God and Country
“On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country, and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.”
You may recognize the above quote. It is the Boy Scout Oath. As a Boy Scout, I had that committed to memory, along with the Scout Law, and the Scout Motto. These are lofty and laudable goals, to be sure. In the countless times I recited that oath, there was a way that ‘to God and my country’ just rolled off my tongue as if they were one thing- ‘godandmycountry.’ Technically, in the oath they are two things but they are often presented as deeply intwined, paired together so easily that they seem as American as baseball and apple pie.
The fact is that many people in America believe they are tied together. Many believe that America is a Christian nation, that our country was founded on Christian principles and that Christianity deserves an exalted place in America today.
But this view is historically inaccurate, highly problematic for people of faith, and can lead to (and has led to) mistreatment and injustice.
As difficult as it is to imagine today, centuries ago it was the Baptists (and other free church traditions) that fought for the separation of church and state. Their focus was on the integrity of the church. Their focus was on God’s love for all people, allowing all people to follow their conscience and that the road to Christian faith was presented as non-coercive and free.
This summer, in an election year, we, as a church, will be considering the uniquely Baptist contribution to the national conversation about faith and politics.
God and Country is a documentary directed by Dan Partland and produced by Rob Reiner. It seeks to raise awareness of Christian Nationalism and the fallacies on which it is built. The film offers commentary from a Christian perspective. It features prominent faith leaders including Russell Moore (former president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention), David French (opinion writer for the New York Times), Phil Vischer (creator of Veggie Tales), Jemar Tisby (historian and author of The Color of Compromise), William Barber (former president of the North Carolina NAACP chapter) and Kristin Du Mez (historian and author of Jesus and John Wayne), among others.
The film is available to view on Amazon Prime Video. We will host a viewing of the documentary in the Fellowship Hall after church on Sunday, July 21. Snacks will be available, and childcare provided.
Then the following Sunday, July, we will host a discussion of the film at 4:00 in the Fellowship Hall. Again, snacks will be available, and childcare provided.
All of this will prepare us for a presentation on the perils of Christian Nationalism by Amanda Tyler, the executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty on Sunday, September 8 at 4:00 PM in our sanctuary. This presentation is part of the McComb Lecture Series. We will be promoting this event far and wide. Tickets are $15 and available through northsidedrive.org.
You are invited you to join the conversation about faith and politics, the conversation about God and country.
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