Where would the early church have been if they had put their faith in Rome?
I cringe every time I see an american flag in a church.
An astute observation.
I'll add that whatever good there was in Rome survived in the Church: the Latin language, law, culture, heck even the dioceses were based on late Roman political boundaries.
Like Rome and like all the rest of us, America only survives through Christ. It's really that simple.