Vol.12 No.2

God Bless America
God has blessed America. But to whom much is given, much will be required.
by Betsy Mayer

As an American, I admit to my share of sentimental patriotism. Seeing the Stars and Stripes and hearing the “Star Spangled Banner” often moves me to tears.

But my patriotism runs deeper than mere sentiment. It’s in my very genes. My grandfather, Captain William Stimpel, was a U.S. cavalry officer who fought in the Spanish-American War. My father was prematurely thrust into manhood (he lied and enlisted at 15), fighting for “Old Glory” in the Pacific during World War II.

Having traveled on nearly every continent, I know that while America has its flaws, it remains the best hope for liberty our world has ever known. And Americans remain some of the most spontaneously generous people I have met.

However, I must express my concerns with some of the patriotic sentiments I’ve heard since September 11. Statements like, “We will not be defeated,” “God is on our side,” and “We must rid the world of evil.”

Forgive me, but doesn’t this seem just a little arrogant? Could it be that Americans have unwittingly accepted the idea that “might makes right?” As Andree Seu so aptly wrote in her defense of true patriotism,

“It should not impudently imagine that by invoking the name of God in slogans, it will harness the Almighty to its cause any more successfully than rebellious Israel did when Eli’s sons took the ark of the covenant out of mothballs and propped it like a talisman before the armies marching against Philistia.” (“True Patriotism,” World, October 13, 2001)

Yes, a terrible wrong was done to our nation on September 11. And yes, the radical Islamic views that prompted these actions are not compatible with the civil and religious liberties so treasured by Americans. Attacks like those of September 11, however, are not what Americans should fear the most.

What Americans should fear is cheap comfort at the expense of candid soul-searching. A more menacing danger than terrorists is the neglect to hold ourselves accountable to the very standards that have made us great—the rule of law, the work ethic, biblical morality, and civil and religious freedom.

Should Americans forget these true values, should they become drunk with pleasure, power, and prestige, they will not tolerate those calling for a return to true American greatness. Instead, as the history of previous nations has shown, they will eventually silence dissent in their rush to temporal prosperity.

Bible prophecy assigns a breathtaking role to America—the honor of protecting and nurturing the infant of liberty.

In exchange for its devotion to this cause, God has blessed America with unparalleled prosperity. When America loses this focus and becomes enslaved to materialism and pleasure, when it exploits weaker nations for these ends, or restricts liberty of conscience, God will judge righteously.

The Supreme Ruler of the Universe keeps a strict account of nations. He wounds and He heals. He also withdraws His protecting hand. This, too, has been prophesied of America.

To my fellow Americans, let us love this great nation. But let us not love blindly. And let us each remember Micah’s succinct statement of goodness: “… to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.” Micah 6:8.