I remember like it was yesterday. My oldest daughter was two years old at the time. She had her first—and last temper tantrum. I’m not sure what it was that set her off, but she dropped to the ground quite dramatically and started kicking and flailing about while screaming her head off. I watched this for about thirty seconds and then joined her on the floor doing likewise. I flailed about on my back, making silly screeching sounds for only a little while when I noticed I was the only one having a “tantrum”. I looked over to see my daughter staring at me with an amused look on her face. Then she started laughing at my antics. Even at two years old, she recognized that I was mimicking her and that she must have looked pretty silly!
Sometimes all we need is a look in the mirror to inform us when we are behaving poorly.
Donald Trump was elected with 81% support of people who claim to be Christ followers. Some have claimed that he was “chosen by God” to be the leader of America. I wonder if they are right in a manner of speaking? I don’t think for a moment that God actually placed him in that position of power, but I wonder if God allowed him to be there as a mirror to the American people, especially white evangelical Christians?
Forgive me if I sound like a sanctimonious Canadian. I realize we are far from perfect, that we share some common problems and have issues of our own, but I’ve realized that it is sometimes helpful to have the perspective of someone on the outside looking in. When I, as an outsider think of Donald Trump, certain words come to mind:
-Tribalistic
-Misogynistic.
-Violent
-Greedy
-Arrogant
-Self serving
-Intellectually atrophied
-Dangerously unstable
When I think of America and American (also Canadian) evangelicalism, the very same words come to mind.
I think American Evangelicals have had a look in the mirror and subsequently a rude awakening as to how they appear to the rest of the world. I suspect perhaps, that they are starting to not like what they see. Last December, “Christianity Today” magazine as well as other Christian publications publicly denounced Donald Trump following his impeachment and called for him to be removed from office. I agree that this would be a positive step, but it won’t fix the problem.
Trump is not the problem. He is a symptom. He is a manifestation of the problem. He is the inevitable result that transpires when a group of people who understand God to be vindictive and nepotistic choose a leader to represent them. This is what happens when you already believe God’s goodness to be arbitrary. If you believe that God in fact caused a flood to wipe out most of human civilization, if you believe that God ordered the slaughter of the Canaanite people, if you believe that God punishes people with disease and weather events and is still good, then goodness is arbitrary. If you believe that God can still be good and yet retributively punish people for eternity, it gives you permission to think of others as disposable and treat them as such. Like it or not, the empire of Christianity has shaped American culture into what it is today. And that’s a problem.
Tell me; is a thing good because God does it, or does God do a thing because it is good?
Some may be reading this and saying, “Ryan! The Bible is God’s Word and it is inerrant! How dare you question these things!!!” Well, take a deep breath and know that I believe the Bible does indeed accurately present what people throughout its recorded history thought God was like. I believe that they really thought God wiped out most of humanity in a world wide flood and that He ordered the death of the Canaanite people, that He punishes those who displease Him with disease, weather events, even eternal hell. Why wouldn’t they? Most pagan religions believed that. I also believe that we not only have permission, but also have the responsibility of rejecting any idea of God we find in scripture that is not Christ-like.
This is what makes the person of Jesus so unique and important. He disagreed with scriptural ideas about God (see the beatitudes). He showed us by His life that goodness is consistent and definite. Jesus, who claimed to be God incarnate (and I believe him), showed us what God is really like. He corrected our anthropomorphic ideas about God. He demonstrated love for enemies, preemptively forgave without condition or permission, empowered and dignified the disadvantaged, protested the way of religious and political empire with non-violence. He showed us that this is the way for us to live as well. It is how we were designed to be. His witness and Way was indeed vindicated by resurrection.
America is not a Christian nation. Donald Trump is not a Christ follower. The evangelical church has once again kissed the ring of Constantine and joined the vast crowd at the wide gate that leads to destruction. Until you find the narrow gate that leads to life—the way to be truly human—the way of Christ, you will always have your wars, your disparity between the rich and poor, your legalized slavery in your prison system. You will keep locking children up in cages and separating families at your borders. You will maintain a system in which women, people of colour and LGBT people are second class citizens who must live in constant fear. And you will will continue to justify all of this with the arbitrary good that you believe your god to be.
Another Donald Trump will always be there to lead you.
Donald Trump IS you!
Take a look in the mirror and see your silliness. Be like my two year old daughter and decide that you don’t like what you see. America can be great one day, but you will have to pick up your cross and follow Jesus to see that happen.