Part 2 – The Crumbling Foundation

As the impeachment process lurched on toward its inevitable conclusion where the Democrats (save 2 who are “Democrats in name only”, and Tulsi Gabbard who is basically hedging her bets and voted “present”) voted to impeach, and the Republicans predictably voted in unison against. It was in the wake of this historic vote to protect a constitution under attack from the President and his administration that Christianity Today made the move to call for Trump’s removal from office.

In the article, CT’s editor Mark Galli runs through the reasons why he thinks Christians should turn their backs on Trump from a place of conviction and love. To be fair, this isn’t the first time that this particular publication has posted articles and commentary critical of the now impeached President, but only in such a way that it pushes people of faith to trust that God will answer prayers and guide the President to the right path.

Galli cites first and foremost the criminal charges Trump was impeached on, which is fair, he’s repeatedly committed criminal offences whilst in office and these are things that reflect upon a Christian’s morality when backing him. Despite his supreme court choices being reflective of a misguided perspective of what religious liberty looks like, as well as the apparently strong economy under 45/3. It’s only right that a Christian publication hold Trump to account for his breaches of morality.

The editorial goes further to connect the immorality of Trump to Bill Clinton, who was the president before him to be impeached for obstruction relating to his affair with an intern. Unfortunately, this is where the moral indignation ends, and here it is where we see again the Evangelical community and their obsession with sex. We see them invoke morality when sex is involved and someone of power has had an extra-marital affair and use this as the nail in the coffin for the argument for Trump’s removal.

Where then does this leave us in terms of anything that resembles a more holistic repudiation of Trump that raises issues of morality in relation to his treatment of asylum seekers? Of children being torn from their families? Of white supremacy? Of attitudes toward vulnerable minorities in his own country?

There is no mention of the over 5,400 children taken from their families by US immigration. No mention of the incitement of racial hatred that resulted in the deaths of American citizens and inspired a killer to open fire on a New Zealand mosque, nor the rallies where a white supremacist in Charlottesville drove his car into a crowd killing Heather Heyer. No condemnation of his emboldening of police to use excessive and lethal force on people of colour. No moral outrage over the increasing number of Americans in poverty.

You know, the things that Christ would have railed against, flipped tables over, and chased people out of the temples with a whip for. There’s no reflection upon the sermon of the mount, calling for a president to embody grace and compassion, and most importantly mercy.

There is none.

With the editorial from Christian Today we see the Evangelical publication maintain its insistence on Christianity being co-opted and distorted through the lens of both rich and white America, as well as the effectively gospel illiterate lower-class Republican voters.

This is the hill they’ve planted their cross upon, a particular cross that Jesus didn’t die upon…

But one fashioned from the guns and money they idolize so brazenly, and glistening with the constantly flowing blood of the innocent who die as a result of their beliefs.