Is Patriotism Dead? What Happened & Why It Matters
Patriotism is a term that is commonly thrown around, oftentimes in reference to holidays such as the 4th of July, Labor Day, or other America-specific holiday. Patriotism is important because it fosters a sense of belonging, unity, and pride within a nation. It encourages citizens to contribute positively to their community and country and promotes civic responsibility and social cohesion. A lack of patriotism makes a nation vulnerable to external threats or influence and causes economic and social instability.
Patriotism has become one of the most commonly misused and misunderstood terms ever. Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one’s country and its values, and it’s been on the decline in America over the past two decades.
With the near-violent and oftentimes distressing state of American politics, it’s not at all surprising to see many people shying away from the pride and love of our country.
“Rather than being taught to see themselves as individual citizens, young Americans were increasingly encouraged by left-wing educators to define themselves in terms of their racial background or gender or various other immutable characteristics.”
With the loss of identity as “neighbor” or “friend,” and the only important part of a person being their gender (or supposed lack thereof), sexuality, or political alignment, patriotism is considered less and less important. People fall away from their nationality, and love for their country, and instead focus on the love of self.
Second Timothy 3:1–4 (NIV) warns us of this:
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.
How dire is the death of patriotism?
From a study performed just after the attacks on 9/11, the country was united against a common enemy that was (and still is) a threat to the safety of not only themselves and their families but also our entire nation. Back then, 89% of young Americans identified as patriotic and were determined to see a brighter future compared to the bleak moments of the past.
When the same poll was redone in 2020, 19 years later, only 33% confirmed that they still saw themselves as patriotic, and 67% claimed that they’d abandoned the patriotic ideals of the past. What made the divide even more interesting was that 86% of Republicans claimed to be patriots compared to just 56% of Democrats. While the massive difference is not inherently surprising, we must ask ourselves why. Why does a political party so drastically influence how people see their country and, as a result, identify themselves?
Many polls have noted a lot of it has to do with the way each group sees the respective topic.
“When asked about what word they associate with ‘patriot,’ Republicans were more likely to use positive terms like loyalty and pride, while Democrats emphasized negative words like racism, xenophobia, nationalism, and ignorance.”
Sadly, the very foundation and desire for independence that this country was built upon are now seen as racist or one of many other words that bring about our biggest enemy to date—offense.
Offense once again strives to take hold of our country, our people, and our unity. It strikes at the very heart and refuses to let go. It’s a poison that stains and strains every relationship it touches. As I’ve talked about in my previous blogs, offense is the poison that kills everything in its path.
From relationships in families to friends, from the unity of a church to the unity of a group of people, offense will do everything that it can to separate, because separated we are easier to conquer, easier to overwhelm, easier to control, and easier to shut down. Mark 3:25 (NIV) cautions us, “If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”
As warriors of God, we should not be easy to control. While the Bible does encourage us to respect those in authority (Romans 13:1–3), we should also remind ourselves of the God-given rights that are outlined in our Constitution. We need to be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves—but as unyielding as donkeys! We must strive to reunite our nation and restore a healthy level of patriotism!
This can only be accomplished by the body of Christ standing in prayer, on the Word, and fasting. We must remain vigilant in our ever-present fight before the Lord returns! We cannot be afraid to pray bold prayers like I outline in my book, Fight Like Heaven! A Cultural Guide to Living on Guard. We cannot be afraid or back down when the government and other groups attempt to shove their propaganda and agendas down the throats of our children in their own schools! We cannot cower behind our screens while the media and entertainment world continue to be filled with and defiled by darkness.
When the time comes that we go home, and we see so many of those who fought for our country in heaven, I don’t want to have to look them in the eye and know that they fought for my freedoms and rights and I squandered them! I want to be able to look at the people around me and tell them how, with the glory of God on my side, I was able to stand up and declare the Good News of Jesus and the Kingdom! I want to be able to tell people that there was a spiritual fight on Earth and that I made sure the devil was shaking in his boots every time my feet hit the floor in the morning. I don’t want to have to think about how I could have done more if only I had gotten over my fear of offending someone or hurting their feelings. I don’t want to live with regrets, only with miraculous testimonies!
So, in this belief and with this desire, I will not back down. Warriors, join me in praying for our country and for those that the devil has deceived, hurt, lied to, and convinced that his way is the right way! Pray that they would come to know the Spirit of the Lord, that they would be filled with a steadfast faith and unafraid to inspire those around them. Stand strong, fight, and win each day for the glory of God!
Works Cited:
Douglas Carswell, “Why Is Patriotism in Decline?” Mississippi Center for Public Policy, https://mspolicy.org/why-is-patriotism-in-decline/, April 4, 2023.
Justin Webb, “The Death of American Patriotism: The United States Has Never Been So Divided,” UnHerd, https://www.unherd.com/2021/06/the-death-of-american-patriotism/, June 14, 2021.
David Mountain, “The Dangers of Patriotism: Remembering Robert Prager,” The Humanist, https://thehumanist.com/commentary/dangers-patriotism-remembering-robert-prager/, April 4, 2018.
Xavier Morales and Katie Heintz, “Patriots May Be Dying, but Patriotism Is Still Alive,” Harvard Political Review, https://harvardpolitics.com/patriots-dying-patriotism-alive/, April 23, 2020.
