Invisible Syncretism
How white American evangelicalism compromised with empire and called it gospel
I think about witches a lot. And maybe that sounds weird, but I think about them a lot because they are a group that typically exists outside of institutional control. Whether they engage in witchcraft or are merely labeled as troublesome people (especially women), it’s because of their quiet rebellion. It exists outside of the boxes they’ve been assigned and the dominant culture, and because of that it is a little rebellious — daring to be different.
It leads me to think about some of the practices that tend to get thrown under the “she’s a witch, burn her!” bus throughout history.
herbalism
midwifery
individual or communal rituals outside of organized religious settings
connection to nature’s rhythms like observing moon cycles
Historically, we can see that most of the women condemned for witchcraft were not really witches, but rather, women in the way (of land, money, control, authority, injustice, the list could go on). Today though, many of the activities connected to the idea of “witchcraft” are not inherently dangerous.
Rather, it’s the idea of people, perspectives, or practices that exist outside of the dominant institutions are what make them dangerous. Because these upset the status quo. It’s these ideas that, if spread, would create chaos for the dominant ideologies and institutions. And it’s not just limited to witchcraft.
If it comes from or centers a different point of view than the white Western voice, it is labeled dangerous even if it’s within the Christian tradition. Liberation theology, other non-Western theological frameworks, or anything that centers the voices on the margins get dismissed as “cultural” or “compromise” or even syncretism by American evangelicalism.
But who gets to decide what is contextual or wrestling with the nature of our world and divine revelation and what is syncretic? Who gets to say what is pure and what is defiled, biblical belief?
White American evangelicalism has put its stake in the ground to be THE version of Christianity. It leans on certainty and prides itself on its purity.
John MacArthur, for example, once wrote, “Today, even among conservative believers, there are many preachers, teachers, and scholars who are working hard to make the church and the Bible more accommodating to contradictory worldviews. While they might outwardly affirm the inerrancy and authority of Scripture, their actions betray a lack of confidence in God’s Word. Intimidated by cultural agendas and eager to find favor with the unsaved world, these men and women capitulate to blending truth with all sorts of error—evolution, feminism, psychology, and ecumenism, just to name a few.”1
But what if white American evangelicalism is itself one of the most thorough syncretic religions in Christian history? What if it just has the power at the moment to call itself “true, biblical faith”?
This power, combined with a culture of certainty, makes their theology the dominant one, and thus, the syncretic elements become invisible to them and any outside voices become scrutinized for their inability to conform. And when you knock out dissident perspectives, your way becomes labeled “the truth” and all others are distractions at best and heresy at worst.
But dominance of an idea should not be linked to its inherent correctness. In fact, cultural and political dominance may actually be a signpost for the ways in which your version is deeply compromised.
So … what are white American evangelicalism’s current threads of syncretism?
The Chief Cornerstone of Colonialism and White Supremacy
Christianity arrived in the Americas as a tool of empire. As the “old world” powers looked to expand their influence and affluence, they came to the other side of the globe. However, the land was already occupied and cultures already established and thriving without their influence. Religion became a reason to eradicate and displace these indigenous peoples. The choice was to submit and assimilate or perish. By calling them “savages” and “heathens,” they could justify their actions.2
But it didn’t stop at arriving and establishing a foothold. Instead, American independence then expansion became the goal. “Manifest destiny” became a theological claim: God has special affection for America and Americans must spread Christianity and democracy by expanding their nation’s land. Again, murdering and displacing indigenous people and practices … unless, of course, they wanted to assimilate and “be saved,” forsaking their native practices and culture.
While some make a case from certain narratives in the Hebrew Bible that this kind of behavior is favored — though this requires the highly flawed theological leap that equates America with the people of Israel — the Prophets have a lot to say to those who perpetuate harm and injustice while observing religious rituals.
Amos, for example, is written to the people during a time of peace and prosperity. Because all seems well, they think God must be pleased. But below the surface, there is exploitation of the poor and injustices perpetuated by the wealthy and influential. Despite their observance of the religious practices, God says it’s no good.
