BUDOS said:
And of course there are the conspiracy theorists; however, unfortunately a few are actually valid in my opinion.
But back to CN
Christian nationalism takes the name of Christ for a worldly political agenda, proclaiming that its program is the political program for every true believer. That is wrong in principle, no matter what the agenda is, because only the church is authorized to proclaim the name of Jesus and carry his standard into the world. It is even worse with a political movement that champions some causes that are unjust, which is the case with Christian nationalism. In that case, Christian nationalism is calling evil good and good evil; it is taking the name of Christ as a fig leaf to cover its political program, treating the message of Jesus as a tool of political propaganda and the church as the handmaiden of the state.
Christianity is a religion focused on the person and work of Jesus Christ as defined by the Christian Bible and the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds. It is the gathering of people "from every nation and tribe and people and language," who worship Jesus (Rev. 7:9), a faith that unites Jews and Greeks, Americans and non-Americans together. Christianity is political, in the sense that its adherents have always understood their faith to challenge, affect, and transcend their worldly loyaltiesbut there is no single view on what political implications flow from Christian faith other than that we should "fear God, honor the king" (1 Pet. 2:17), pay our taxes, love our neighbors, and seek justice.
Christian nationalism is, by contrast, a political ideology focused on the national identity of the United States. It includes a specific understanding of American history and American government that are, obviously, extrabiblicalan understanding that is contested by many historians and political scientists. Most importantly, Christian nationalism includes specific policy prescriptions that it claims are biblical but are extrapolations from biblical principles and, at worst, contradictory to them.
Sorry for the lengthy reply. Hope it contributes to the discussion.
Every political opinion is undergirded by some philosophy.
Every single one.
Political opinions are simply a branch on a larger tree.
That tree is core personal and societal values.
To complain of Christianity (whatever form) as the foundation of that core without also complaining about every other foundation such as Humanism, Islam, Buddhism, Nihilism, etc. is simply intellectual dishonesty combined with mental gymnastics.
