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The words were almost identical to those I heard from the mouth of a Chinese acquaintance nearly 20 years ago. “Chicago! Bang! Bang! Mafia!”
One American visitor to Africa tells of the puzzlement of an African watching him unpack. “But where is your revolver?” he asked. The assumption: Every American carries a gun.
Where do people get their impressions of America? Primarily television and the movies, it seems. Of course, America isn’t the only country to be reduced to cliches. Mention Austria to most Americans and you’ll hear a rousing rendition of “The hills are alive with the sound of music.”
But mafia and Sound of Music impressions, even if annoying, are relatively harmless cliches—hardly worth the trouble of trying to refute. A greater challenge is the anti-Americanism making its way around the globe in the wake of the war in Iraq.
Whatever most American missionaries’ views of the war, hardly anyone likes to hear their native land disparaged. We may not completely trust the motives of our own government, but most Americans are willing to give our leaders at least the benefit of the doubt—in distinct contrast to many non-Americans, who these days are inclined to assign the worst possible motives to the president and other American leaders, regardless of what they do.
We hear a lot about terrorism, and missionaries are admonished to take precautions and to avoid potentially dangerous situations. But what about psycho-terrorism? How do missionaries deal with the debilitating effect of disparaging comments from locals, the anti-American tone of newscasts, the little digs and occasional bouts of outright haranguing?
Personal experience suggests that attempting to change people’s minds is futile. Arguing over American policy, intentions or actions is counterproductive.
At some point, we have to decide that it isn’t our duty to defend America. We must come to terms with the fact that not everyone will appreciate the finer points of America, and that some people will hold with all their strength to false impressions, exaggerations and outright lies passed on to them. Why is it important to us that people appreciate our country—or at least extend to it the benefit of the doubt? Is our own sense of self worth wrapped up in our identification with our country?
“Proud to be an American,” is a phrase we hear coming out of America often these days. What about those who serve as missionaries overseas? Can wounded pride be a stumbling block in our efforts to win others to Christ? It certainly can if we allow our hurt feelings to come between us and those to whom we are to minister.
We who are missionaries need to remind ourselves from time to time that we are not ambassadors of America, but ambassadors of Christ—representatives not of America, but of the kingdom of God.
This doesn’t mean we can’t be good citizens of America, but it means we must be even better citizens of Christ’s kingdom, holding its goals higher than our own need to feel accepted and appreciated as Americans.
But it is easier said than done. If we are verbally attacked by those who identify us with American policy, how do we avoid letting a chip find its way onto our shoulder? Or, how do we manage not to slink when virtually everyone around us views our country as an outlaw nation?
As missionaries, our American citizenship has often opened doors for us. We shouldn’t be surprised when it sometimes slams those doors.
The Apostle Paul used his Roman citizenship for all it was worth. And in those days, it was worth a lot. Yet, he was willing to suffer abuse and humiliation for the sake of Christ, laying down even the things that once were a source of pride.
Maybe we need to lay down our pride in our own citizenship as Americans. Not our respect for America’s leaders and our appreciation for all that is right in our country. And certainly not our intercession for America and its leaders. But whatever is laid at the foot of the cross cannot rise up in a huff to defend its interests—and, incidentally, lay the sword to the goals of Christ and his Kingdom.
Proud to be an American? How about proud to be a child of God? Now, there’s a relationship in which our sense of self worth can revel.
Sharon Mumper directs the Magazine Training Institute (MTI) from Austria. MTI equips Christian magazine publishers in East-Central Europe and Asia.