Is national pride a problem?
Detailing the degree to which Americans are less proud to be American has become something of an annual tradition around this time of year. And in keeping with that trend, a recent poll found that a record-low 58 percent of US adults are either extremely (41 percent) or very (17 percent) proud to be American.
While those numbers represent a fairly significant drop, even from recent years, the downward trajectory doesn’t change the fact that nearly four out of five Americans are at least moderately proud to be a citizen of this country. Moreover, nine out of ten hold at least some measure of pride in that status. When we think about the state of our culture, it would be a mistake to let the 10 percent who hold no such pride outweigh the 90 percent who do.
At the same time, it’s worth noting that younger generations tend to be quite a bit more moderate in their pride for the nation than their elders.
As the Gallop report notes, “These changes have occurred mostly over the past decade, and have done so amid greater pessimism about the economic prospects for young people, widespread dissatisfaction with the state of the nation, greater ideological divides between parties, unfavorable images of both parties, and intense rancor during the Trump and Biden administrations.”
In short, fear and anger have become the default setting for far too many people, and it makes sense that those without a longer history of what it’s like to live in America would be more impacted by those feelings.
It may be tempting to dismiss many of these concerns, but the dissatisfaction points to some very real problems in our country. I would argue that the good still far outweighs the bad, but that doesn’t mean we should overlook these issues. As I wrote when discussing this trend a few years ago:
America’s flaws should not blind us to the blessings that come from living here. At the same time, those blessings should not blind us to the work that still needs to be done.
So, with that context in mind, how should we see the decline in national pride among many Americans? And is the trend a problem to correct or a symptom of something more?
For an answer, let’s look back to a time when national pride wasn’t a concern because there wasn’t yet a nation to be proud of.
“An inverted American revolution”
One of the most enduring images from America’s founding is the woodcarving of a snake chopped up into eight pieces with the caption “JOIN, or DIE.” Benjamin Franklin originally used the picture in 1754 to try to unite the colonies in the buildup to the French and Indian War.
Franklin hoped it would inspire them to join together in creating a united government—one still under the authority of the British at that point—to face a threat none of them could defeat on their own. While he would have to wait about twenty years to see that desire become a reality, the image played a crucial role in uniting the colonies against England and in securing the independence we celebrate today.
However, our need for such unity is just as real now as it was nearly 250 years ago.
As Bari Weiss notes:
Today there are those who tell us that we are not, in fact, a single people, but rather disparate tribes whose identities put us at odds with one another forever. They’ve divided us not into colonies or states or physical territories, but into identity groups and political factions vying for power and control . . . The effect of these illiberal ideologies is the same: They have sliced up the snake once more. From the one: many. An inverted American revolution.
Just as at our nation’s founding, each of us has a role to play in deciding whether America will be one or many. And, as Christians, we are uniquely positioned to help ensure it’s the former rather than the latter.
Christian or American?
As citizens of heaven before we’re citizens of America—or any other nation for that matter—our perspective on the culture and the country should be filtered through the lens of God’s word. As a result, where America lines up with Scripture, we can and should be proud to be Americans. Where it has deviated from God’s truth, we should be ready and willing to hold it accountable.
Moreover, our national pride doesn’t have to waver based on how well the country is doing because our identity as individuals is based first and foremost on our relationship with the Lord. It gets a lot easier to see America objectively and to recognize its faults without losing sight of its blessings when being an American is not the foundation of who we are.
That is a rare gift we can share with the rest of this nation, but only if that’s truly how we live.
So, as you celebrate America’s independence today, do you do so as a Christian living in America or as an American who happens to be a Christian?
Both our faith and our nation are important parts of who we are and how God has called us to serve him. But only one of those identities can be the bedrock of our lives.
Which are you today?
Quote of the day:
“We are a sometimes great, sometimes loathsome, eternally imperfect nation built on a set of ideas that are so fundamentally superior to anything else civilization has come up with that they’ve been copied and pasted across the globe.” —Isaac Saul (you can read the full article from which this quote comes here)
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