Unbridled nationalism

    Nationalism is patriotism carried to unhealthy extremes. It involves a stronger identification with one’s nation, an inherent sense of superiority, a competitive need to be seen as winners, and a drive to exert power over others.

    Lloyd Kramer, in Nationalism in Europe and America, wrote, “nationalism often encourages fears of all kinds of other people: fears of other religions or races or cultures or ethnic groups or homosexuals. This fear can be mobilized for violence and scapegoating. It can lead people to feel aggrieved and constantly at risk.” We are seeing the damaging and violent effects of nationalistic fervor on a daily basis at home and around the world.

    History teaches us that national borders are not fixed; they are constantly in flux due to annexation, war or political machinations. Nationalism is therefore based on illusory and impermanent borders drawn by men.

(Ref.:.https://i2.wp.com/www.caseyhough.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/nationalism.jpg?w=415&ssl=1)

    Science and technology have made the world smaller; we can travel anywhere in less than a day and communicate with anyone anywhere in the world instantaneously. A new sense of global citizenship is developing that will eventually supplant nationalism, but will still permit a natural and healthy sense of patriotism.

    An international poll by the Christian Science Monitor found a majority of people identifying themselves as global citizens more than as citizens of one country. This will undoubtedly cause a paradigm shift in world affairs as more of us see ourselves as citizens of the world

    In “The Promise of World Peace, The Universal House of Justice,” the Baha’i governing body, wrote, “Unbridled nationalism, as distinguished from a sane and legitimate patriotism, must give way to a wider loyalty, to the love of humanity as a whole. ... The concept of world citizenship is a direct result of the contraction of the world into a single neighborhood through scientific advances and of the indisputable interdependence of nations. Love of all the world’s peoples does not exclude love of one’s country. The advantage of the part in a world society is best served by promoting the advantage of the whole.”

    When we realize that differences should be celebrated and not feared, that we are all members of the same family, that there really are no borders, we can begin to construct a more just, peaceful and prosperous world for all... – “The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”

    (Ref.:https://cumberlink.com/news/local/neighbors/faith/faith-in-focus-nationalism-patriotism-and-world-citizenship/article_f79f6d27-de46-504b-bec7-8489673a9e0e.html)