The Washington Theological Consortium (WTC), a community of theological schools and partners from diverse traditions located in the Greater Washington, DC area, has initiated a public sign-on statement opposing the theological and moral claims of religious nationalism around the globe, especially by Christians. The statement has received growing public endorsement from dozens of faculty and representatives from WTC member schools, as well as from individuals across interfaith communities in the DC area. The statement is now available to the wider public for download and sign-on at WashTheoCon.org/statement.
“The sad need for this statement is increasingly apparent in our times,” said Rev. Larry Golemon, Ph.D., Executive Director of the WTC. “Those who have endorsed this statement are voicing opposition to ethnic, racial, class and political interest groups who seek to impose on society a view of religion – and Christianity in particular – that is damaging to the faith and publicly dangerous.” Golemon, echoing the words of the statement, noted that these groups, which follow a form of Christian nationalism, are seeking to set political leaders in the place belonging to God alone. “Such views are contrary to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and, as such, demand a response from those of us who prepare ministers across multiple Christian denominations and different faiths to promote human solidarity, the common good and the universal call to service and care for all persons.”
After an initial period in the spring in which faculty, students and others from among the WTC’s member institutions were privately invited to prayerfully consider endorsing the statement, the organization has recently made the full statement public, and encourages wider sign-ons.
Specifically, the statement notes concerns about “the co-opting of religion by cultural and political movements to carry out ideological political agendas which seek domination, militancy and lawlessness.” Such efforts, which are now global in scope and influence, have affected growing authoritarianism around the globe, including Hungary and Russia in its war with Ukraine. The statement rejects five specific characteristics of the Christian nationalist movement – superior ethnocentrism, political messianism, apocalyptic militancy, lawless authority, and social hegemony. It defines these characteristics and indicates how they distort the Christian faith, marshalling in response, the theological perspectives of the Orthodox and Catholic Churches, Methodist, Anglican, Lutheran, and Baptist social teaching, statements of the late Pope Francis, and the recent Confession of Evangelical Conviction from 2024, among others. The statement concludes by inviting Christian communities and persons to “promote human solidarity and the common good,” through an expression of Christian teaching that is rooted in service, and a call from God to uphold “the divine dignity of every human being.”
Download a copy of this media release. | Download a copy of the ecumenical statement. | Add your name to the ecumenical statement.
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About the Washington Theological Consortium
Founded over 50 years ago, the Washington Theological Consortium is a community of theological schools and partners from diverse traditions that pursue ecumenical dialogue, interfaith understanding, and educational collaboration to better equip clergy and laity for the ministry of the Church in a diverse society. For more information, please contact Rev. Larry Golemon, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Washington Theological Consortium, at (202) 832-2675 or [email protected] or visit washtheocon.org.