The Tightrope

Sep 21, 2024 | Weekly Word

Next weekend, the Deerfield Fair will be in full swing. Having visited the fair for the past few years, I can say that one of the highlights for me has been a performance by the famous Flying Walendas. For those of you who don’t know, the Walenda family is known for their high-wire act – walking across a tightrope far too high for my comfort. The people who walk the tightrope are professionals, and yet it’s still a stressful thing to watch. I can’t imagine actually doing it.

A few weeks ago, though, I realized that I am – as a pastor in 2024 – walking a bit of a verbal tightrope. Maybe you feel the same way. You see, I was writing a sermon and trying to describe something as being “strange,” but I wrote the word “weird” instead. . . and then I deleted the word “weird.” Under normal circumstances, describing something as “weird” might not seem like a big deal, but the word “weird” has become a loaded term in this election cycle – with one party using the word to describe another party. It’s kind of like how I used to wear a bright red hat (with no logo or writing on it) simply because I wanted to wear a bright red hat to cover my bald head, but now, I don’t wear the bright red hat because bright red hats seem to have acquired a meaning beyond simply being bright red hats. Do you catch my drift?

All of our words and actions matter all the time, but sometimes our words matter to one group of people or another even more than we realize – for good or for ill.

At the same time, our Reformed Tradition as Presbyterians gives us permission to use our words and actions to ask questions and non-violently push back when something that we see in the world goes against who we believe God to be and what we believe the Bible teaches us about God. Speaking up and speaking out either for or against something, based on our interpretation of what it means to be Christian, can feel a bit like stepping out onto a tightrope. It can be a scary prospect.

The term “Christian Nationalism” is a label or identity that has been bandied about over the past 100 years or so. The idea behind the term is that there are those who seek to “establish an exclusivist version of Christianity as the dominant moral and cultural order,” that “only Christians are true Americans,” and that our nation will only be truly great when a certain type of Christian regime is in power.

As someone who believes that in Jesus Christ, we see true power perfected by not claiming earthly power and the kingdom of heaven constantly standing in opposition to any earthly regime, I believe that Christian Nationalism is antithetical to the gospel and not what God desires from us. I am not alone in this.

Back in the 1930’s, the church in Germany was split between those who were Christian Nationalists (who wanted a state church that was loyal to the Nazi party) and those who were not Christian Nationalists, who wrote and signed “The Barmen Declaration,” saying that the church was not beholden to the state. You can read the whole Barmen Declaration right HERE (it’s not very long!).

For the signers of the Barmen Declaration, there is no authority other than Jesus Christ, our Lord. In one famous line from the declaration, we read: “We reject the false doctrine, as though the Church in human arrogance could place the Word and work of the Lord in service of any arbitrary chosen desires, purposes, and plans.” After writing and signing the Barmen Declaration, some of the pastors and faithful members of the German Evangelical Church were arrested or forced into exile. But, they – in faith – had stepped out onto the high wire, trusting in the God who made, saved, and sustained them.

This coming Tuesday, September 24, at 7 PM, the New Hampshire Council of Churches is sponsoring a viewing of the documentary Bad Faith: Christian Nationalism’s Unholy War on Democracy at Red River Theatre in Concord, NH. After the film, there will be a time of discussion about the audience’s impressions of the film and what the church can and should do in the present day to step out – and speak out – in faith. This is a free event, and I hope to be there myself. You can get tickets HERE.

Whether you are navigating this season in our nation, feeling like you’re walking a tightrope, walking on pins and needles, or stepping out boldly in faith, I hope and pray that you are seeking to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. This coming week in worship, we will be talking about some of the attributes of sharing the good news with our neighbors in ways that are loving and true.

See you in church!

Grace and Peace,

John

Prepare for Worship

This Week: “Go to the People. Live Among Them. Learn from Them. Love Them.” (’The E-Word’ – Week 2)