Christian Nationalism is NOT Christian

John 8:31-36

Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, ‘You will be made free’?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Today is Reformation Sunday.  It is a day to celebrate the church changing direction over 500 years ago, but, at least in THEORY, it is also supposed to be a reminder that as a church of the Reformation, we are called to constant and continual Reformation… constant and continual change.  There are two deeply theological questions that can help us determine how well we do that.  The first:  How many Episcopalians does it take to change a light bulb?  One to call the electrician, one to mix the cocktails, and one to sit and reminisce about how much better the old light bulb was.  The Second:  How many Lutherans does it take to change a light bulb?  CHANGE?!?!??

The Church does not change quickly.  For some things, that’s a very good thing.  Today's Gospel with Jesus telling his disciples that as they continue living the Jesus Way, with a Jesus mindset, caring for the least, lost and last... THAT makes them his disciples; In that way they will see and experience the truth that the Jesus Way is the way to living abundantly, and that truth will make them free.  THAT focus and connection with the Jesus Way of living should not change.  And Paul's understanding that no one is better or more worthy or more holy than any one else anywhere for any reason because “ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”… that understanding should not change.  Recognizing and shouting from the rooftops that EVERYONE is made right with God by faith, made right, simply because God says so!  That too should never change.  

What SHOULD always be open to Reformation however is what smart people call adiaphora… the trappings, the decorations, the bling.  It is the cultural traditions, the particular wording, the musical, architectural, liturgical and ministry styles… the things that often make us feel safe and in control… like it used to be.  Those things SHOULD always be open to reformation.  That doesn’t mean they need change for change’s sake.  It simply asks us to notice if the trappings, the bling, and the styles we are using, are continuing to point us and others toward the Jesus Way, or perhaps have begun to point in the other direction.  

This past week Presiding Bishop Michael Curry was a part of a seminar at Georgetown called, “How White Christian Nationalism Threatens Our Democracy.”  White Christian Nationalism is a horrible consequence of confusing what should be open to reformation and what should not.  Bishop Curry said, “(Christian Nationalism) is not conservative Christianity. Obviously, it’s not liberal Christianity either. What we’re actually describing is an ideology that’s not really a religion, but it looks like a religion and invokes language and symbols that have religious traffic. … (But when you) lay it alongside (the Way of) Jesus of Nazareth, we’re not even talking about the same thing.”

White Christian Nationalism has taken a part of the church that has cried out for Reformation for centuries… white supremacy, anti-semitism, bigotry, and a lust for political power and has set THOSE THINGS as their unchangeable core, throwing out what should be unchanging… The Way of Jesus.  To try and turn that around Bishop Curry told the conference and tells each of us, “silence is complicity and silence creates a context in which something like that can grow.  One of the most powerful tools Christians have is the Bible itself.  Lift up the text of the New Testament, specifically the four Gospels … and let Jesus talk. Anything that claims to be Christian, if it doesn’t match up, then we say, ‘Well, that’s not Christianity.”

Our calling on this Reformation Sunday is much much deeper than simply wearing red and singing A Mighty Fortress.  Our calling is to publicly and loudly reject the things that people put forward as Christian, but fly in the face of the Ways of Jesus.  Our calling is to tell the world that the ways of love, compassion, forgiveness, grace and generosity starting with the least, the lost, and the last… THOSE ARE the Ways of Jesus and that racism, anti-semitism, violence, and exclusion are NOT!  Our calling this Reformation Sunday is to no longer just look away from Christian Nationalism and hope it goes away, but to proclaim out loud that Christian Nationalism is not Christian at all!  Our calling on this Reformation Sunday is to stand up, live and proclaim the Ways of Jesus and to tell the world, that it is HERE, on the Ways of Jesus that we stand, and we can do no other!  Amen.