NOT THAT THEY'RE ANY EASIER TO DEFINE...:

John Winthrop envisioned a biblical mission for America as a "Shining city upon a hill," a vision that Paul Miller argues tends toward nationalism rather than patriotism. Public domain image uploaded from the Architect of the Capitol.

Paul Miller argues in his recent book, The Religion of American Greatness: What's Wrong with Christian Nationalism, that American conservatives should reject nationalism because it is idolatrous and illiberal, and that we should instead embrace simple patriotism based on devotion to the American creed.  He identifies nationalism as composed of the following beliefs: "(1) Humanity is divisible into mutually distinct and internally coherent cultural units called 'nations.' (2) Each nation deserves its own state. Political and cultural boundaries should, ideally, align perfectly. (3) Governments have rightful jurisdiction over the cultural life of their nations." 

He argues convincingly that any nationalist project of creating neat lines between cultural groups will be extraordinarily difficult because culture constantly bleeds across state boundaries.  If culture is flexible and hard to define (let alone confine), then efforts to keep national boundaries matched perfectly with cultural boundaries will be chaotic and dangerous. 

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