There are some Christians who have never gotten over the fact that the United States of America is nowhere mentioned in the Bible.
| About This Sermon Rev. Mark Schaefer St. Matthew’s United Methodist Church November 8, 2020 |
I know that fact should seem obvious on its face, but not when you consider the way that we in this country have talked about ourselves for a very long time.
We have talked about ourselves with a very religious framing of who we are. That religion may not be Christianity—I argue that it’s our civil religion, an invisible religious substrate that most of us are not even aware exists—but it is a religious framing of our identity. And it began a long time ago.
In 1630, as the ship Arabella arrived at the Massachusetts Bay colony, John Winthrop, the arriving governor gave a sermon to those assembled in which he said:
Soe he tells the people of Israell, you onely have I knowne of all the families of the Earthe, therefore will I punishe you for your Transgressions. 2ly, because the Lord will be sanctified in them that come neare him. … 3ly When God gives a speciall commission he lookes to have it strictly observed in every article…
Wee shall finde that the God of Israell is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when hee shall make us a prayse and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, “the Lord make it likely that of New England.” For wee must consider that wee shall be as a citty upon a hill. The eies of all people are uppon us.
John Winthrop, “A Modell of Christian Charity”
“For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill…”
That sentiment has echoed down through the ages of American history. It has found itself on the lips of presidents, notably Kennedy and Reagan among others. And it has formed the basis of our civil religion and shaped the kind of Christianity we have on these shores.
It has given rise in our civil religion to a particular self-understanding as a people with a divine mission—human freedom—and a messianic role to play in bringing this freedom to the world. Much of our national mythology is built up around this idea and because of its Puritan roots, has always had a religious tinge to it. There are many who believe that the United States of America has a God-given purpose to fulfill.
Just think about the language and imagery we use to describe ourselves. The “city upon a hill” evokes Jerusalem. Our Thirteen Colonies are spoken about with the same reverence that Jews might use to speak of the Twelve Tribes. One sociologist noted that when we spoke of the founders of the nation, we employed language that had a “vaguely Hebraic” feel to it, like, “Founding Fathers.” In effect, we have seen ourselves as a New Israel. A thought echoed in the words of Philip Freneau, who in his 1771 work The Rising Glory of America wrote:
No traces shall remain of tyranny. And laws, a pattern to the world beside, be here enacted first… A new Jerusalem, sent down from heaven, shall grace our happy earth—perhaps this land…A Canaan here, another Canaan shall excel the old.
Philip Freneau. The Rising Glory of America (1771)
We speak of the Constitution as if it were scripture and of icons like the flag as if they were sacred relics. (Consider that flag-burning laws are called “Flag Anti-Desecration Laws” and remember that one cannot desecrate something that is not sacred.)
We’re not the only ones to do this, of course. The British were at this long before we were. One of their favorite national hymns is entitled Jerusalem and refers to a legend of the young boy Jesus being brought on a trip to England by Joseph of Arimathea and begins “And did those feet/ in ancient time/ walk upon England’s mountains green…” Tradition also maintains that Joseph of Arimathea came back to Britain after the death of Jesus and brought with him the Holy Grail, which is why all of Arthur’s knights went looking for it in Britain, something that never made sense to me until I learned about this mythology. But I digress…
We have a long habit of seeing our country as a New Canaan, a New Israel, a New Jerusalem. A holy land. We, too, have spoken of our city’s streets as those “paved with gold” like those of the New Jerusalem.
But then how exactly does our New Israel fit into God’s plans for the world? How does our New Jerusalem fit in with the Biblical understanding of God’s divine order?
Especially the one mapped out in the Book of Revelation?
II. THE TEXT
The Book of Revelation is an apocalypse. By that I don’t mean that it’s a book that tells a story of doom and gloom, but that it is a particular kind of literature referred to as apocalyptic, which comes from a Greek word άποκαλυψις apokalypsis that means “a revelation.” It is a kind of literature that relates a vision of the unfolding of history, explaining the sufferings of the present world as part of the conflict between good and evil taking place in the heavens and reflected on earth. But it also is meant to be a message of hope and indeed, the Book of Revelation ends with one of the most beautiful oracles of hope anywhere in scripture:
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”
And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” …
I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Revelation 21:1–5, 22–27
Here, the end of the salvation history is accomplished with the arrival of the New Jerusalem, the City of God. This is the hopeful vision—and one presented in human terms: as a city, a community.
Now, as I’ve said, there are some Christians who don’t know what to make of the fact that America is not mentioned in Revelation. Of course, the simple answer is that the ancients were not aware that the Americas even existed, but that simple logic doesn’t always address people’s desire to know what divine role the United States of America is supposed to play. Because if Revelation is a vision of how things will turn out, where are we in it?
