Giving Up Christian Nationalism for Lent | The Church Beyond Our Borders

Lent as the Season of Reconsideration

Lent is a season for confession, repentance, and, above all, for challenging the idols we’ve created—some of which have been deeply rooted in our understanding of what it means to be faithful. The Christ confronts us. He won’t let us off the hook. And the illusion of Christian nationalism is one of those idols, one that insists the gospel cannot thrive without the support of political power, territorial control, or national pride. But Lent is not about securing what we think we need; it’s about letting go of everything we think we know and embracing what we most desperately need: grace.

This reflection was inspired, in part, by a conversation I had with two friends about their recent pilgrimage to Asia Minor for an upcoming episode of Crackers and Grape Juice. As they recounted their journey through the ancient sites of the early church, I was struck by how much of Christian history stands as a direct refutation of the assumptions embedded in Christian nationalism. The earliest followers of Jesus were never concerned with securing a nation-state for the kingdom of God. Instead, they were committed to a way of life shaped by Christ’s teachings—a life marked by grace, service, and love, regardless of political power or national identity.

As Christians in the United States, we are particularly vulnerable to the idol of Christian nationalism because it speaks to our deepest fears. It tells us that if we don't hold on to our influence, we will lose the gospel’s voice in the public sphere. If we don’t maintain cultural dominance, Christianity will be erased from the landscape of American life. Yet this narrative is not only false; it’s dangerous.

From its earliest days, the church has never needed the empire to secure the gospel's victory. The gospel, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer reminded us, has always been a call to die—to let go of the world’s way of winning, conquering, and holding power. Christ did not come to build an empire. He came to build a kingdom, and it is a kingdom marked not by might but by grace.