Christian Related Response

for Christian Citizenship Sunday 2003

"How should Christians relate to the United States government, the only super power in the world?"

"Dragons of Empire"

The book of Revelation was written at a time when Christians in Asia Minor were becoming comfortable with the day's superpower, the Roman Empire. John wrote to point out the true character of Rome. The seven-headed dragon and two beasts, of chapter 13 are an example. People marveled at the authority of the first beast, which caused people to worship-give allegiance to-the dragon. The second beast looked like a lamb but spoke like the dragon and made the people worship the first beast. The seven-headed dragon is Rome, the city built on seven hills. The dragon and two beasts constitute an unholy trinity--caricatures of God, Christ, and Holy Spirit. John uses this unholy trinity to picture the true character of empire, warning readers not to be deceived by language of loyalty that tempts people to give allegiance to empire or to identify the empire with God. Christians living in today's superpower should heed Revelation's warning. Avoid the seduction of language about being under God and of leaders who publicly profess Jesus-even claiming Jesus as favorite political philosopher-while their actions reflect the dragon's violence rather than the nonviolent love of God made visible in Jesus.

J. Denny Weaver Department of History and Religion Bluffton College Bluffton, Ohio

"Committed to Responsible Citizenship"

Christians need to live with a greater sense of the ambiguity of being citizens of two kingdoms (Luke 20:20-26). As a person born in the United States, I want to be a responsible, active citizen of a decent and well-intentioned, if not always perfect, republic. I don't want to live in an empire, and I will exercise my citizen's franchise to oppose attempts by the United States Government to act like an empire. But I appreciate my United States citizenship, and I value our national virtues of democratic rule, individual rights, and a free-market economy.

Like all virtues, these can and have been perverted throughout our nation's history. I believe we live in such a time today. The aftermath of September 11, 2001, destroyed the national myth of our fortress mentality, and engaged the United States in the world in a way that we had never before experienced. We are reaping the whirlwind, sown by decades of our indifference to the global community as U.S. citizens.

These times challenge our commitment to the national virtues of citizenship, democracy, individual rights, and freedom of opportunity. Yet, as a Christian, my moral, ethical, and political compass points to whom I understand Jesus to be. Central to Jesus' life, teachings, death, and resurrection was His unshakable commitment to a nonviolent victory over evil. Jesus had no illusions. Caesar was a bad guy -- the enemy. But enemies cannot be foiled by adoption of the enemy's ways and means. Enemies can only be defeated by a love which is willing to suffer, up to and including death.

We live in a world of ambiguity -- there are many shades of gray, both on the geopolitical landscape, and in our souls. As a Christian in the United States, I am cognizant of the fact that there are people who would wish to destroy what I value. They are my enemy. And Jesus gives me no other faithful alternative in facing my enemy, but to oppose their attempted destruction of what I value by loving them. My discipleship must be formed and informed by Jesus' rejection of the use of violence to coerce (John 19:36). I confess I don't fully comprehend what that means, and I also confess I don't do it all that well, but that does not change the fact that to follow Jesus daily in life takes us down the road of confronting our enemy, and perhaps more importantly, ourselves, with the good news of reconciliation.

Jeff Wright,
Executive Director
Center for Anabaptist Leadership
Pasadena, California

"Only One Sovereign"

...God, the blessed and only Ruler (soter), the King of Kings and Lord of lords...To him be honor and might forever. Amen (I Tim. 6:15-16 NIV).

Despite Roman Emperors who called themselves soter (ruler, savior), Paul tells Timothy there is only one who is sovereign. Since 9/11 many USA citizens, including Christians, have turned in the direction of religious syncretism by giving allegiance both to the state and to God. My commitment is to only one sovereign. In that commitment I have no desire or need to fly the flag, or even sing God bless America. Instead, I have prayed for peace between nations, peace in the church, and peace in my own relationships with other people.

Paul M. Zehr,
Assistant Professor of NT Emeritus
EMU Lancaster

"A Higher Loyalty"

I grew up on the teaching "In the world but not of the world", and "Be not conformed to this world," and again, "My Kingdom is not of this world." Also as a lad I remember my dad coming home from work to announce that he had quit his job because the Westinghouse plant had begun to make military equipment, and that at a time when he needed the work. In answer to his boss who protested he said, "I have five boys and a daughter and I'm teaching them the evils of war and the importance of working for peace and if I continue to work here I can no longer be heard by them."

My theological perspective is that while I am a member of the earthly kingdom and a good citizen I am first of all a member of the Kingdom of Christ. That is a higher loyalty which brings every other loyalty under question and choice. As a good citizen I do my country the most good by bringing the Christian values into life and society as a disciple of Christ. For me, the way of peace is not simply a rejection of violence but it is the way of love and reconciliation as one who shares the evangel of grace.

In inner-city ministry in Washington D.C. I held before the community the commitment to a Third Way, neither rightist conservative nor leftist liberal but that of following the Kingdom of Christ. Not a middle of the road stance but one by which we select from either and reject in either. This found significant response in a context that was quite partisan and enabled us to walk among a variety of people of different views with respect.