Is not our nation a chosen nation? Is not our democratic political system divinely ordained? The Constitution divinely inspired?
III. AUGUSTINE AND THE CITY OF GOD
One thousand six hundred ten years ago this year, the city of Rome was sacked by the Visigoths. A catastrophe in the minds of the Romans. How could such a terrible thing have happened? How could the Eternal City have suffered such a lowly fate… at the hands of Germans, no less? Had the Christian God failed to save the City? What did this say about God’s power if Rome was not protected from barbarians?
Augustine of Hippo, seeing the fleeing Roman refugees arriving in Northern Africa began to reflect on the sacking of the city. Augustine wrote that there were two cities, two fundamental communities, the City of God and the City of Man, each of which is defined by what the object of its love.
The City of God has God as the object of its love. The citizens of the City of God live lives of charity and service toward all. They live with hope as pilgrims in the world. The communities of Israel and the Church were examples of the City of God.
The City of the World, on the other hand, loves its own power. The rulers of this city, and the people they rule, are dominated by the lust for domination. They seek power to be in control. Even those who are oppressed seek power to oppress those who have oppressed them. They strive for success, security, and orderly life. Babylon and Rome were examples of the City of the World. Augustine is telling the faithful not to overly lament Rome’s fall as God’s fall. Rome was not the City of God. It was an earthly city.
In the same way we can understand that the political fortunes of any candidate, party, or nation do not reflect God’s fortunes. A president isn’t elected because it’s God’s will. A party doesn’t rise to prominence because God wanted it that way. Nations do not become powerful because they are blessed by God. Neither the Democratic Party nor the Republican Party is the party of God.
We need to remind ourselves that the Constitution is not a religious text. The United States of America is not the Kingdom of God. The American political system is not the Levitical priesthood. It is important to be honest about that. But this is not a call for disengagement. This is a call for engagement while grounding oneself in faith.
Augustine would teach that the citizens of the City of God would still use the things of the world as they pertain to things below, but do not make this earthly life their ultimate end. If we are to be citizens of the City of God, we engage with the political realm, but we do not confuse the things of this world—even our cherished political institutions or our beloved homeland—with the City of God.
Christian faith requires constructive engagement with the world. All the structures of the world, including politics, are here for us to use, in order to serve one another in love and charity, to live in hope and in faith. We can and should be engaged in politics inasmuch as political choices affect the lives of millions. We should be working for policies that we feel reflect our Christian values of human dignity, mercy, compassion, peacemaking, and justice. But that’s a far cry from concluding that any one political party or philosophy is itself in lockstep with God’s will for us. As human institutions, political parties are fallible, just as we all are.
There’s one other thing about the City of God that bears noting: its citizens are known only to God. We do not possess the capability of knowing who is a citizen of the City of God and the City of the World. This fact alone requires us to deal with one another charitably. It calls us to dealing with our political opponents not as demons set to destroy the people of God, but as fellow children of God, who are acting out of sincerity and a genuine attempt to live out their understanding of God’s purposes. Now, to be sure, not everyone will be doing that, including a person’s political allies. But citizens of the City of God start not from suspicion and fear, but from grace and love.
IV. END
We have been through a tumultuous political season. The stakes of recent campaigns have been framed in ways that feel existential to many of those participating in them. These contests have been fraught with consequence.
But while the earthly consequences of our political contests are real, they do not say anything about God’s purposes. Whether you are celebrating the results of the election or mourning them, know this: the City of God is not affected by the results of our campaigns. The City of God endures. There is no political victory or loss that can hurt God or that can conquer the City of God.
Not even the fate of nations can do that. If the United States of America were to follow that other great republic turned empire into collapse, it would not say anything about the purposes of God and about the enduring community of God.
No, in all our politicking and campaigning, in our victories and losses, one fact remains the same: God endures and God’s purposes endure.
And so whether we are celebrating this morning or crestfallen, we can together remember the promises of God found in the Psalm:
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns.
The Texts
Psalm 46
To the leader. Of the Korahites. According to Alamoth. A Song. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns. The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah Come, behold the works of the LORD; see what desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. “Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.” The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
Revelation 21:1–27 • Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”
And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. It has the glory of God and a radiance like a very rare jewel, like jasper, clear as crystal. It has a great, high wall with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates are inscribed the names of the twelve tribes of the Israelites; on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The angel who talked to me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width; and he measured the city with his rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal. He also measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits by human measurement, which the angel was using. The wall is built of jasper, while the city is pure gold, clear as glass. The foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every jewel; the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, each of the gates is a single pearl, and the street of the city is pure gold, transparent as glass.
I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.