John McCain and Civil Religion
Former Faculty
By Micah Watson, Assistant Professor of Political Science & Director, Center for Religion and Politics
Sep 5, 2008 -
A few months ago I commented on the quasi-religious nature of some of Obama's enthusiastic supporters. Since that time the McCain campaign has skillfully poked and prodded that aspect of the Obama candidacy through the celebrity ads and in some of the GOP speeches.
But last night while watching McCain's speech another thought hit me and to be fair I think I need to address an aspect of McCain's candidacy that, I believe, should give Christians of all political persuasions pause.
As I wrote in a recent post, one of the temptations we can fall into as Christians is a blurring of our national and religious identities. We can sometimes forget the distinction Jesus articulated between those things that belong to Caesar and those things that belong to God. Recall that Jesus was being shown a coin and was asked whose image was on that coin. Caesar's image was on the coin, and in his response Jesus let's us know that there is a proper role for government and even taxes, as much as we may resent them on April 15.
Unspoken but implied in Jesus' response is that while taxes may belong to Caesar, we bear an image as well and it is not a stamp of a particular party or nation. As bearers of God's image, we belong to him.
What links this to McCain's speech and overall campaign narrative is how McCain presents himself and his major theme. "Country First" was a mantra repeated nonstop throughout the Republican convention. My reaction as a Christian is, "No, country is not first." I'm glad Senator McCain calls us to serve something bigger than ourselves, and I too believe patriotism is possible and even appropriate for the Christian, but we should be uneasy with strong phrases like "country first".
I'm sure it's meant politically, but it doesn't always come across that way. Indeed, in the most moving part of McCain's speech last night he detailed how he had been a selfish, fun-seeking young man until he was shot down and taken prisoner. Once in prison he then realized how great his country was and how he was "saved" by his country. The rest of his life has been spent serving his country and honoring the "faith of his fathers." It sounded like a patriotic conversion story.
To be sure, McCain mentions God frequently, but, Saddleback aside, McCain almost always mentions God to thank God he is an American (McCain, not God, I don't think).
I don't want to overstate this or suggest because of this one ought not vote for McCain. I think it's appropriate for the president to put the country first AS president. And I appreciate McCain's call in this narcissistic age to serve something beyond ourselves. But at the same time, as Christians, we should feel some unease about the easy convergence of God and country. McCain's rhetoric seems at times to blur this distinction. I don't want him necessarily to give his religious testimony as part of his campaign to reassure me (that might blur the distinction the other way), but I'm partial to leaders who strive to serve their country best because they put God first.