To Serve the Nation, First Seek God's Spirit

In my last column published in this space I talked about how God's plan for equality among the people of our world was central to the founding documents of our democracy. I also discussed how various definitions of democracy and equality affect the shape of our society and whether we truly arrive at anything close to actual equality.

I also observed that because the founders couched their equality statements in terms of God's intentions for a created people with natural rights, that we as Christians are perfectly within our rights when we apply our beliefs to the marketplace of public opinion. In fact, it is our obligation to do so. Unfortunately, I noted, we don't agree on which issues should get our attention, and from opposite sides of the values divide, we often view the other camp as corrupted and manipulated by secular political interests.

Christians are much better at singing songs about being "one in the spirit," and proclaiming "one baptism" and "one Christ" than we are at actually closing the gaps that divide us. The truth is we've seen more dividing recently among Christian groups than uniting. It's not my purpose here to measure the pros and cons of the current fractures over sexual orientation issues, except to say those who opt for inclusion always stand a better chance of standing with Jesus. And if we look beyond the church to how Christians influence our democracy, we come back to the statement in that original declaration which says "all," not "some" are created equal.

Looking upon the landscape of our democracy and culture, it seems that acknowledging God-given rights -- and assuring they translate into civil rights -- is no more than a good first step. As disciples, as Jesus people, we must go further in our own lives if we expect our society to become the beacon of light we dream of. Let's be honest, for all its virtues we live in a nation which has traditionally celebrated the self. We are proud of our "rugged individualism." And we live under an economic system that enshrines the pursuit of self interest. But as Christians we are part of a faith system, and claim a scripture, which teaches the denial of self. Deny yourself and follow me, Jesus says. Make your neighbor's interests equal to your own. Paul teaches that unity with Christ begins with the death of the self. In the Old Testament God warns the Israelites against coming into the promised land with its wells they did not dig and groves they did not plant and taking credit for the self. We can't have it both ways. Something's got to give. As Jesus said, no one can serve two masters.

Clearly the founders wrote from a universal perspective, reflecting the emerging enlightenment of their time, when they spoke of an equality endowed by our creator. They would have said that what is true for our young nation should be true for all. One of the best proofs for believing that all who seek spiritual enlightenment seek the same Spirit is that all the enduring faiths share this emphasis on folding the self into God's universal intentions. Of course, America is a nation, not a faith system. But Christians who are also Americans carry two passports. Which master will we serve? If we serve God first, I believe we will also serve the future of our great nation.