On my way to church this past Sunday I passed another church, and I noticed parking, both in the lot and on the street, was all taken. It being Easter, this seemed well and good. As I turned the corner, I noticed a flag flying in front of the house next to the church that read “(expletive) Joe Biden.”
I guess we all have our ways of exercising our First Amendment rights.
Anyways, seeing that got me thinking about the relationship between Christianity and political authority. Most people know Jesus was executed by the government of the time. Crucifixion was a form of capital punishment devised by the Romans in part to terrify anyone who would oppose their rule. The early church was a politically subversive organization: Christians were widely persecuted for their refusal to recognize the supremacy of Roman deities.
It seems to me many American Christians long for the kind of “us against the world” experience of the early church. Folks read about how it was for the disciples in the days and weeks after Jesus had disappeared – “All the believers were together and had everything in common” (Acts2:44) – and long for that kind of experience. Church as a way of being together, not an institution with rules and doctrines and hierarchies.
My dad, who grew up Catholic in the 1950s, has told me about how insular the church was in those days. Even with all the trappings of orthodoxy, the experience was very much one of “us and them.” Catholics were the good and true people of God, and everyone else was corrupt and sinful.
As far as I can tell, a lot of churches are like that. For some people it breeds distrust and intolerance of outsiders, but other times it cultivates a spirit of social and political activism. Indeed, you can find Christians driving social movements across the political spectrum throughout American history.
What I find fascinating in the history of the church is the moment where it becomes part of the institutional framework of the Roman empire. The emperor Constantine allied himself with the church in the Fourth Century, and eventually Christianity became the official religion of Rome. For many Christians at the time (and even some today), this was a disaster. But for me – as a Christian – it’s an important moment. The church began as opposition and became authority. And even though the church has splintered over the centuries, Christianity remains at the center of our understanding of authority in Europe and the Americas.
Jesus commanded his followers to “love your neighbor as yourself,” and I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean the person sitting next to you in church. He meant the people outside the church. And in this way the church is still subversive, because it’s so easy to form community around the fear of outsiders. Church history itself is rife with the persecution of outsiders – but it also contains a powerful tradition of social reform.
When I see symbols of fear and hatred – the Confederate battle flag comes to mind – I feel righteous indignation. I want to tear down those who sew division and anger. And then I remember the words of Martin Luther King, Jr: “hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
- Samuel Barbour is a proud papa, loving life partner, amateur ukelele composer, and local economics professor that muses on all things topical, within our community and abroad, affecting our daily lives. Questions and comments are fielded at newsroom@mywebtimes.com