Trend Watch: Isolationism - Christianity Today

Will the church mimic the growing “America First” sentiment?

Christians often voice great alarm over the church following the culture. Many are crying out for the church to influence the culture rather than to allow the culture to influence the church.

Ironically, the alarm itself may be evidence the church is following a powerful American trend toward isolationism.

Isolationism is a political foreign policy that avoids involvement beyond a country’s borders. Most historians agree this was the prevalent foreign policy of the United States from the American Revolution until World War II. It is a powerful force in our culture that may be affecting your congregation.

INWARD POLICY

In 1796 George Washington promoted isolationism in his farewell address. His desire to keep the new nation out from under the influence of England and other European powers planted the seeds for a political foreign policy that became ingrained.

The 1823 Monroe Doctrine made informal isolationism official. President Monroe told European governments to keep out of the Western Hemisphere and promised that the United States would not interfere with European affairs.

While there have been brief exceptions, America has repeatedly returned to its isolationist roots. The United States proposed the League of Nations, for example, and then refused to join.

During the early years of World War II, Americans repeatedly avoided involvement, insisting that Adolf Hitler and his Third Reich were a European problem that developed into a European war that should be settled by Europeans. When Winston Churchill asked for help, we largely ignored his requests. The popular American attitude was that Americans should stay out of other people’s problems.

CULTURE OUTWARD

Everything changed at 7:55 A.m. on December 7, 1941, when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States entered World War II. The national mentality changed into a firm resolve to win the war in both the Pacific and the Atlantic. Overnight the popular culture changed from isolationism to militarism. When the war ended in 1945, militarism turned into unprecedented internationalism.

Next followed a half-century exception to American isolationism:

–Military bases were built at strategic locations, which put every nation within reach of our armed forces.

–New political, military, and economic alliances were signed under names like NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and SEATO (South East Asia Treaty Organization).

–The United Nations was established, and the United States not only joined but became the host country and funded the largest share.

–Foreign aid was distributed in the tens of billions of dollars.

–The Central Intelligence Agency sent operatives to gather information from every nation.

–Presidents were elected on the basis of their foreign policy experience.

–The Peace Corps sent volunteers around the globe.

–American businesses expanded with offices, factories, and partnerships on every continent.

–“Current events” became almost synonymous with “foreign events” as Americans became familiar with countries and people they had never heard about.

–The government was sufficiently concerned about the threat of communism and the balance of world power that the United States entered costly and deadly armed conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, Lebanon, Grenada, and Panama.

CHURCH OUTWARD

The American church followed the new internationalism. American money and missionaries flooded the world. The post-War decades became the greatest period of missionary activity and world evangelization in Christian history. The United States became the primary sending nation. Churches gave growing percentages of their budgets to foreign missions, especially through popular “faith promise” programs. Annual missions conferences for fund raising, missionary reporting, recruitment, and prayer became popular.

Christian colleges became fertile recruitment fields for missionaries. Bible institutes and Bible colleges were founded or expanded to educate future missionaries. Enormous advances were made in Bible translation, gospel broadcasting, and church planting.

Conservative churches grew in number and influence while liberal churches declined. Evangelicals awakened to social concerns, entering politics and engaging social problems on a broad and powerful scale. Christians moved beyond their traditional affiliations as Billy Graham crusades melted denominational barriers and parachurch organizations flourished.

CULTURE INWARD

The national culture began to change in the 1980s with the thawing of the Cold War, glasnost and detente. Former foreign enemies became trading partners. The Berlin Wall came down in 1989, and the Soviet Union fell apart in 1991.

At the same time, Americans became increasingly concerned about problems at home–rising crime, government corruption, skyrocketing deficits, unemployment, declining morals. American culture began a return to its historic isolationism.

The war in Iraq was justified by American economic interests in Kuwait’s oil supply. As long as the war was quick and decisive, and paid for by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, it was acceptable. President Clinton faced broad opposition to a United States invasion of Haiti. Pressure mounted to withdraw troops from Somalia, even if it resulted in anarchy and starvation.

