Deflagging the Church
Last Friday, Rev. Clayton Childers, of the Washington-based United Methodist Board of Church and Society, was quoted by the press sayign, “The presence of a national flag in worship can imply endorsement of national policies which often run counter to the teachings of Jesus Christ and our Christian faith. … One need only recall the way the swastika flag was displayed prominently in German churches during the Nazi era.”
He wrote: “I do not believe in blind loyalty. I cannot affirm the idea of ‘my country, right or wrong.’ There are times when the United States has been very wrong in its actions, even outrageously wrong, and until we are able to own the hard truth of our failures, dare we say ’sins,’ we will never be able to experience the full and abundant life God would have for us as a people and as one member in the world community of nations.”
Let me start my saying that we need a national moratorium on saying something is like the Nazi this or that almost as much as we need a moratorium on the death penalty. Come on, Clay. That only hurts your case. The American flag is no more like the swastika than the flag of Slovenia.
Be that as it may, I have long had sympathy for Childers’ position. The Church is not an American institution. In the eyes of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the United States is just another in a long line of nations which will eventually pass away into dust. It is better than many, but lacks the goodness of some. (After all, the Chinese have better food, and the Indians have a deeper public religious life. Neither do we get to wear togas.)
There is place for celebrating nation in the Church. We should be thankful for what we have. If it is right for me to be thankful that I have a job, or money in my account, it is no less right to be thankful for a nation which - all things being eqaul - if I had had a choice I would have chosen without hesitation.
But the concern for nation worship is well met. I asked folks in my church to wear red for this up coming Sunday. When I asked if they remember why, most replied that next weekend was Memorial Day. When I mentioned, no, it was Pentecost, I got blank stares.
Many might call it liberal radicalism, but there is a dangerous convergeance of God and America which is not very healthy for the spiritual life of Christians. America is great. I love this country. My father left Europe and ran here simply because America was a great as it is. I would even say we are blessed by God. The invention of baseball is a clear sign of divine favor.
But when at Sunday worship, the celebration and ritual of the nation surplants the life of the people of God, we have a problem. Anyone who has pastored a church on Fourth of July weekend knows exactly what I am talking about. It is very hard to keep a church a church on the fourth.
Perhaps, for the sake of the church, we should take out the flags, pledges, memorial day prayers, and all the rest of it. Perhaps we should just take a few years to be Church, and only Church. Perhaps it would do us all well to say, “Memorial, what?” So that the celebration of God’s glorious and comforting presence in the Spirit is not surpassed by remembering people who gave their lives for a nation of ashes and dust that shall return to ashes and dust.
Clay and I disagree about the similarity of the stars and stripes and swastikas. But, I agree with him that flags and other signs of patriotism is confusing in a church. And I mean, “in a church”. They are fine outside. But within, the are too close to the altar for people to make the necessary separation.
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