Living in Two Americas

It was never easy being a Hebrew prophet. Once we let go of the notion that the main task of the Biblical prophets was to predict the future (i.e., the End Times) or the coming of Jesus (the first time), we will then begin to appreciate them for their main mission: 

To remind Israel of her covenant relationship with Yahweh with a keen focus on justice and peace.

This was no easy task and certainly required an enormously high degree of courage to withstand the criticism of the citizenry and the vitriol of the political elites. Men like Amos, Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Hosea were not feeble and meek preachers, but rather men animated by the Spirit of Yahweh to speak truth to power. 

Today we need such prophets in America, more now than ever. We need brave souls, men and women alike, to remind us that we aren't quite the “City on a Hill” we think we are.

Author Suzy Hansen does just that by reminding us of a hard truth in a recent article published in the Washington Post:

The Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie once observed that there are “two Americas” — one at home and one abroad. The first is the America of Hollywood, work-in-progress democracy, civil rights movements and Ellis Island. The second is the America of coups and occupations, military dictators and CIA plots, economic meddling and contempt for foreign cultures. The rest of the world knows both Americas. But as Shamsie has written, Americans don’t seem aware of the second one at all (italics added).

It’s this first America that I love and is mostly admired by all those living outside our borders. Yet it is the second America that many Americans can’t see and non-Americans living abroad do see and dislike, and perhaps for good reason.

In fact, Suzy Hansen lives and works in Istanbul and certainly has a clearer perspective of what this second America really looks like to those living outside the borders of the “City on a Hill.”

The Hebrew prophets spoke truth to power and many were persecuted for being so honestly forthcoming. They interpreted the signs of the times rather than merely predicting the future. They were deemed unpatriotic and haters of their country. Some suffered extreme hardship for speaking truth to power (e.g., Jeremiah). 

Such modern day prophets as the Russian Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the American Martin Luther King, Jr., the South African Nelson Mandela, and many others understood the dangers of speaking truth to power and each paid a horrible price. 

Both Jesus and John the Baptist spoke truth to power and it did not end well for them. It rarely does for prophets, both ancient and modern.

I love America and because I love her I do not hesitate to critique her whenever I believe it is appropriate to do so. I believe anyone who truly loves America would do the same thing. I’m not talking about mindless complaining or partisan bickering, but rather a hope filled critique whose primary goal is to speak truth to power.

Jesus did warn us however: 

“A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.”

Like all other nations America is deeply flawed. She falls way short of perfection.  She has skeletons hidden deep in her closet; skeletons that need to be exposed to the light of day. 

These are not easy words to hear. History may offend but it doesn’t lie. I well remember the first time I became aware of my country’s dark underbelly and once the proverbial toothpaste is out of the tube it is impossible to put it back. Once you see it you can’t unsee it.

Kamila Shamsie reminds us of what we Americans fail to see and are simply unable to critique in healthy ways.

Yes I love the first America as anyone should. I love the first America of generosity and open hospitality. I love the first America of freedom of expression. I love the America that the Statue of Liberty invites all to experience. I love the first America of apple pie, baseball, 4th of July celebrations, and the rich tapestry of so much cultural diversity.

I love the first America of medical and scientific innovation. I love the first America in which the ideal is liberty and justice for all, even though we are still working on that wonderful vision.

Yet I am not fond of the second America; the one that is often hidden and not allowed to be seen in public; the one that Americans have such a difficult time seeing, let alone acknowledging. 

I wonder, if the Hebrew prophet Amos were alive today would he speak truth to power? Would he call out the second America and force her to expose herself to an unaware citizenry? Would he challenge the first America to empty ther dirty laundry of the second America in order to promote justice and peace for all?

I happen to think that he would do just that and he probably would be labeled unAmerican and unpatriotic.