What does God think of patriots?

Well I have been listening to many comment on the presidential campaign and especially questioning Obama's patriotism. This has sparked the question of whether it is ok to be Christian and a patriot? Would it have been ok in the Roman empire? In the antebellum south the Confederate soldiers would have been considered patriots? Where do we draw the line in being christians and also for our country? One of the people who come to mind as I contemplate this argument is Dietrich Boenhoffer who resisted Nazi Germany to the point of being incarcerated in a concentration camp. All of this because he was not a good patriot. As I think about my own ethnicity it is hard for me to be a patriot because every time I think of America I think slavery. How can I be a patriotic towards a country that was founded on the suffering and oppression of my ancestors? How do I reconcile that with my Christian faith? How can I be a patriotic towards a country that slaughtered my native american ancestors to near extinction? That is just my own personal contact with the lack of integrity of America. Is there a biblical precedent for not being patriotic. Maybe....read Amos 1:1-2:8

On the other hand I enjoy being able to vote, being able to write about things like this on a blog without being in danger of incarceration, I like having my own choice of what I buy and the fact that I am able to go to school or to Trader Joe's for that matter.

I guess it all boils down to integrity. I think that is why Obama has been apologizing for America. It is not that we are not a great nation but have not been consistent in maintaining our national integrity. We are not consistently righteous so why should I worship at the shrine of America. Only God is consistently righteous and that's who wins out in the end above all nations.