Without a clear stand on questions of nationalism, religious groups sway from one extreme to the other with the changing times, unable to offer much resistance to the general mood of the country and the machinations of politicians. That was certainly the case during the Cold War, as religious folks celebrated America and its war against godless communism. Many of the same churches changed their tune in the 1960s, when widespread protests took place against the Vietnam War.<\/p>\n
The fight goes on even today. In thinking about Christian nationalism, I am reminded of a visit I made to a North Carolina church in 2006. It held about 500 people, and it had two large screens on either side of the pulpit. The service was just before the Fourth of July and sounded much like Trump did in his Independence Day address. The pastor reminded congregants that the United States was founded as a Christian nation. Then the choir began singing:<\/p>\n
\u201cOff we go into the wild blue yonder \/ Climbing high into the sun \/ Here they come zooming to meet our thunder \/ At \u2018em boys, Give \u2018er the gun!\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
It was the \u201cU.S. Air Force\u201d song and as it played, a veteran walked between the pews toward the pulpit waiving the Air Force flag and the two screens played footage of bombers dropping ordinance on Iraqi targets during Operation Desert Storm. The scene repeated for the Army, the Navy, the Marines, and finally the Coast Guard. After the nationalist display, the service ended with a few hymns, including, without any obvious irony, \u201cDown by the Riverside\u201d (\u201cI\u2019m gonna lay down my sword and shield down by the riverside \/ Ain\u2019t gonna study war no more\u201d).<\/p>\n
I imagine that ten years later, in the age of Trump, the president enjoys widespread support at this church, since he enjoys broad appeal with white evangelicals across the country. And I imagine the minister would cheer the president\u2019s militaristic rhetoric. In retrospect, it\u2019s easy to see how the Christian nationalism I witnessed in 2006 paved the way for today\u2019s politics.<\/p>\n