Popular opinion opposes American military intervention in the former Yugoslav republic, despite huge losses of life through attempted genocide. Americans once again seem to see the conflict as a “European problem that should be resolved by European countries.”

When the Mexican economy faltered and the peso fell, Congress was unwilling to approve a $50 billion rescue; President Clinton settled for a $20 billion package of loans he could authorize without congressional vote. There is a growing opposition to foreign aid, even though it composes less than 1 percent of the federal budget. Americans are increasingly concerned about domestic issues of crime, health care, taxes, and budget deficits.

California and other border states are passing referendums to eliminate government benefits to illegal aliens. Border security and restrictive immigration laws are top political issues. This new isolationism is reflected in the popularity of cocooning, self-employment, home security systems, home schooling, self-directed retirement programs, and similar social changes. There is declining interest in the Peace Corps, foreign travel, and foreign affairs as a political issue.

In short, there is a growing “America first” mentality. We are withdrawing into our own borders, our own interests, and our own security.

CHURCH INWARD

Just as there were brief departures from American isolationism between 1796 and 1945, there could be short periods of internationalism again in the near future. But it would probably take a major war or similar world crisis to bring another extended period of internationalism like the half century from 1941 to 1991.

The question for American Christians at the end of the twentieth century is: Will we become countercultural? Will we follow the Great Commission of Acts 1:8 more than the cultural trend of 1995?

–LEITH Anderson

Wooddale Church

Eden Prairie, Minnesota

THREE RESPONSES

How pastors see this trend in their churches.

Increasingly people want to give to projects that are nearby–within driving distance. The farther the distance, the greater the suspicion.

I would carry Anderson’s idea a step farther. In World War II the most trusted level of government was federal, and the least trusted was local. Now the reverse is true.

The same holds true in the church. The least trusted level of religious bureaucracy is the one farthest away. People feel if they give their dollars to the local church, there is more accountability. “If we give our money locally, we know it will be spent well.”

One donor told me he once gave 70 percent of his annual missions offering to foreign missions; 30 percent went to home missions. Now he has changed giving to 40 percent foreign, 40 percent home, and 20 percent local.

I see less interest in global evangelism but a greater desire to reach our cities–and a surprising desire to cross culture lines within our cities.

The mystique of missions, in the sense of world travel, is gone. The new generation has seen enough television; they’re not in awe of another part of the world. Missions now must be explained in terms of God’s plan for the ages.

–GARY Fenton

Dawson Memorial Baptist Church

Birmingham, Alabama

Cocooning is strong. Families are fractured, so they protect their family time. There is more home schooling and suspicion of institutions. People will say to me, “I’d like to sit down with you and talk about the Cross or the meaning of Jesus,” but they will not commit to a class on that subject.

Many things are broken in American society and need to be worked on. I think any movement toward isolationism in our church is more in that vein than in a fear of foreign entanglements.

Our people have a strong sense of the need for racial reconciliation. One person told me there’s no point in sending lots of dollars across the world when we should be reaching for racial reconciliation between blacks and whites in our country. Others have said, “Why are we sending missionaries to Indonesia when a huge percent of our county is unchurched?” They feel evangelism should start at home.

Our people still support foreign missions. They want to keep the money given for missions under our direction. There is deep suspicion of the denomination. The people want to support missionaries and evangelists overseas whom we know.

–NANCY Becker

Ogden Dunes Community Church

Portage, Indiana

This church was established more than forty years ago, and it has always been committed to missions. Those values are prevailing against the mood of the culture. I never hear feedback that we need to cut back on foreign missions. On the contrary, people are pressing our missions committee: What can we do? How can we reach out to more people?

Any reluctance I see is toward further church planting in our area. Our church has started three churches. Some people fear we will do it again. “We have needs in our own congregation; we’ve done enough; somebody else needs to do what we’ve done.”

But I find as long as I continue to talk about the need to keep giving, that reluctance is overcome. Our congregation believes that if you give, it shall be given unto you. If we become isolated in our own, little world, before long we die.

–Jerry Strandquist

Bloomington Assembly of God

Bloomington, Minnesota

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