“Our Own Far Off Country”
Gosh I love my students.
Recently I assigned some of my classes with the task of creating their own constitutional amendment. They had to identify a national problem, draft an amendment to solve it, and defend that amendment against hypothetical opposition. The proposed amendments were as varied as their authors, and it was a joy to see what struck each student as important.
Amidst a sea of great ideas, one jumped out at me. Easily my quietest student proposed an amendment that “No liberal would ever be able to hold the office of President.” I’m quite familiar with the snark that sometimes accompanies student work: this was not that. In defense of his proposed amendment, the student thoughtfully presented his concerns regarding abortion and gender identity. To his credit, he also acknowledged that American liberals champion a variety of worthy causes. Yet this student made it clear he believed progressive positions on certain issues were damaging and—as he put it—shaming our nation.
Assignments like this make me wish I didn’t have to bother with grades, as this effort goes so far beyond what a mere red-inked letter could express. This student presented a thoughtful, considered view of a topic many of his peers would rather joke about—or just not discuss at all. He shunned the sound bites, memes, and ad hominem attacks that define our political landscape and shared his heart about real issues. He presented a vision of the United States that would be —in some ways—more aligned with the heart of God. Most importantly, his conviction came from a place of compassion, even love.
If only the First Amendment didn’t make his hope nearly impossible to fulfill.
You’d be forgiven for wondering why the “free speech amendment” is relevant to this particular quandary. It’s easy to forget the wealth of protections provided in just this first addition to America’s legal foundation. We could more accurately summarize this amendment as dealing with freedom of expression. Even before guaranteeing our freedom of speech, the First Amendment explicitly enshrines the free expression of religion. In particular the amendment promises that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” In other words, while Congress will not prohibit anyone from expressing their faith, it also cannot enshrine any particular religion as higher than another. Regarding belief, the United States must remain neutral, at least if we want to uphold the Constitution.
This is why I have a hard time with people insisting the United States must be a Christian nation. According to our own founding laws, I don’t see how we can be. Our nation can never—legally—declare allegiance to Jesus as long as the First Amendment remains in place. Sure, we’ve gotten rid of amendments before, but not one protecting a right as fundamental as Americans believe their freedom of speech to be. No amount of law-passing or court-packing can—according to our Constitution—make this a Christian nation.
There is, of course, one way that we could lead our nation into full devotion to Christ: actually sharing the gospel. Tragically, however, that is not where those who most desperately want to see a Christian America devote their energies. The rise of Christian Nationalism has not resulted in some new wave of evangelistic effort; they’d rather recruit poll watchers. We’re not trying to reach the lost with the good news of Jesus; we’re trying to pass laws that would do that hard work for us.
To be clear, I very much resonate with the longing of both my student and those who make the most noise about wanting to live in Christian nation. When people are truly living for Jesus, things are just better. Serving God compels us to live out true justice; to love those we would otherwise hate; to give whatever we can to bless others. That sounds like a country I very much want to live in.
To do that, though, Americans would have to abandon one of their most tightly held beliefs. I just don’t see that happening.
Still, I’ll never knock anyone for having such a hope. I just think we should spend our energies in ways that actually move us closer to fulfilling our dream. If we rely on American laws to make our nation godly, we will always be disappointed: that’s just what the Constitution promises. Thankfully, we don’t have to rely on our nation. We can listen to Jesus and his Holy Spirit; we can reach people with the gospel instead of just expecting them to already be Christians; we can live out our Lord’s Great Commision. If we do that, we could transform this country in ways no law could ever accomplish.
Sounds like a pretty good use of our freedom of speech.