In America we have a problem. (Well, actually there are a lot of problems...) But there is a specific problem dealing with patriotism and what it means to be a proud citizen of the United States.
Politically, the gap has become wider and wider between the two political parties and while I would make a guess that most people fall somewhere within a spectrum of each "side", there are stereotypes and judgments about either extreme.
First of all, if you've ever studied American history (even a little), you should remember that religion has a always been an integral part of this New World country. Christianity was brought over straight from the European settlers way back when the lighter-skin-toned people immigrated here. All of the official documents that we now fight over were incorporated with "God" in mind. That's just the way they did things back then. It's just something that was integrated into and originated with our so-called new freedom and "new land".
I don't think it makes any sense to allow the fact that this country was founded on many beliefs - including religious ones - to be offensive. After all, it is simply a historical fact. This country was founded not only on the beliefs and ideals of "freedom" and new beginnings, so was it founded on a deep set European belief system of Christianity.
The "God" in our history has never really bothered me. It's not that I'm super religious or share many or any philosophies with Christians and Christianity. It's that I've accepted that it's just part of how our country was founded. It's simply part of America's history.
So yes, the Pledge of Allegiance, said in schools does say, "One Nation, under God...". Yes, the Declaration of Independence does say, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." Yes, our currency says, "In God we trust." (That one is and has been debatable for a long while now.) But the point is that religion (Christianity) is part of our country's heritage.
Now hold on.
I never said that it had to be important to you or that you had to agree with it. I'm saying that it's part of this country's past.
Now, I don't know about you, but I'm not exactly what you would call proud of a lot of what has happened in America's past. And I'm not saying that you should be proud of the harm and destruction the people of the United States have caused upon themselves and on others.
But in the matter of patriotism, I think it's important that you at least know the historical facts.
Being patriotic doesn't mean that you allow your beliefs in God or even your beliefs in the lack of God to cloud your intellect. While God may have had a lot to do with the history and founding of this country, your belief in God - or not - should have nothing to do with your patriotism.
Patriotism is defined as, devoted love and support of one's country; national loyalty. Nowhere in the definition does it define how one goes about doing that. So it would seem that now, keeping the country's history in mind, the belief in God is simply irrelevant to being patriotic.
There's this neat thing about being human that both people of faith and people who don't believe in God are in agreement about and capable of utilizing. This is called free will.
Religious and non-religious alike, we can all agree that humans do, in fact, possess the capabilities of having the liberty to make their own choices over every single aspect of their personal lives. Therefore, in the case of patriotism, we all have been equipped to decide for ourselves what devoted love, support, and loyalty looks like and means for us, individually.
And to me - God or not - this is really what the settlers were intending to accomplish when they arrived on U. S. soil:
"Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."
To me, patriotism is not being in support of killing people in other countries, it's not owning a gun, it's not being afraid to make mistakes, it's not waving my country's flag anywhere and everywhere I can possibly think of. To me patriotism is accepting my country's history for what it is and learning from my predecessor's mistakes. If I don't allow myself that freedom, no one else will. It's kind of the nature of being "free." :-)
What does patriotism mean to you?
