Captain America and the Crusade Against Evil: The Dilemma of Zealous Nationalism

“The appearance of Captain America and the Crusade Against Evil: The Dilemma of Zealous Nationalism (Eerdmans, 2003) could not be more timely. Published after the events of “9/11” and the war in Afghanistan, and just prior to the attack on Iraq'

BOOK REVIEW by Dr. Chris Marshall (from the September issue of ON THE ROAD, a quarterly publication produced by the Anabaptist Association of Australia and New Zealand

All that I hear about this book is great – portion of book review by New Zealand NT Lecturer Chris Marshall – see the bottom of this post for a link to the full-text of the review. Below, you will also find a link to chapter 1 of the book being reviewed.

Written by two American academics, one a New Testament scholar, Robert Jewett, the other a Christian philosopher, John Shelton Lawrence, it offers a compelling analysis of the deep forces at work in American history and culture that repeatedly propel that great nation to engage in violent crusades against opponents. The so-called “war on terrorism” and the illegal invasion of Iraq are but the two most recent examples of this fateful tendency.

The book begins by distinguishing two contrary impulses in American civil religion, two opposing ways in which America understands her role in the world. Each can be traced back to different strands of the biblical tradition that has profoundly shaped American identity. On the one hand, America sees herself as a city set on the hill, a shining example to the world of the capacity of democracy, liberty and the rule of law to enable peaceful co-existence between diverse groups. This, the authors propose, reflects the influence of the prophetic tradition in scripture, for the Hebrew prophets held a realistic assessment of their nation’s virtues and vices and advocated God’s impartial justice as the basis of national and international peace.

On the other hand, America also views herself as a “redeemer nation”, specially chosen and favored by God, with a messianic mission or “Manifest Destiny” to secure world redemption, employing, as needs be, overwhelming force to rid the world of evil and evildoers. This inclination toward crusading nationalism – or militant “jihad”, as it is known elsewhere – also derives from biblical tradition, this time from the “zealous” and “holy war” themes found in such books as Deuteronomy, Daniel and Revelation, themes which have spawned religious violence in all three of the great monotheistic religions: Judaism, Islam and Christianity. “We believe”, the authors write, “that it is incumbent on all believers to struggle against the lethal impulses that lie within their own religious traditions” (147).

Captain America is one of the most fascinating books I have read. It is not above criticism of course. It might be argued, for example, that construing the biblical tradition as a contest between two contradictory impulses – crusading zeal and prophetic realism – is a too convenient and simplistic a way of dealing with the complexities and ambiguities of the ancient text.

But there can be little debate that zealous ideals have had a tragic legacy in the subsequent belief and practice of the great monotheistic faiths. In face of global terrorism, both that of Osama bin Laden and that of Uncle Sam, it is more urgent than ever to break the link between “holy” violence and the will of

God. “Blessed are the peacemakers”, said Jesus, “for they shall be called the children of God”.

Read Chris’ full review here (see pages 9 though 12) in issue 24 (PDF) of On The Road, the newsletter of the Anabaptist Association of Australia and New Zealand Inc. Link to chapter 1 of the reviewed book can be found here.

Comments

[andy goodliff]

Thanks Paul - you draw our attention to another must-read and fascinating book. I appreciate your consistent ability to finding good stuff to read, like Colossians Remixed. My book list never gets any smaller because of your blog!

[Messy Christian]

Nice, will try get this book somehow.