The Trump phenomenon's most illuminating and distinctive moments – not its most crucial, nor cruelest, nor most hazardous, nor stupidest, but potentially its most enlightening – emerged earlier this harvest season. Over the span of multiple weeks, the nation's leader began displaying all observers his intentions for an ornate dance hall twice the size of the White House and then commenced unilaterally ripping down the East Wing to erect it.
He has done things countless times more severe – the current estimate of fatalities from his cuts to USAID is 600,000 and growing, and presently an analysis predicted his energy policies would result in fatalities 1.3 million more. But nothing as definitional. No former leader would have attempted – really, no previous leader would have conceived – unilaterally destroying significant portions of the White House to build a royal-themed celebration hall, with the active collaboration of numerous America's wealthiest, nearly all of which maintain dealings with public institutions.
We moved from 'the humble will receive the planet' into 'the gentle will succumb from cholera'
As confusing as it is to observe the president try to upend the established notion about democracy and replace it with its polar opposite, there is one large group within America who might not perceive it completely novel. That is those of us – within elder demographics almost a majority – who were raised within mainstream Protestant traditions.
We have watched over the years while conservative evangelical congregations transformed the Christ we learned about into the total contrary of who we understood him to be. At its most basic, they converted a persona of compassion into a figure of animosity who blesses precisely the cruelties that he criticized in biblical teachings; this change developed at a slower pace, over decades instead of months, however it is still disturbing in the same ways, a confusing personal impact for countless people.
A Harmful Christianity Takes Hold
Therefore allow me to outline the Jesus from my upbringing, as conceptually Jesus is the center of Christian religion, and because the fastest-growing cadre among Americans could have minimal awareness about him since they are non-believers or agnostics or religiously unaffiliated. I take no issue with these various perspectives, nor with different religions; but I do think that contain precious wisdom of significant worth in biblical accounts.
It is emphatically absolutely not the account of a mighty king arising; instead, a child comes into the world to displaced parents in a garage, who need to rapidly escape to another nation to evade undercover officers. The baby grows up in modest conditions, a laboring woodworker; his teaching is about love for others, specifically for the poor – not simply tender feelings, but practical compassion, shown by providing food and protecting. Jesus' answer to hostility is to present the additional cheek – not as an act of submissive tolerance, but as a means to educate the aggressor; his crime policy is that if a person pilfers your coat you should give the person your additional clothing too.
The evident and clear fact that the Savior of the gospels advocates for a form of radical love centered on the needy has perpetually caused Christian religion somewhat of a provocative belief system: attractive to the masses, but due to its inherent radicalness requiring to be controlled. During the 1950s it was contained via weakening – The Protestant faith was so widespread that it basically blessed current circumstances.
A Struggle for the Best Within Us
So I have been heartened to see the steadfast resistance against Trump develop during the previous year. It has served as substantial consolation to assist in constructing the campaign that has protested openly via continuous gatherings, and likely has encouraged voters to turn out in numbers during minor elections. We will need to maintain it, and in the same spirit, featuring US banners during all protests and appeals to the best parts in US history.
We're going to be asked ... how did you receive the stranger? Did you welcome them and receive them or reject?
America is best defended, essentially, through connection to the highest in US heritage, just as Christianity is best defended through connection to elements that cause it to be special and magnificent, specifically the model of Jesus. In neither case does it imply acting as if the most negative of both America and Christian faith was nonexistent; it represents both meekness and conviction, a mixture that genuine American Christians should be comfortable with.
