This is likely an unpopular opinion. It’s just a feeling I can’t seem to shake on days like these. Look on Facebook and other social media and you can see all kinds of messages today. All of them seem innocent enough. We are honoring those that have lost their lives serving our country. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the message. I guess I have an issue with some of the messengers.

These are some of the same people that bring you Christian messages. I’ve never trusted those for as long as I can remember. There are numerous reasons why, but I can stick with the biblical. There are a few passages that warn against a very public display of faith. Usually, those are self-serving and the person behind them rarely lives up to the message.

In the case of the patriotism, they almost always come from conservative end of the spectrum. Not surprisingly, that’s usually where the religious ones come from as well. In both cases, we should watch for the strings that are almost certainly attached.

It comes with an implication of what it means to be a patriotic American. Interesting enough, it is those same strings to seem to be attached to the Christian message. Agree with the message and you agree with what’s behind the message. Don’t agree with what’s behind the message and you don’t agree with the message. See what we’ve done here? It’s the infamous circular argument.

It’s the same circular argument that brought the Texas legislature and governor to oppose the teaching of the existence of racism. It’s the same one that has many questioning the validity of the election. It’s the same one that has them wanting to restrict voting access. It’s a tangled web that requires a love of country that doesn’t see faults except for the ones that aren’t there.

It is the kind of love that exists nowhere else. We don’t love our family that way. We don’t love our sports teams that way. We don’t love our spouses that way. If we are doing it right we don’t even love ourselves that way. How could we possibly love our country that way? It is a love that loves without complexity. It is a love that loves without understanding. It is a love that fails to separate those that defend its freedoms with those make the decisions surrounding it. It really isn’t love at all. Strings are always dangerous when it comes to love. Watch out for strings.