E Pluribus Unum.
This brief Latin phrase meaning “one from many” was first added to United States coins in 1795. It’s a motto that speaks to all citizens of the United States of America, even in an era when those saying it were usually of the same complexion and faith. Nonetheless, some 229 years since its addition, the phrase continues to carry weight regarding how we, as a populace, see ourselves and each other in the great experiment that is the U.S.. Oddly, it’s a phrase, “In God We Trust,” that was added much later to coins in 1864, then postage stamps in 1950, and far wider in years to come, that would serve as a driving force in a political and cultural shift throughout the country. What was once celebrated as a melting pot of ideas brewed through the perspectives of the immigrants who founded the country is now seen as a weakness, a sickness that must be cured by driving it out and only the servants of G-d can make that happen. In his latest documentary, God & Country, having its world premiere at the 2024 Santa Barbara International Film Festival, filmmaker Dan Partland (#UNFIT: The Psychology of Donald Trump) explores the issue of Christian Nationalism and the threat it faces to American democracy.
Image from Dan Partland’s documentary GOD & COUNTRY. Photo courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories.
It’s currently 2024 and the investigation into the January 6th, 2020, attack on the U.S. Capitol remains on-going. Captured on camera by news organizations on the ground, as well as by many participants who recorded their own activities, video shows a variety of demographics marching upon the building, breaching its defenses, going into the chambers in which votes were to be certified by then-Vice President Mike Pence, and otherwise going through various offices to search for, what these individuals believed to be, evidence of conspiracy and impropriety. As court ruling after court ruling comes down demonstrating that there was no election fraud by the Democratic Party for the 2020 election, that then-President Donald Trump may be held responsible for his part in the events that day, and that the participants were, in fact, not bad actors or plants but actual Trump supporters, one begins to wonder why anyone would continue to support the former President, let alone make him the Republican frontrunner for the 2024 election. Via a collection of legal, historical, and religious experts, Partland lays out a case that explains how not only are the people who support Trump blinded to his falsehoods and criminal actions, but that it’s specifically tied to their religious identity, making for a very dangerous concoction that forgets the very values their faith is built upon and leading to what’s known as Christian Nationalism.
Image from Dan Partland’s documentary GOD & COUNTRY. Photo courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories.
There’s going to be a presumption on both ends of the religious and/or political spectrum that God & Country is going to be somehow incendiary or severe, specifically toward Trump and his base. In truth, it’s far more of a history lesson that includes a warning. Through a variety of talking head interviews mixed with news reports and event footage of historical note, Partland doesn’t just focus on the 2016 – 2022 period, the information shared goes further back to the founding of the United States and the ways in which our foundational documents are twisted in their interpretation by current political organizations led by religious activists. What this does is create a context for January 6th and why there’s continued vitriol today and, to some degree, what can be viewed as ignorance to action and deed. For instance, in the current Conservative/MAGA (Make America Great Again) portion of politics, the Founders are viewed as deeply religious individuals who created our laws based on religious law. It doesn’t take much digging to see how much of a fallacy that is — the Constitution begins with “We the People,” indicative of who holds the power within the document (not a faith, but the people) and the language within states that “no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.” If the United States were ever a theocracy, these phrases would not be in the central and defining document the Founders crafted. Of course, to seal the deal, the Bill of Rights begins with the First Amendment, which states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” However, despite these truths, the religious political movement continuously proclaims their beliefs as facts, adding to them a variety of imagery regarding American as a place of divinity, thereby linking their Christian faith with the rule of law within America. This by itself is startling, but if one goes back further than now, before the Tea Party (est. 2009), before even Jerry Falwell and his creation of the Moral Majority which would influence Conservative politics of the 1970s, these experts draw a direct line from the fight against anti-segregation laws to today. For the length of the 90-minute runtime, Partland’s interviewees drop historical fact after historical fact, creating a context in which those who are not part of MAGA can truly understand why those within it feel as they do.
Image from Dan Partland’s documentary GOD & COUNTRY. Photo courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories.
Keep in mind that each of the interviewees are connected to either the legal or religious side of the discussion and most are in some way related to Christianity, either as a religious leader, an activist, an actual Sister, or member of the Conservative press. This ensures that what Partland’s exploring isn’t immediately colored by political belief or religious opposition, which creates a least a small chance that the information they each impart is considered. Every single thing that the interviewees discuss relates back to the very concerning issue of Christian Nationalism as an active part of our current political climate in the U.S.. Looking at each one from a wider view, with the embossed “Trump” hats, “God Guns Trump” bodywear, statues of the former President, and all the speeches that weave in linguistics one would expect of a pastor when discussing the former President, how can one not see how this portion of Christianity seems to be, from this Reformed Jew’s perspective, lost from their path and kneeling before a false idol? These experts lay evidence down, piece by piece, wherein anyone can recognize how the apparent (to outsiders) dissonance is actually in line with the thinking of members as they see themselves not as followers of Christ, but as warriors. Instead of helping the meek, aiding the impoverished, treating a neighbor as yourself, casting out debtors, and recoiling at capitalism (a system that’s inherently corrupt in the way it enriches the few and takes advantage of the many), their faith tells them that there’s only one appropriate race, immigration is a an illness, violence against a perceived enemy is not only legal but a moral obligation, and more. On Tuesday, February 6th, during a live shoot interview with Fox News “journalist” Sean Hannity, Curtis Sliwa, founder of a New York-based vigilante group, and several of his members engaged in harassing activity with someone they believed to be an immigrant/migrant to the point that Hannity asked Sliwa to move the camera so that his viewers could see what they were doing. They do this because they believe the New York government to be unlawful in their handling of immigrants and it’s up to them to do something about it. Not only was the person they harassed not doing anything illegal, but they are an American citizen. Via the information laid down by Partland’s film, the pacifist African-born Jesus Christ, the one who welcomes all, loves all, judges none, has been turned into a bloodthirsty fighter whose blood runs Red, White, & Blue, making all of the choices of these followers righteous and anyone who opposes them is placing an attack on their personal identity as well as their faith.
Image from Dan Partland’s documentary GOD & COUNTRY. Photo courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories.
By relying on evidence and not just the word of the interviewees, Partland deftly walks a path that certainly paints the former president and the current Conservative movement as ignorant of history, the law, and faith without ever being denigrating to the faithful. At no point does the documentary instill a sense that one should be either agnostic, of a different faith altogether, or otherwise guilt-ridden for the behavior of others. This isn’t about making those within the Christian community feel small or taken to task, rather, it clearly walks the audience through a minefield of information in order to say, “none of what they want is G-dly; none of what they seek is in line with the teaches; it’s all about personal power and subjugation.” This is what helps maintain a strong connection that leaves one shocked and yet riveted to see how a populace so clearly engaged politically could get their faith so far from its central tenants that helping people in the name of their religious figurehead results in the active harm of others.
Screening during Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2024.
In theaters February 16th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Oscilloscope Laboratories God & Country webpage.
Final Score: 4 out of 5.
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Categories: In Theaters, Reviews
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