Book Review:
Christian America and the Kingdom of God
By Richard T. Hughes
2009 University of Illinois
211 pages; clothbound
I have yet to do a book review on this blog site. I do a lot of reading but I never felt real comfortable doing a formal review. I am going to make an exception today.
A friend of mine told me about a new book by Richard T. Hughes. It is entitled Christian America and the Kingdom of God. The title sounds almost like Hughes is promoting the view that is heard so often: that the United States is a Christian Nation with a unique calling from God to be a light of Truth to the world. Hughes, a Senior Fellow in the Ernest L. Boyer Center and Distinguished Professor of Religion at Messiah College in Grantham, PA, wastes no time in establishing himself as challenging such a notion, however.
In his Forward to the book Brian McLaren says, "the idea of the United States as a Christian nation is a powerful, seductive, and potentially destructive theme in American life, culture and politics.... Hughes reveals in this powerful book (that) the biblical vision of the "kingdom of God" stands at odds with the values and actions of an American empire that sanctions war instead of peace, promotes dominance and oppression instead of reconciliation, and exalts wealth and power instead of justice for the poor and needy." Indeed Hughes carefully develops a vast chasm between what a Christian nation must look like in order to be consistent with scripture and the reality found in the United States and its Constitution.
The moment I began reading the book I became engaged. The author relies heavily on two biblical themes: the understanding of "God's chosen people" and "the kingdom of God". Both are examined thoroughly from the witness of the Hebrew Bible (as Hughes likes to call the Old Testament) and the New Testament. He has brilliantly demonstrated the error in thinking of the United States, or any nation on this earth, as "Christian". By their very nature a Sovereign State is committed to the principle of self-preservation, which in itself violates the teachings and the example of Jesus, who said, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and come follow me. (Matthew 16:24)"
Hughes used recent surveys to reveal the contradictory view held by so many people in this country who claim to be Christian (85 % of Americans) and say they believe the Bible is the Word of God and the basis for their values, yet only 40% of these could name more than 4 of the 10 Commandments and less than 50 % could name any of the authors of the four Gospels.
His point is that Christians in America are woefully ignorant of the Bible and its theology. As a result they believe whatever they are told by supposed "leaders of the Church" such as Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Billy Graham, and James Kennedy, just to name a few. All these, however, base their views on political agendas and personal convictions more than they rely on scripture (another point he accurately documents). It is this careless lack of biblical literacy and theological integrity, both in American pulpits and pews, that have created the erroneous concept that our country's policies - domestic and foreign - are somehow above reproach.
It is no easy task to refute the popular notion that our country is, at its core, intentionally "Christian". Millions of Christians, particularly those who are Right of Center, passionately believe this myth. Yet an honest and objective study of our founding fathers, their writings, and treasured documents such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States does in fact reveal the error in such thinking. While there is no denying a certain Christian influence in American culture, this must not be confused with a divine mission or a mandate for the United States to act as God's agent to bear the banner of Christ before a sinful world. The Constitution of the United States could not be clearer on denouncing the desire to establish our nation as a Theocracy. Equally clear is the fact that the United States is barred from endorsing any religion, including Christianity. This in itself makes any claims of a Christian America nothing short of deception.
To be sure there are many references to "God" in the pages of American history. To this day politicians find it pragmatic to invoke the term "God" or "God-given" in their speeches, for such references will align them on the side of the strong block of Christian voters. However it is worth noting that such references are hardly unique to Christianity. Judaism, Islam, Mormonism and to some extent even Hinduism all claim devotion to "God". Thus they leave the specific intent of their comments to the interpretation of the listener. The thing that makes the Christian unique is Jesus Christ. His name is noticeably absent in the political arena, which begs the question: Just how Christian can this "Christian nation" truly be?
In summary I found Christian America and the Kingdom of God to be a most refreshing and stimulating book. Any American claiming to be Christian ought to take the time to read it. But let the reader be forewarned: Hughes is certain to cause many to want to label him a heretic and a traitor. To do so, however, one must also reject the authority of the New Testament as well as the very One revealed therein, namely Jesus the Christ.
-gdgehr October 2011
Thoughts and comments are welcome. Please post your response below or contact Doug at gdgehr@ptd.net
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