God Bless America!

It has been an memorable day--an inspiring day, uniting many in our nation who have been sealed earlier in their own little worlds and separated from one another. Regardless of all that divides Americans--and there is much--today's gathering of so many from all over this country and world in our nation's capital was truly remarkable.

The smiles and tears everywhere evident conveyed a sense of hope, not least on the faces of African Americans who have so long borne the burden of the physical and emotional indignities that first brought them to our shores. One day, of course, cannot eliminate the economic inequalities and social disdain that they and so many others still suffer in a land founded on the premise that all people are created equal. Nor can one day be expected to cure the enormous world-wide problems our nation now faces. There clearly are difficult days ahead.

Yet something was in the air today, all over our country and world, that just as clearly offered joy and hope no matter where people found themselves participating. And maybe, just maybe, hope is what we need now the most. Fervent debates will follow--as they should--for sometime into the future. No one has all the answers, as President Obama made clear. But if those debates--however dissonant and passionate--are fueled not by self-interest but with the common good in mind, America could well be on its way to a whole new birth both of freedom and prosperity.

As a Christian I reserve ultimate loyalty to the Kingdom of God, but today I was proud to be an American. I was moved by the communal sense of hope that flowed from its people, and inspired by them to dedicate myself again to my responsibilities as a Christian for all God's people, whether in the church or beyond.

There is no shame in being an patriot so long as that patriotism is morally and socially responsible. As a matter of fact our coming together as a nation of nationalities--seeking with common purpose across every divide to deal redemptively with all the issues that confronts us--may well be the surest way to offer people of other nations, cultures, and religions the hope they clearly long for and so much need.