He rubbed the stubble on the chin of his frowning face and muttered in a drawl: “What a helluva place to lose a cow in!”

Not only can one of America’s most scenic attractions be seen from different perspectives, so too can the country as a whole—its natural attributes, of course, but also its four pillars of civilization—knowledge, government, economy, and diverse religions. Our perceptions of those four pillars can change over time and the pillars themselves can change as well.

Such changes have taken place during my lifetime.

Perceptions of America
I grew up in a church-going family and was raised to love, honor, and serve God, my country, and my family. I never saw any reason to question the widely-held perception that America was a Christian nation. I was very red, white, and blue.

When I reached adulthood in the early 1960s, my perceptions were changing—and so was America. During the years I honorably served my country in its Navy and then completed college, those changes continued to evolve. Then, I consecrated my life to Christ Jesus and became a serious student of the Bible. My perceptions became broader and keener as I immersed myself in the truth of God’s Word and came to see things more from His perspective.

Many Christians have experienced this, but not all of them. If you are one of latter, this article is written for you. I ask you to stay with me as I briefly recount how certain perceptions of America developed over time to become traditional beliefs, and how far our perceptions can drift from the truth of God’s Word and from the realities of the times in which we live.

The Historical/Traditional Perception of America
Following Christopher Columbus, there came to the New World ship loads of European Christians, some of whom brought with them the dream for a Christian nation. It was born out of belief that they were among the “Lost Tribes of Israel” and that America was the “New Promised Land,” the “New Jerusalem,” and “a shining city on a hill.”

Judeo-Christian Principles
In time, the perception emerged of “Christian America,” and that its Declaration of Independence and Constitution were based on “Judeo-Christian principles.” Often cited is the Declaration’s mention of “God” and “Creator,” and its assertion that God grants man the authority and ability to be self-governed, that all people are created equal and are endowed by Him with certain unalienable rights, among them, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

And that is how American politics and religion became bedfellows.

Alexis de Tocqueville described it in Democracy in America (two volumes, 1835 and 1840), and Robert Bellah coined its name in his 1967 article, “Civil Religion in America.”

In the Declaration of Independence, attribution of certain concepts to “God” or “Creator” were intended to be perceived by Christians as meaning attribution to the God of the Bible. Never mind that the Declaration’s theological assertions smack of Deism and Universalism. Never mind that the Declaration neither mentions Jesus Christ, nor the Bible, nor quotes or even references Bible verses. And never mind that the Declaration makes equal attribution of self-determination, equality, and unalienable rights to Natural Law (the foundation of Humanism), and therefore places Nature on par with God.

Christian Founders
Christian Americanism embraces the tradition that the nation’s Founding Fathers were Christians. Glenn Beck, perhaps today’s leading advocate of Civil Religion in America, has gone so far as to proclaim that the Founders “were all Evangelicals!”

Granted, some Founders professed to be Christians. Others—Deists, Universalists and Humanists—held to certain biblical truths, quoted scripture, and engaged in “God-talk,” and on that basis were considered by themselves and some others to be Christians, though in their own peculiar ways. Never mind that they denied the divinity of Jesus.

So, it was that group of Founders that produced the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. The Declaration’s contention that God created all men equal and endowed them with unalienable rights satisfied most Christians. And Nature’s Laws of equality and human rights satisfied Deists, Universalists and Humanists. To each his own was the libertarian attitude. What mattered most to them was the consensus for the founding documents by so many people of diverse faiths and philosophies. (Research for yourself the revealing writings and biographies of the signers of the Declaration and the Constitution—particularly the Committee of Five who produced the Declaration of Independence: Thomas Jefferson, who actually wrote the Declaration, and the other four: John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert R. Livingston, and Benjamin Franklin.)

“Freedom of Religion”
Many Christians believe the First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees that their religious beliefs, affiliations, and practices are God-given, unalienable rights—and that those rights are “secured” by government and protected from governmental interference. Never mind what the Bible says about equality, life, liberty, happiness, and governments. Never mind that the First Amendment’s establishment clause also immutably grants equal right to worship any “god” and to participate in and practice any religion. Yes, even Satanism! Maybe that’s permissible under Nature’s Law, Humanism, and Universalism, but not according to God’s law—it violates the first of His Ten Commandments in the Bible: “You shall have no other gods before me.” (see Exodus 20:2–17 and Deuteronomy 5:6–21.)

When America’s Image Defines Christianity
Since its founding, America has been self-described and internationally recognized as a Christian nation. But did the Founders make America a Christian nation? Did the Declaration of Independence make America a Christian nation? Did the Constitution? Has America’s multiculturalism produced a Christian culture? Are all of American’s mixed philosophies based on Judeo-Christian principles? Does America’s diverse religions—even in the broadest ecumenical sense—constitute a Christian America? Did even a majority of Christian citizens make America a Christian nation?

And just what are the world’s perceptions of Christianity? Are those perceptions based on biblical teachings? Or, perhaps the Qur’an’s Islamic teachings? Or, on the basis of America’s image—the America seen around the world in the context of our mongrel culture, foreign and domestic policies, entertainment, mass media, the internet, and so on?

Perhaps there are a few around the world who see America as a “shining city on a hill” (a misapplication to America; see Matthew 5:14), but multitudes more see our country much differently. Such as this widely-held perception among most Muslims:

Imam [Khomeini] taught us to reject injustice, and to never accept the barbaric America, which is trying to take over the world. Many people have come up with terms to describe America. But let me be frank with you, I haven’t found any term more beautiful, lofty, and noble than the term “the Great Satan” to describe America.—Deputy Secretary-General of Hizbullah Sheik Naim Qassem: "America Is the Great Satan," June 2007 (Wikiquote).

The more America is touted as a Christian nation, the more it is beholden by many that Christianity is synonymous with America as they see our country. And louder grow the voices of those who condemn “the Great Satan.”

Yet, the perception of “Christian America” continues to be embraced by many. It is preached from our pulpits, taught in books, and in other ways impressed upon our children.

What message—what world view—is instilled in the minds of Christian school children when they recite the Pledge of Allegiance? When they read history books that venerate the Founding Fathers collectively as Christians? And when many of them are impressed with the notion that the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are as God-breathed as the Bible?

What is true and what is the lie about America? What is real and what is fanciful about America?

The Church’s Bridge on the River Kwai
Christians in America are to love their neighbors and abide by biblical guidelines of civic responsibilities and engagement with government. But, in regard to the latter, we have gone too far—we have stepped beyond the boundaries of those biblical imperatives. America and Americanism have become the Church’s Bridge on the River Kwai. And it’s long over due for the Church’s Colonel Nicholsons to wake up to the reality that our biblical mission in the world is not to somehow Christianize Satan’s worldly domain (an absurdity!), but rather to live by our Lord’s greatest commandment (Mark 12:29-31) and fulfill the great commission (Matthew 28:18-20) He gave us.

The Church belongs to the Kingdom of God, and America belongs to Satan’s world system. And the two can never twain.

America is more and more revealing its true nature, and the Church should be revealing more of its true nature.
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For further reading: The World vs. God’s Kingdom

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©Copyright AD2011 Frank Allnutt. All rights reserved. Content herein may be quoted, subject to the "fair use" doctrine of U.S. Copyright Law.

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