Faith Influencing Politics without Politics Changing Faith

"We've turned the other cheek and I understand sort of the Biblical reference--I understand the mentality.  But it's gotten us nothing."--Donald Trump, Jr. to a Turning Point USA gathering in Arizona

Taking these remarks in its whole context, what Trump Jr. is saying here is that the teachings of Jesus, along with bringing in Evangelical Christians to the far right and engaging in the political culture war of right wing politics, is interfering with their cause.  Trump Sr. once suggested, in one of his books, that the meek, whom the gospel writer Matthew records Jesus as saying will "inherit the earth," are, in his perspective, "suckers."  It's not possible, in the Trumpian political view, to act in a manner that is consistent with Biblical teaching and at the same time, expect to win or gain influence in the culture war.  

Peter Wehner, in a story on this particular event in The Atlantic, said of Trump Jr.'s analysis, "If the ethic of Jesus encourages sensibilities that might cause people in politics to act a little less brutally, a bit more civilly, with a touch more grace, then it needs to go."  

Tyler Huckabee, in a report in Relevant magazine, wrote that Trump, Jr. is probably more correct here than he knows.  "Christianity is a poor device for gaining worldly influence. Nearly every page of the Gospels has stories of Jesus refusing earthly power and exhorting his followers to do the same. … The most cursory reading of Scripture would leave anyone with the sense that this is not a manual for getting stuff.”

And those comments are from the secular media world. 

I would disagree with Trump Jr., that the church's "mentality" in turning the other cheek is the reason it hasn't "gotten anything."  I would say that the reason Christians have this sense that they have been "shut out" of the worldly influences Junior is referencing is that they have aligned themselves too closely with partisan politics and have replaced their dependence on God's spiritual power with the use of worldly, political influence.  They've given their loyalty to politicians for worldly influence and given up their evangelistic mission and purpose.  And many of the politicians with whom they have built a political alliance not only don't accept or believe in Christian faith and practice, their lifestyle is completely antithetical to it.  

The Influence of Faith in Politics 

The constitutional guarantee of religious liberty and the establishment clause set American Christians free from state-mandated, state-controlled religious practice and created a free church.  What that did in America was usher in several notable revivals, boosting church membership with thousands of new converts, and it led to Protestant Christianity becoming one of the most pervasive influences in American culture and government.  The Whig party is one of the more notable examples of the influence of Protestant Christianity in politics.  

But having the better part of a branch of the Christian church endorse candidates and embrace a political agenda that is not based on Christian practice and principle is something very different.  Instead of influencing the party, the party demands that the Christians who support it adopt its own agenda, and support everything the party supports, including a whole list of policies and practices which are completely inconsistent with Christian theology and practice.  The party itself does not embrace its Christian constituents or their perspective, it simply picks and chooses the things to support that brings in the most votes and campaign contributions.  But it demands support for the whole party agenda, and loyalty to the party's candidates. 

In the case of the current jumble of Republicanism with Trumpism, that has meant that some Evangelical "leaders," mainly pastors of churches, televangelists or ministry executives, have had to endorse Donald Trump.  And that has required overlooking the immoral behavior, including his highly publicized affairs and the humiliation of all three women who have been married to him, the business and tax fraud, the incessant lying, and now, the incitement of an insurrection with the intention of overturning a legitimate election and subverting the constitution and its peaceful transfer of power.  

The testimony of Evangelical Christianity specifically, but of Christianity in general, has been significantly damaged by what appears to be widespread loyalty given to Trump by Evangelical leaders after many of these same "leaders" were highly critical of former President Clinton's moral failures and publicly declared that his lack of morals and values disqualified him from serving as President.  Dr. Adrian Rogers, the former pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, and a former President of the Southern Baptist Convention, codified their leadership "requirements" in a sermon entitled "Does Character Count?"  He didn't mention Clinton directly, but the circumstances occurring at the time made the subject of his message pretty obvious.  

When Trump was running, not a single Evangelical leader who has embraced right wing Republican politics uttered a peep about Rogers' sermon.  Trump, who has not only been totally unrepentant and unapologetic for his debauchery, actually backed away from claiming he had some kind of conversion experience, which some Evangelicals wanted to claim for him, and told CNN's Jake Tapper that he didn't bring God into his moral view and didn't believe he needed to ask forgiveness for anything.  Now we have one of his surrogates, his oldest child, telling the Trumpian Evangelical constituency that the values of Jesus are just not getting them anywhere in this world.  

