Let’s Do Better
Confronting Trumpism Part 2 (DRAFT)
So, What Now?
Critique is easy. Fixing it is hard. So, let’s engage in the hard work of leadership – helping our followers think in a Christ-like way through the political decisions we have made and those we are called on to make in the future.
First, We have to teach our followers to read, study, think and discuss. We have historically been all about education. Evangelical Christians started Harvard, Princeton and thousands of schools for children through adults throughout frontier America. We need to get back to education. This starts with how we approach the Bible. Stop the proof-texting to support our opinions. Teach in-depth Bible study. Help Bible students apply biblical principles to daily life and politics. We must understand and confront heresies such as Christian Nationalism and White Supremacy.
Christian leaders need to be asking our people, “where do you get your news? Whose opinions are you listening to?” It is baffling to me how so many Christians have gorged themselves on a diet of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and even Q Anon and adopted their talking points without a hint of critical thinking. What is your source for this information? Is it a reliable source?
I believe our people have adopted these leaders, many of whom claim no religious affiliation, as their disciplers because Christian pastors and teachers have not done our jobs! If church people are not getting guidance on civic and political engagement in their churches, where do you think they will get it?
Is God a Republican or a Democrat?
Reading the Bible and applying biblical principles to daily life in the here and now, will usually not lead us to taking sides in today’s polarized and reactionary political environment. Neither the Republican or the Democratic party can be expected to adopt the positions or support the candidates we need in office. Though it may be necessary for individuals to choose a political party if they want to get involved in governing, neither party deserves our unconditional trust. Both parties can be useful in our current version of American democracy. We can work with both Democrats and Republicans to help them achieve the best America we can be. We must influence both party platforms, but we can’t expect that either is going to usher in the Kingdom of Heaven. Our churches need to be a safe place to learn and grow for Republicans, Democrats, Independents and people with other party affiliations.
Silence on political issues is no longer an option for Christian pastors and leaders. Separation of Church and State and the threat of losing non-profit status (the Johnson amendment) has been a reason for avoiding talk of politics and social issues (except abortion) from the pulpit, church newsletter or blog. Lately, it’s only an excuse. The real reason is talk of politics gets people upset. Pastors will get loud Amens when we preach, “Thou shalt not bear false witness.” But preach “Thou shalt not bear false witness and our president has made a mockery of this principle” and people get upset. Especially if a pastor adds to it, “some of you are posting unfounded lies about the 2020 election on your social media pages. Stop lying!” That’s “meddling.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor who spoke out against Hitler and the Nazis and died in a concentration camp said “silence in the face of evil is itself evil… God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
We need a Christian theology of political engagement.
It’s not “Me First.” It’s not “America First.” When we pray to Our Father, we say, “May your will be done,” not “may our will be done.” Our Christian theology of political engagement begins with the understanding that Christians are not voting for the candidate who is best for me and my family. We’re not voting for the one who will put the most money in our pockets. If “God so loved the world,” (including but not only America) shouldn’t we? We want more than what’s best for ourselves, but what is best for those who are not part of our church or community. Our voting must consider the refugees at the southern border as well as refugees fleeing Syria. We need a biblical theology of political engagement that values compassion for those who are left behind as well as an emphasis on personal responsibility. “God helps those who help themselves” is not found in the Bible. Neither is the word, “bootstraps”. Michael Gerson, who served in the George W Bush administration, writes, “many have undertaken such a project.” (see Read More below).
And here there are plenty of potent, hopeful Christian principles lying around unused by most evangelicals: A consistent and comprehensive concern for the weak and vulnerable in our society, including the poor, immigrants and refugees. A passion for racial reconciliation and criminal justice reform, rooted in the nonnegotiable demands of human dignity. A deep commitment to public and global health, reflecting the priorities of Christ’s healing ministry. An embrace of political civility as a civilizing norm. A commitment to the liberty of other people’s religions, not just our own. An insistence on public honesty and a belief in the transforming power of unarmed truth.
What would America be like if these had been the priorities of evangelical Christians over the past four years — or over the past four decades? It would mean something very different, in that world, to raise the banner “Jesus Saves.”
Michael Gerson, Washington Post
Effective teaching simplifies complex truths. We need to teach our theology of political engagement and that includes boiling it down to bumper sticker slogans for those with Twitter attention spans and those who cannot or will not read. We need more Christian athletes like Stephen Curry and celebrities to join us as spokespersons.
