By Craig M. Watts
Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7, 11; Philippians 3:17-4:1
A number of years ago I came across the results of a nationwide poll in which people were asked to define themselves in a single word. What would you answer? Not even one sentence but using just one word, who are you? Of the more than eleven-hundred people who participated in the New York Times — CBS News poll there were about two hundred different answers.
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Among the most frequently given answers were the words "average" at four percent of those polled, "me" or "myself" at four percent as well. The word "concerned" came in at nearly three percent among the words most offered as a self-description. Few other words reached even one percent.
After the poll was taken a number of celebrities were asked to describe themselves in a single word. Businessman Donald Trump answered, "Doer." Professional basketball coach Pat Riley offered the word "Traditional." News anchor Peter Jennings described himself with the word, "Impassioned." Talk show host Rush Limbaugh selected the world, "Misrepresented." None of the respondents in the poll choose a word of self-description that indicated their race. Neither did participants in the poll tend to label themselves as members of an interest group or part. The single word that was used the most, well over twice as much as the next most frequently given word of self-identity was "American." This answer was evenly distributed across the country.
Perhaps you don't find the results of this poll the least bit surprising. Maybe it is pretty much what you would expect. I confess that when I read the results of the poll I was disappointed with what I found. After all, the United States is a country in which over eighty percent of the population claim in some fashion to be followers of Jesus. It seems reasonable to think that the overwhelming majority or at least a large plurality of people would describe themselves with the single word "Christian," not "American." Certainly there is nothing wrong with being American. To the contrary, much good can be said about it. But the poll seems to me to suggest a misplaced priority.
Citizenship is about not just where you live but where you belong. It is about things like identity, loyalty and values. And these are things that go with you even if you are outside of the country that you call your own. They shape you, define you, make you who you are no matter where you are. You can live in a foreign land for decades as a resident alien while maintaining your citizenship in a place long unseen. Citizenship is not just a fact seen on a passport but a reality that resides in the heart.