“I hate, I despise your religious festivals;
your assemblies are a stench to me.
Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.
Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
But let justice roll on like a river,
righteousness like a never-failing stream!”—Amos 5:21-24
Dominance doesn’t equal divine approval. Elevated status and prime positions don’t equal religious purity. Our collective, cultural sins can persist even when the nation prospers.
One of America’s, and therefore also American Christianity’s, chief sins is white supremacy. Our churches remain largely segregated. We continue to value markers of “civilized” white-coded culture as normative and preferable. And we dismiss those who worship, practice, or think differently.
Some see these as ways we keep our faith “pure”— eschewing anything that doesn’t fit the paradigm, but it never stops to ask: what if being aligned with the empire is the dangerous compromise we made? What if that is the syncretism we should have been wary of all along?
We see it in the history books, but also in the structures and mindsets that operate today.
The Systems of American Syncretism
American evangelical syncretism thrives today because it has rendered itself invisible, weaving its operations into the everyday fabric of American life. It is aligned with what many think of as “distinctly American” values.
Nationalism comes disguised as patriotism. American exceptionalism pulls us into isolation from the world instead of connectedness to it. Right and wrong come with borders attached, and one is faithful because one belongs to a “chosen people” or “chosen nation” and not because their inner posture or their outward actions display the love of God.
The Church stops operating like a community and becomes a commodity. Every church is a brand and measures itself by the “butts in pews” or the dollars in the door. The influence of capitalism then treats Sunday mornings as ways to build their own little empires — prioritizing entertainment to attract newcomers, underpaying staff to keep the wheels turning cost effectively, bigger donors are investors with more say-so, and pastors are celebrities who wield wide authority. And you, too, can “buy in” with your service or your money.
Individualism reduces the gospel to a personal matter. Success and self-actualization become spiritual metrics, and the American dream gets baptized in Scripture making the prosperity gospel our logical endpoint. Resource accumulation replaces communal reliance and care, and justice is converted into a focus on righteousness so that we can be holy without being near our neighbors.
I know I’ve felt the dissonance in my own experience. My salvation felt contingent on being able to recite the doctrinal statements verbatim. I’ve been a number on an attendance roll and a dollar sign in an accounting ledger, and my belonging has been contingent on how much I adhere to cultural norms. I’ve had to earn help in hard times by being a “good member” and in the “right circles,” and my value has been determined by what free labor I’ve contributed.
Maybe you, too, have sought community and found yourself a cog in a machine that called itself Christlike.
These may be “American” values, but they don’t seem to be prioritized in the early church. In the book of Acts, we see the communal sharing of resources so that none had need, breaking down ethnic and class barriers, and decentralized power. That was a church of service and solidarity.
Are these American values Christian or cultural? Are they Scriptural or syncretic?
Pure and Undefiled Religion
I was taught to think of syncretism as combining two or more religions. It’s a kind of “folk theology” or “folk practice” of something more institutionalized. But it occurs to me, and hopefully you at this point, that syncretism is not only about combining our Christian religion with another. It could also be combining our Christian theology and practice with cultural attitudes and elements.
Those, in fact, could be more damaging to ourselves and others and distracting from walking the Way of Christ.
If everything we’ve discussed today are signposts of cultural syncretism in white American evangelicalism, what are the signposts of the kind of religion we should be practicing? James kept it simple.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world. — James 1:27, NRSVUE
Orphans and widows were the people who had no one to care for them or even look out for them. “Pure and undefiled” religion makes communal care of the vulnerable a priority. A faith that desires to see everyone flourish and works to create the environment where that happens even — no especially, for those that everyone else overlooks.
It’s not about dominance or prosperity. It’s not applauded for its accumulation or assimilation. Those are priorities of the world and its systems. Those are the stains of the world. That’s white American evangelical syncretism.
Lent for the Weary
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