The Trump phenomenon's most telling and characteristic moments – not its most significant, nor most brutal, nor most dangerous, nor most senseless, but perhaps its most illuminating – emerged earlier this harvest season. In the course of multiple weeks, the nation's leader commenced revealing all observers his intentions for a lavish reception room double the dimensions compared to the White House and subsequently started solo dismantling the East Wing portion to erect it.
He has performed deeds 10,000 times as bad – the present calculation of deaths due to his slashing to international aid amounts to 600,000 and rising, and presently a study projected his energy policies would kill an additional 1.3 million. But nothing as definitional. No former leader would have attempted – truly, no previous leader would have contemplated – unilaterally destroying major areas of the executive mansion in order to erect a royal-themed celebration hall, with the direct cooperation of multiple the richest Americans, the majority of whom conduct transactions with the government.
We went from 'the gentle will obtain the world' toward 'the meek shall die of cholera'
As confusing as it is to watch the president seek to颠覆 the traditional concept of democracy and substitute it with its polar opposite, there exists a significant segment within America who might not perceive it completely novel. This includes individuals like us – in older age cohorts almost a majority – who were raised within mainstream Protestant traditions.
We have witnessed across decades as politically conservative religious groups turned the Jesus we were raised with into exactly the opposite of our perception of his character. Essentially, they turned a figure of affection into a symbol of hate who endorses exactly the harshness that he criticized in scripture; this change developed more slowly, through multiple decades rather than months, however it is still disturbing in the same ways, a disorienting gut punch for numerous individuals.
A Harmful Christianity Establishes Itself
Therefore allow me to outline the Jesus that I grew up with, because theoretically Jesus is the center within Christian belief, and given that the rapidly expanding group within America could have minimal awareness regarding him as they consider themselves skeptics or doubters or religiously unaffiliated. I raise no objection with these various perspectives, nor with alternative spiritual paths; but I do think that contain precious wisdom of substantial value within Christian narrative.
It is emphatically not the narrative of a powerful ruler appearing; rather, a child comes into the world to displaced parents in a storage space, who must quickly flee to a foreign land to avoid undercover officers. The infant develops in modest conditions, an employed craftsman; his teaching is about love for others, specifically for the poor – not merely emotional affection, but tangible care, demonstrated through nourishing and housing. Jesus' answer to violence is to present the additional cheek – not as a demonstration of passive acceptance, but as a means to instruct the attacker; his crime policy indicates that whenever a person pilfers your coat you must offer the person your additional clothing too.
The apparent and clear truth that the Jesus from scripture advocates for a kind of profound affection focused on the needy is what has always made the Christian faith rather a scandalous religion: attractive to the general public, but due to its inherent radicalness demanding to be contained. In the fifties it was contained through watering down – Protestant Christianity was so prevalent that it essentially baptized the status quo.
A Struggle for the Best Within Us
So I have been encouraged to witness the determined opposition regarding Trump emerge in this past year. It has provided significant comfort to assist in constructing the campaign that has demonstrated publicly via continuous gatherings, and appears to have motivated citizens to show up in numbers in interim political contests. We will need to continue it, and with identical determination, with American flags at every demonstration and calls to the highest qualities of American history.
We shall be interrogated ... about how you treated the foreigner? Did you accept these individuals and embrace them or not?
The country is optimally secured, in other words, through connection to the best about American history, just as Christianity is best defended by relationship to that which renders it unique and beautiful, particularly the pattern of Jesus. In neither case does it mean pretending the most negative regarding America and religious tradition was nonexistent; it represents both humility and belief, a blend that committed American Christians should embrace.
