Puritanism and Americanism

The Texas überblogger Joe Carter has convened the first quarterly blog symposium over the following article from the Jewish neoconservative periodical Commentary: "Americanism—and Its Enemies," by David Gelernter. Gelernter writes:

By Americanism I do not mean American tastes or style, or American culture -- that convenient target of America-haters everywhere. Nor do I mean mere patriotic devotion; many nations command patriotic devotion from their citizens (or used to). By Americanism I mean the set of beliefs that are thought to constitute America’s essence and to set it apart; the beliefs that make Americans positive that their nation is superior to all others -- morally superior, closer to God.

Not an insignificant number of scholars have noted the impact of the early American colonists' Puritanism on the development of what might be labelled American exceptionalism. Where Gelernter departs from this consensus is in his assertion that Americanism is itself a continuation of Puritanism and can thus be identified as a Judeo-Christian religion.

I believe that Puritanism did not drop out of history. It transformed itself into Americanism. This new religion was the end-stage of Puritanism: Puritanism realized among God’s self-proclaimed "new" chosen people -- or, in Abraham Lincoln’s remarkable phrase, God’s "almost chosen people."

Many thinkers have noted that Americanism is inspired by or close to or intertwined with Puritanism. One of the most impressive scholars to say so recently is Samuel Huntington, in his formidable book on American identity, Who Are We? But my thesis is that Puritanism did not merely inspire or influence Americanism; it turned into Americanism. Puritanism and Americanism are not just parallel or related developments; they are two stages of a single phenomenon.

I have little to add to Gideon Strauss' well-thought-out reflections on this article, and I am mostly in agreement with his approach. Writes Strauss:

America is a nation among the nations of the world. It is a political community subject to the same norms for the organization of administrative and military power in the service of public justice as all other states. It is not exceptional in the sense of having a special mission from a god that would elevate it in principle above the other nations in the world. It is not a "nation [...] superior to all others — morally superior, closer to God." It is exceptional in being in a position at the present moment of unequaled political and military power, with which comes certain unique responsibilities, at least for the time being.

Strauss calls for a christian anti-anti-Americanism, i.e., an approach that rejects the sort of facile anti-Americanism that lends support and comfort to international terrorists while at the same time repudiating as idolatrous the Americanism Gelernter describes and seemingly espouses. In this context I might refer readers to my own Political Visions and Illusions, especially chapter 4, "Nationalism: The Nation Deified." Although I am particularly critical of the ethnic nationalisms of 19th- and early 20th-century Greek, German and Italian irredentists, I believe one must also recognize the potential dangers of the civic nationalism associated with, among other things, the proponents of American exceptionalism. Nationalism is no less idolatrous for being attached to a successful polity with an inclusive, nonethnic notion of citizenship.

I will close with the following book alert. James W. Skillen's With Or Against The World?: America's Role Among The Nations is due out next month from Rowman & Littlefield. I've read a sample chapter and, as is typical of Skillen's work, it looks very good indeed. As I've written before in this space, I suspect it will occasion some controversy among American Christians, huge numbers of whom have come to embrace uncritically the American exceptionalism that is so thoroughly ingrained in their political culture. Perhaps Carter will see fit to hold his second blog symposium on this book.

Later: I might add to this that I wrote something just over a year ago on this theme: "A mixed legacy: evangelicalism's puritan roots." This was written in response to Skillen's Capital Commentary piece, "An American Covenant with God?"