Another factor for the disciple of Christ is that we are "ambassadors for Christ." An ambassador is in direct contact with his Sovereign, speaks for his Sovereign, lives in a foreign culture and needs to understand it well enough to be understanding but speak for his Sovereign clearly enough to be understood. We are a salt to the earth, a light to the world.

I have found that the disciple's approach to ethics is not to be seen as a relation of works to faith. Rather for us, ethics is Christological; we are saved in relation to Jesus and we live or behave our relation to Jesus. And this means that we take Jesus seriously as the full Word of God, the full expression of God's will. Jesus taught us that we are to love our enemies, and to turn the other cheek. This matter of turning the other cheek is not a surrender, it is the disciple's strategy of operation, for when someone strikes us and we turn the other cheek we are in essence saying that we are free to respond by our own principles and our behavior is not determined in response to their action. This I have shared in many settings, among people of many denominations, and of note, at a chapel in the Pentagon.

Shalom,

Myron S. Augsburger

Harrisonburg, VA 22801

"The Belly of the Beast"

I write from Colombia, where my faith community and friends are asking a different question of me: "Why is the church within the Empire so quiet at a time like this?"

Daily we bear witness to the consequences of resource-envy of the United States, and of its military fury. Our socially active friends live under threat of death. Church people are kidnapped, disappeared, and killed with impunity, and yet the U.S. continues to send billions of dollars in military aid.

We are called to be "wise as serpents, innocent as doves," but are we either? Colombians ask, is the church critical of the U.S. government or does it believe what it says is true? Why do Mennonites pay war taxes? Is the church's objection to militarism limited to personal conversation without public witness?

Our government is not living into the Micah 4 and 6 vision for humanity and nations. What does it mean to obey a disobedient government?

Could it be that we are stumped on Romans 13 and don't make it to Revelation 13 where abusive authority is described as a threat to the every "tribe, people, language and nation?" In our comfort, wealth, security and meekness, have we empowered -- or at least enabled -- the beast Revelation warns us against?

Many of those closest to me believe that the future of their nation and other two-thirds world countries depends on churchs publicly visible and spiritually resolute intolerance of the U.S. government's insatiable desire for wealth and power.

I have responded to the question, "why is the church so silent?" by saying, "It is hard to live in the belly of the beast." I do not know how else to reply to their questions; I have no satisfactory answer. What words will the U.S. church give me to share with them?

Janna Bowman
MCC worker in Colombia
May 30, 2003

"Church/State Question"

I feel that the following three Chapter and Verse references are relevant:
Isaiah 66:3
Matthew 6:24
Galatians 5:13-16

1 Samuel 8
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
Christians are members of the Kingdom of God; we are but visitors in the country where we reside. There are no laws of man that are superior to the laws of God. As long as we follow the laws of God we will be righteous although it may bring us into conflict with earthly government

2 Chronicles 16:7-8
We should live in the trust of God, not in the machinations and strength of human endeavors. While the nation-state preaches that it is through the feats of arms that we remain free, in fact it is only through the will of God we are truly free.

Luke 9:23-27
Matthew 16:24-28

Since becoming a Christian, I have left my life as a warrior of 15 years in the USMC Infantry. I was brought up in the Anglican Church, but upon joining the Mennonite church, I gave up the financial security of my previous career as a Computer Systems Programmer, where I supported military operations directly by creating systems that were sold to the military, and indirectly by paying taxes that supported the military. I have since taken up the life of a healer as a rural EMT. We have chosen to live a plainer and less complicated life.

Shalom,
Micheal Mc Evoy
EMT & Poultry Farmer
Bertram, Texas

"Simply be the Church"

Living in the lone super-power and the richest nation in human history poses tough problems for Christians who want to follow the biblical Christ. The biggest and toughest challenge in the next decade will simply be to be the church - to live out in our Christian communities a powerful visible model of economic sharing and reconciled relationships that presents a startling contrast to the materialism, violence, and social brokenness all around us. We can only do that as we constantly immerse ourselves in Jesus' teaching on loving our enemies, keeping our marriage vows, and sharing with the poor - and then allow the strength of the Christian community and the power of the Risen Lord Jesus in our lives to enable us to live like Jesus.

We also need to witness to the larger society. Power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely, so we should expect that America will often use its unprecedented, one-sided power for its own selfish advantage - always of course, with a veneer of moral rhetoric and a claim to be acting in the interest of freedom, democracy, peace, and justice for all.

What we will need is a persistent, sustained, but careful and factually grounded critique of America's unilateralism and selfishness. Exaggerated, sweeping criticism that fails to acknowledge what is good and noble in this country will be both wrong and unconvincing. We can appeal both to biblical norms and American's own best ideals of freedom and justice for all, as we urge our fellow citizens to use America's great power to reduce global poverty, care for those suffering from AIDS, promote freedom and justice for everyone, and work cooperatively with other nations in a way that respects the basic equality and dignity of all God's children.

Ron Sider
President, Evangelicals for Social Action
Member, Oxford Circle Mennonite Church (Lancaster Conference)