At the end of 2024, Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers President Jason Benell attended a few events held at churches and started a series of interviews called Iowa Christians on Christian Nationalism. In these interviews, questions are asked of religious leaders via email about their views on their faith, their congregations, and how they view Christian Nationalism. The answers are going to be unedited, save for misspellings or grammatical corrections, and directly from the respondents. You are encouraged to read these and come up with your own questions and submit them to IAF. The purpose of this interview series is to help us better understand how the religious and non-religious view this ongoing social, political, and cultural movement known as Christian Nationalism. If you would like follow ups, further discussion, or want to provide comments feel free to email IAF at president@iowaatheists.org and we can possibly share them with both members of IAF and the folks being interviewed!
Eric Pasanchin, Pastor
Ankeny Presbyterian Church (U.S.A)
Ankeny, Iowa
Interview conducted October 2024
What would you tell a non-Christian or a person outside of your denomination that makes you different from Christian Nationalists?
First of all, so-called “Christian” nationalism has nothing to do with the teachings of Jesus. It is a complete betrayal of everything he stood for. The nationalists who use faith to justify their beliefs are misusing religious texts, often ones written by, to, and for Ancient Israelites. Taking those texts out of context, they are then twisted to serve a racist, sexist, anti-LGBTQIA+, political message in the modern world. This is bad history, bad theology, and bad for humanity all around.
The Presbyterian Church (USA) explicitly includes in its statements of faith a document called “The Barmen Declaration of Faith”, which was written in the 1930’s to oppose the German “Christian” movement, which was a popular movement in Germany to turn the church into a tool of the Nazi party. We include that declaration in our statements of faith as clear reminder that Christians loyalty is first and foremost to our creator and God’s vision for a just and peaceful world – not to any nation, political leader, or ideology. Whether you accept the premise of a creator or not, you could at least say that we are dedicated to the well being of all humans of every race, nation, or worldly condition.
Do you think churches or congregations should take an official public stance on Christian Nationalism?
Hell yes.
Do you think the values of Christian Nationalism are in sync with the beliefs of your church or interpretations of the Bible?
Not even remotely. There is just no way they could be.
How can a congregation like yours take a stance against Christian Nationalism without being confrontational to other congregations?
First of all, hosting the film “God and Country” was one way of educating our members and the public about the error of such nationalism. We have also offered book studies that get at the issue. Secondly, in our messaging – both internal and external – we emphasize the sacred worth of every person regardless of nationality, race, gender, orientation, or any other distinguishing factor. We have used our church sign, social media, and direct mail to share this message. Clarity of message and establishing a clear alternative is the point. Getting directly into arguments with the nationalists does not seem like a productive activity.
Is Christian Nationalism a partisan project? Why or why not?
Indeed, it is. It has been an under-current in the Republican party for years, and is now a large part of their “base”. The Democratic party does not espouse the same values, and consequently does not appeal to the “Christian” nationalists.
Can the Bible be a useful tool to combat Christian Nationalism? Why or why not?
Sure, it can be.
The difficulty with the Bible is that it is ancient religious literature written by numerous individuals over a great span of time very long ago. It reflects different points of view and different levels of moral and spiritual development. This allows it to be used to back nearly any point of view by people who quote verses out of context, or who ignore the central point of the thing. For those who think the Bible is a literal dictation from God, every word can be accorded equal value – but that it not an accurate way of viewing the Bible. In fact, the Bible portrays the back and forth struggle of people over whether to accept a God of grace, peace, and justice over against their cultural religious tendencies to prefer a god of nationalism and violence. That is, a version of our modern struggle is reflected in the Bible, too.
For Christians, the central point of the faith (and our Biblical interpretation) ought to be the life and teachings of Jesus. That’s not to say there aren’t historical questions about what Jesus himself said and didn’t say, but there is enough evidence to get a coherent picture of Jesus proclaiming a “Kingdom of God” that was inclusive of men and women and children, of outcasts, of sinners, and foreigners. He was non-violent. He was an advocate for the poor (and poor himself), and made the sharing of spiritual and material resources a central part of his program. He taught forgiveness and generosity and sacrifice for the common good. He rejected human empires. The Jesus of the Gospels is not the Jesus of “Christian” nationalism, and is therefore a religious antidote to the toxic blight of the nationalist movement.