“Do not be afraid” is the most frequently repeated phrase in the Bible. Depending on how precise you want the wording to be, and which translation you choose, the commandment not to fear occurs anywhere from 70 to 365 times. No other saying even comes close.
If God speaks, if an angel appears, if a challenge presents itself, if tribulation comes, the Bible always assures its readers: “Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1.9).
Here’s the odd thing: America is 70% Christian, according a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center. And the Bible plays a big role in Christianity, at least theoretically. But America has become a culture of fear.
Sometime in the past few decades, Americans became afraid of everything. Fear of crime is up, even though crime rates are down. Fear of terrorism has skyrocketed, even though toddlers with guns kill far more Americans. Fear of immigrants is rampant, although they commit crimes at lower rates than native born Americans.
We fear what we shouldn’t fear. Even worse, we don’t fear what we should fear. Or better, what we should resist. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, second hand smoke causes 40,000 deaths per year, but we’re not all that afraid of tobacco. Diabetes kills 74,000 Americans per year, but we’re not all that afraid of sugar. Firearms kill 33,000 Americans per year, but we’re buying more of them to protect ourselves.
Politicians fret all the time about terrorism and immigration, but hardly ever about tobacco, sugar, and firearms. And that’s not surprising, since those industries shower Washington in money. If ISIS were a registered SuperPAC, we’d see a lot more terrorists at charity balls in DC.
What if American Christians took the Bible seriously? Maybe then we wouldn’t be so afraid—of refugee children coming to our shores, of hardworking immigrants looking for a better life, of Muslims who want to share in our freedom and prosperity.
Then, since Jesus condemned greed incessantly, maybe we’d be more vigilant and stop permitting the purchase of our politicians by corporate lobbyists. After all, tobacco, sugar, and firearms kill thousands of times more Americans than ISIS.
A friendly note to all Daily Kos readers. I am a progressive like you, only from a Christian perspective. In support of progressivism, I am trying to articulate a progressive Christian political vision. As I argue for progress from a Christian perspective, I am in no way asserting the superiority of faith to atheism, or Christianity to any other worldview. I am just trying to advance humanity from my own particular perspective. I think that God prefers kind atheists to mean Christians. My hope is that we can all cooperate across worldviews to create a more just, inclusive, and peaceful world. Thank you.