The Trump phenomenon's most revealing and characteristic occasions – not its most significant, nor cruelest, nor most hazardous, nor most foolish, but potentially its most enlightening – came earlier this autumn. In the course of a few weeks, the nation's leader commenced revealing the public his intentions for a gilded ballroom double the dimensions compared to the White House and subsequently started independently demolishing the East Wing to erect it.
He has committed acts countless times more severe – the present calculation of fatalities resulting from his reductions to USAID is 600,000 and growing, and recently research forecast his fossil fuel policies would result in fatalities 1.3 million more. However nothing as distinctive. No other president would have attempted – genuinely, no former commander would have conceived – unilaterally destroying significant portions of the White House to build a palace-inspired entertainment space, with the enthusiastic participation of multiple the richest Americans, almost all of whom conduct transactions with public institutions.
We went from 'the meek shall inherit the planet' to 'the humble will perish of cholera'
As disorienting as it is to witness the leader attempt to overturn the traditional concept of democracy and exchange it with its polar opposite, there is one large group within America who might not perceive it totally unfamiliar. That encompasses people such as ourselves – in older age cohorts a near majority – who were brought up within mainstream Protestant traditions.
We have witnessed throughout the years as rightwing evangelical churches transformed the Christ we grew up with into the total contrary of our perception of his character. At its most basic, they transformed an image of affection into a figure of animosity who approves precisely the cruelties that he criticized in biblical teachings; this change developed more slowly, across decades instead of months, but it is nonetheless disturbing in the same ways, a disorienting gut punch for numerous individuals.
A Toxic Christianity Gains Ground
So let me first describe the Savior that I grew up with, as conceptually Christ is the focus within Christian belief, and given that the fastest-growing cadre of Americans may possess limited understanding of him because they identify as non-believers or agnostics or religiously unaffiliated. I have no problem with these various perspectives, nor with different religions; but I do think that contain precious wisdom of great price in the Christian story.
It is emphatically not the narrative of a mighty king emerging; conversely, an infant arrives to homeless parents in a storage space, who need to rapidly escape to a different country to avoid secret police. The child matures in humble circumstances, an employed craftsman; his message is about love for others, particularly for the poor – not simply tender feelings, but practical compassion, shown by providing food and protecting. Christ's response to aggression is to offer the opposite cheek – not as a demonstration of submissive tolerance, but as a means to teach the attacker; his approach to wrongdoing states that when someone steals your outer garment you must offer him your sweater too.
The apparent and straightforward truth that the Savior of the gospels requests a form of radical love centered on the needy has consistently rendered the Christian faith something of a controversial faith: engaging for the masses, but because of its inherent radicalness needing to be controlled. In the 1950s it was contained via weakening – Protestantism was so prevalent that it essentially baptized the status quo.
A Conflict for the Highest Among Us
Hence I have become inspired to witness the persistent defiance against Trump arise over the last twelve months. It has served as great solace to participate in developing the initiative that has protested openly through repeated demonstrations, and seems to have inspired electorate to show up in large quantities during minor elections. We will need to maintain it, and with identical determination, with American flags during all protests and calls to the highest qualities of American history.
We will be questioned ... regarding how you welcomed the immigrant? Did you accept these individuals and welcome him or reject?
America is best defended, in other words, by reference to the best in US heritage, similar to Christianity is optimally secured by relationship to that which renders it unique and wonderful, which is the example of Christ. In neither case does it imply acting as if the most damaging about the nation and Christianity never occurred; it represents both humility and faith, a blend that genuine national faithful should embrace.
