Religion and State Forum
By Mark Olson
Since March 2025, a monthly Religion and State Forum has taken place at BCC. The 90-minute Wednesday evening sessions have drawn from 6 to 25 people. Additionally, several people who have never attended have said something to the effect of: “I am glad you are doing this.”
As the title suggests, the framework has been as wide as possible: exploring the relationship between any state and any religion. We have discovered that the merger of religion and state never ends well, and indeed, such mergers in history have led to enormous damage, regardless of the religion or the state.
One of the topics we have looked at has been the development of Christian Nationalism in the U.S., seeking to understand the forces and movements that have fed its resurgence. Several books have helped provide context for understanding myriad events and forces that have been at work to bring us to this point. The book, The Violent Take it by Force, by Matthew Taylor, sought to uncover the role of the Christian community in the build-up to and aftermath following January 6. Taylor documents a significant role a number of Christian leaders and podcasters played in calling people from around the nation to Washington for that event. Tim Alberta, a conservative Christian from Michigan, explores this history more broadly, beginning with Jerry Falwell and others in his book, The Kingdom, The Power, and the Glory. His writing includes intimate descriptions of his own experiences in the church pastored by his father. Money, Lies, and God, by Katherine Stewart, was the basis for another book discussion.
We also looked at the Doctrine of Discovery, which had been unfamiliar to many people, although it has been tremendously impactful over the last 500 years. We used the book Unsettling Truths, by Mark Charles and Soon-Chan Rah, as a source. It documents the development of the Doctrine of Discovery and its role in providing theological justification for the theft of land and treasure, as well as the subjection of people who were not Christian by Portuguese and Spanish explorers. We also looked at the resolution adopted at the Evangelical Covenant’s Annual Meeting in 2021, which officially repudiated the doctrine.
Now, a year later, the Forum is exploring questions about how to be a citizen of the state as a Christian. We recognize Christians belong to another kingdom, the Kingdom of God, even while living in the kingdom of this world. Discerning how to best do that is a significant challenge.
The next session, on March 11, will be based on the book, The Spirit of our Politics, by Michael Wear. Recommended by Pastor Phil, the book explores how the formative wisdom of Dallas Willard can be helpful in finding pathways for living in this world. In April, the book Resident Aliens, by Stanley Hauerwas and William Willimon, will help us discuss the nature of the church and its relationship to the surrounding culture.
At the beginning, the expectation was that this would not be simply a three-month project but a longer-term undertaking. At this point, it will keep going as long as it goes. Everyone is welcome to enter or leave the discussion at any time. Classroom C is the setting.