Here are a few initial thoughts, boiled down to bumper sticker slogans:
- Character Matters Most
- Make Truth Great Again
- God is Love
- America First? “God so loved the World”
Effective Teaching is Specific. I was taught that the exposition of Scripture is not enough to make a sermon. No sermon is complete until the preacher has applied Scripture to daily life in a practical way. For too long, teachers and preachers like me have wrongly expected that if we taught, “thou shalt not steal,” our folks would understand that it applies to what you write on your tax forms, how you conduct business and how you choose the leaders who want to represent you in government. We thought our folks would understand that you should not vote for a serial cheater. We thought our folks would figure out on their own that prejudging is wrong and white supremacy is antithetical to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
We were wrong. That does not work! Sure, some get it, but most do not. They hear our pious platitudes and then go out and vote for liars, thieves and cheaters. We need to add a few minutes to our sermons to include statements like, “thou shalt not steal and Donald Trump is asking for your help in stealing this election. Don’t help Trump lie. Don’t help Trump cheat. Don’t let Trump steal.”
We have to be clear and specific.
Thomas Jefferson insisted that “an educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people.” It is time that Evangelical Christians get back to the education of our people. If we can swing an election towards a despot, we can surely swing an election towards a one who is more Christ-like.
And that begs the question. Who is more Christ-like? Many of Trump’s supporters, maybe most, were not voting FOR Trump as they were voting AGAINST Clinton or Biden. All politicians make promises they cannot keep; they all lie, they say. Our choices are often between evil and less evil. It seems that our political parties are rigged against decent, moral, honest men and women and instead favor narcissistic, overly ambitious leaders who will do anything to get elected. Is it any wonder, when our megachurches hold the same values?
We need to teach the value of civic engagement and political leadership.
That’s why we need to teach the value of civic engagement and political leadership. Too often I have heard the opposite from pastors. Many have opted out of political engagement themselves and insisted that their followers should do the same. Who gets elected doesn’t matter, many pastors say. Just come to church, pray and look forward to heaven. We say, “pray for our leaders in government,” but we do not say, “Become a leader in government.” We should. When we consider men and women to be deacons, elders and pastors, we should also be asking, “who among us can effectively serve our community on the local school board, city council, planning commission, state legislature, congress. We need Christian politicians like John Danforth, the late Mark Hatfield, Jimmy Carter and John Kasich. How different things would be if instead of Donald Trump, we had chosen John Kasich in 2016. These are leaders who went beyond having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They had a clear understanding of how Christ called them to serve and lead. When we do have these Christian political leaders, we should esteem them, pray for them, support them and, by all means, vote for them!
It’s not just pastors who are doing the work of the Kingdom of Heaven (what arrogance); these too are doing God’s Kingdom work. The volunteer of the month should not just be the one who has made coffee every Sunday morning for twenty years. It is the church member who teaches in a public school, serves as a police officer and the member who serves on the city planning commission.
The debacle we witnessed January 6th and all the events leading up to it are a black eye on the people of God in America. Repentance requires that we recognize and confess our sin. Repentance also requires that we learn and do better. I am hopeful and confident that we can serve and lead our country to a better future. Heaven is still to come. We are citizens of God’s Kingdom, which is to come, but starts right now in our hearts, our families, communities and our nation. Let us constantly pray and work:
“May your Kingdom come
May your will be done
on earth as it is in Heaven.”
READ MORE:
The Roman Road From Insurrection. Russell Moore, The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention
This is not about politics. This is about our country, about the rule of law, and about the sanctity of human life. The President invited mobs to Washington—promising a “wild” time—and told them to march to the Capitol. Despite the fact that there was not one thing that Vice President Pence could have lawfully done, the President called him a coward, and whipped up crowds against him who, many of them, then chanted “Hang Mike Pence!” while constructing gallows on the Capitol grounds. An American flag was thrown down and replaced with a Trump flag, while another insurrectionist paraded a Confederate flag through the Capitol. Police officers were attacked. Congressional leaders hid while the doors buckled from mobs seeking to attack them. People are dead. The Capitol is ransacked. Administration officials are resigning in protest.
If you read nothing else, read this: If you can defend this, you can defend anything. If you can wave this away with “well, what about…” or by changing the subject to a private platform removing an account inciting violence as “Orwellian,” then where, at long last, is your limit?
Russell Moore
Books and Essays on Christian Engagement in Politics
Compassion (&) Conviction: The AND Campaign’s Guide to Faithful Civic Engagement, by Justin Giboney (Author), Michael Wear (Author), Chris Butler (Author), 2020.
City of Man: Religion and Politics in a New Era, by Michael Gerson, Peter Wehner, 2010.
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