Wesley rolling in his grave again ping.
thanks, and love your tagline, it is so true!
Wesley was not overly enthusiastic about nationalism in worship....so much so that his hymn “Come, Thou Almighty King” was intentionally set to the same metre as that used for “God Save the King.”
That said, what a pity that Irving Berlin did not place a comma between “God” and “bless” in the title, so that it would read “God, bless America” reinfocing the intercession intended by the opening lines (which are too seldom heard much less sung) which conclude “as we lift our voices / in a humble prayer: God bless America....”
Without the comma it reads as though we are commanding God—rather than beseeching Him—to bless. But that is an issue beyond the pastor/columnists comprehension.