Nationalism Is No New Idea

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There are those who'll say in error that the idea of nation is a modern invention. They are wrong. The nation-State is, but not the nation. There are others who say nation is a thing of race, therefore it's racist to seek to preserve your nation. They too are in error. Nationality is an ancient concept and it's inherently good to seek to preserve your nation:

"At that time the venerable servant of Christ, and priest, Egbert, whom I cannot name but with the greatest respect, and who, as was said before, lived a stranger in Ireland to obtain hereafter a residence in heaven, proposed to himself to do good to many, by taking upon him the apostolical work, and preaching the word of God to some of those nations that had not yet heard it; many of which nations he knew there were in Germany, from whom the Angles or Saxons, who now inhabit Britain, are known to have derived their origin; for which reason they are still corruptly called Garmans by the neighboring nation of the Britons. Such are the Frisons, the Rugins, the Danes, the Huns, the Ancient Saxons, and the Boructuars (or Bructers). There are also in the same parts many other nations still following pagan rites, to whom the aforesaid soldier of Christ designed to repair, sailing round Britain, and to try whether he could deliver any of them from Satan, and bring them over to Christ; or if this could not be done, to go to Rome, to see and adore the hallowed thresholds of the holy apostles and martyrs of Christ.

Bede's Ecclesiastical History.

I share this quote to prove nationality is not a modern concept, Bede wrote this over a thousand years ago. In far away land. The idea of nations is ancient. The Biblical Scriptures prove this even more. 

He who does not provide for his family is worse than an infidel. The Church once understood this, and in the period of history it most flourished in Europe, this was their approach: teach the nations to submit to Christ, to be led by their own people, to mind their own nation's affairs, and then once secure in Christian culture to send out missionaries to teach other nations the same thing. The West Church needs to remember itself.