Jeremy L. Berg

There is nothing Christian about Christian Nationalism. It’s a capitulation to the Way of Barabbas over the Way of Jesus. It’s waving palm branches for Judas “The Hammer” Maccabeus on his warhorse over Jesus the gentle on a donkey wearing a crown of thorns.

Once again, we are faced with the same question facing the crowd that first Holy Week: Who do we want to go free and to follow, and who do we want to send to the cross to be rid of? The original crowd can be forgiven for their folly, for they had only the Old Testament that includes many stories of God’s people and leaders trying to bring God’s plans about through holy war and so-called redemptive violence.

Twenty-first century Christians, on the other hand, have no excuse. We have the explosive pages of the New Testament whose primary message is Jesus’ inauguration of an upside down kingdom of love and self-sacrifice to put an end to all “power-over” politics among followers of Jesus’ non-violent Way. The Way of the Sword has been replaced by the Way of the Cross. A radical ethic of enemy love has eclipsed the age old ethic of an “eye for an eye.” We have Jesus telling Peter, “Put your sword away.” We have Jesus telling all disciples, “Take up your cross and follow me.”

Even more incriminating is the fact that the church has 2,000 years of bloody history showing the catastrophic results when trying to force God’s will on a society by way of political coercion rather than loving acts of radical witness to a different way of being human.

Give 13 minutes to this video and what’s at stake this week as we dare to attend church to marvel at Jesus’ willingness to go to the cross, and ignore our unwillingness to follow in his footsteps. Let us lament the fact that many in the church today still choose the Way of Barabbas over the Way of Jesus. We still prefer a hammer to get the job done; we still resist sharing the nails of Jesus’ passion.