I want to give a hearty shout-out to those conservative Christian friends of mine who, seeing the temptation for power have rejected it, hearing the loud voice have stopped their ears from it, and being surrounded by the whispers of those who "call evil good and good evil" have said "No, that is not the way" to them.
It is easy for a liberal to reject and not support a person like Trump. I don't applaud my liberal friends for their courage, necessarily. And principled moderates (like me) are simply disgusted by bad debaters and charismatic passion without substance. I don't applaud them either.
I applaud those conservative Christians who, standing on their Bibles, leaning into their Scriptures, think that there is a point where you can no longer espouse "conservative values" without espousing them with your lifestyle; those who think that it is not enough for a candidate to mime the right words and say the right things, rather it is necessary for a candidate to behave in a manner befitting the office.
Your reasons for rejecting this man are diverse - for some of you, he's an affront to true conservatism (c'mon y'all: here's big government in just a different way); for some of you, he's just simply disgusting. But I suspect that at least one common thread links my conservative Christian friends who reject this man alongside my liberal and moderate Christians friends who do the same.
That is: we are citizens of another nation. We are not here for petty political squabbles. We are here to bring salt and light to the world. And my conservative Christian friends who are rejecting Trump are doing so also because they love God's Church, and they see the kind of damage that Trumpism can do to our mission.
This is not some abstract, theological premise, folks. I don't get on a soapbox to expostulate to you or preach to you. I do it because I love God's people and I love God's mission, and I think that nothing hurts our mission more than when we find ourselves in league with those who are the antithesis of our values. It is simply enough, for me, that I see a man who is the distinct apposite of Jesus' Beatitudes. That is enough for me to say "Nope. I cannot support him. Nope. I cannot sign off on his values. Nope. If that's what 'conservative' means, then please take me off your list."
And my sense is that, more than not, my conservative Christian friends who have rejected Trump and his ways are doing so because of their deeply-held, Bible-centered beliefs about what is Good, what is Evil, what is Just, and what is Lawless.
I want you to know that I am encouraged by you. I want to you know, too, that those around you see. Your moderate and liberal friends who do not follow Jesus (yet), will see your stand, and they will say "Ah, maybe there's more to this Jesus person that a political claim." Or, "Maybe Jesus isn't interested in hatred like I think he is." Your stand, declaring "This man is not representative of what I believe" is what the Bible calls "salt and light." You refuse to let your salt become unsalty, to let yourself be sullied by 'the cares of the world.' That is a courageous thing.
I set these words out here not because I want to make a political claim. This is not politics. If it were politics, then I wouldn't have posted anything at all over the past year on this topic. This is about theological courage, it is about standing up for what you believe in, it's about not backing down when peer pressure and social movements want to take you where do you not want to go. Your congregations and communities, unfortunately, are being ravaged by an ideological force that is foreign to the Gospel - that good, sweet, pure Gospel that you received and held onto and clung to. Do not let go of that Gospel, because it is life, it is grace, and it is peace.
Do not be conformed to the pattern of the world, my friend. And I am encouraged to see that you are already standing against "the pattern of the world." Know that there is spiritual warfare all about with this Trumpism thing. It is a real ideological force, and that means that it is a real spiritual force. Dig into that Bible, spend time in prayer, lean into your brothers and sisters whom you love, gather as the ekklesia, take and imbibe the Sacrament, and worship the Lord. These things will encourage you and strengthen you against the powers of Nero.
And you know, and I know, that we are, too, called to pray for our leaders, just as (I hope) we prayed for our past leaders - irregardless of ideological or spiritual bent. So do that also. Let us not stop praying for Trump. But let us be careful how we pray. In days past I would hear leaders (ones who are now convinced of Trump's faith) say "We must pray for the conversion of Obama." Brothers and sisters, let's be real: that is letting our politics invade our private place of prayer. Do not let politics invade your place of prayer. Do not pray "That righteous man" or "That wicked man." Pray, as Paul commands us, "for the emperor," for kings, for all those who are in authority.
Continue to bear the light, my conservative brother and sister. Continue to shine God's good Gospel to those who do not know Him. Reject anything that comes from fear and hate, because those things wish not just to make you miserable and into a political scoundrel, but because those things wish to destroy your witness before men. Remember that it is the Gospel you must hold up for the salvation of many, not political ideas or political claims. No conservatism, no liberalism, no moderatism, no centrism, and no libertarianism has the powers to save a man's soul. Only the Gospel can do that. So be committed to evangelism and to the proclamation of the Gospel.
And continue, as you are doing, holding the standard of Scripture against a leader that some of our Christian voices will not hold the standard to. This is not judgmental nor is it 'whiney.' It is what it means to live our lives based on the Word of God. Hold that Scripture with firmness and with authority, with confidence and with boldness, and with bold, crazy, courageous, and evangelistic love. Lean into the Holy Spirit, and He will take you into Truth, rather than into the nonsense that some espouse to be Truth.
As to your relationships - those that have broken and distressed because of your stance - lean into Grace. But more importantly, remember that letting your light shine is also, let your fruit bear witness of the work of the power of God's love in you. It is more provocative that a person full of love bear strong spiritual fruit versus a person who is full of worldly hate, than all of the words and conversations and provocations in the world. Be the Gospel witness that you have been called, pre-ordained, anointed, and set apart to be, and your Trumpist neighbor, if they be saved, will see. Maybe even repent. Maybe even open their own hearts and learn what it means to love the lost, to seek salvation for the poor, to feed the hungry, to care for the widow and the orphan.
This is a hard thing to live, but when one lives their lives in accordance with the Gospel it is not only Good News to the lost, but it is Good News to the found who have confused themselves with the ways of the world.
So, Go! and be Good News. And thank you for staying and standing True to the Word you have received.
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