Most Evangelical church members are susceptible to this kind of influence because they know very little about their own faith.  They depend on those who have worked their way to celebrity status among mostly white Evangelicals to tell them what to believe.  They see those leaders and their followers being loyal to Trump and acting like Trumpers.  Right wing politics has become equal to real theology and doctrine among many churches, because they depend on their pastors and prominent leaders to interpret all of that for them and those leaders have made right wing politics indistinguishable from theology and doctrine.

That's one of the reasons that heresies like White Christian Nationalism and religious-based white supremacy groups, and the Prosperity Gospel, have taken root and flourished.  It's no surprise that Trump considers one of the most heretical prosperity preachers, Paula White, as his "spiritual advisor."  Birds of a feather, I guess.  Not only is her preaching and teaching way, way outside the boundaries of biblical Christian orthodoxy, but she considers herself a "pastor" and a "prophetess."  The vast majority of Evangelical sects, denominations and churches in America completely reject female pastors and preachers, but they are completely ignoring this relationship. 

But there are people inside Evangelical Christianity who are waking up to what's going on.  January 6th was a wake up call for many of them.  It doesn't take very many percentage points to flip election results in the polarized atmosphere that currently exists.  And some are willing to take a stand to protect the integrity of the church.  

There's no question the reputation, testimony and witness of Evangelical Christianity in America has suffered considerable damage from getting just a bit too close to the flames.  Trump built his fame and reputation on what the Apostle Paul calls "debauchery."  He revelled in it.  He bragged about his affairs, how poorly he treated his wives, his business cheating which he refers to as "deal-making," his tax evasion and deception and he handles criticism by incessant lying.  There are lists of all of those things in the Bible, too, but they're the opposite of the Beatitudes.  Embracing his candidacy and endorsing it means embracing and endorsing his character, which is anti-Christian.  

Those Christians who publicly support Trumpism are either ignorant of their own faith and its doctrine and theology, which is the case for vast numbers of them, or they are ignoring their faith, choosing the politics over the spiritual principles, or making the politics their spiritual practice.

A Conversion Experience in Reverse

"We want your votes and your support, but please leave your values, morals, convictions and faith practices behind, because they don't get you anywhere in this world."  But Jesus very clearly states that his mission wasn't to achieve worldly success.  The Jewish people in Palestine during Jesus' day had lived under the domination of foreign rule for a long time and had turned their theological view of "Messiah" into a political leader who would throw off the yoke of Roman rule.  Jesus resisted the temptation to increase his own popularity by claiming a political kingdom and worldly power,and instead, during his public ministry, he taught people the principles by which to live a life that glorified their creator God, and which was full of spiritual abundance and unselfish purpose and which pointed others to God's existence, grace, and ultimately, to reconciliation with God because Jesus fulfilled his atoning, sacrificial purpose.  

Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not from this world.  If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews."  John 18:36 NRSV

The verses at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, known as the "beatitudes," define the very essence of Christian faith and practice and are the distinguishing characteristics of the Christian life.  They result in real spiritual blessings, not material wealth, but to things that money and power and fame cannot buy or produce.  They lead to a fulfilled life, peace of mind, comfort, peace, to the spiritual presence and power of God himself.  After the Beatitudes, there's this passage which defines the purpose of the church that would eventually develop, made up of believers in Jesus.

You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored?  It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled underfoot.  

You are the light of the world.  A city built on a hill cannot be hid.  No one, after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.  Matthew 5:13-16, NRSV

When Christians support a political perspective or movement that considers its core principles and values ineffective in achieving its goals, they have, as the analogy here says, "lost their taste."  They are a lamp under a bushel basket, so to speak.  The are supposed to be living a life that glorifies God and points "the world" to Jesus but instead, they are pointing to political solutions to worldly problems, and identifying with those who achieve their ends by the use of worldly power.  What the world sees is their support and endorsement of the lifestyles and tactics of the political leaders who set their movement's agenda and that is how they are labelled and identified.  

The faith that Christ preached and taught, and that the apostles expanded and used to change the world, depends on spiritual power and life transformation, not on the use of politics and legislated morality.  

"My Kingdom is Not From this World" 

Trump Jr.'s statement about turning the other cheek demonstrates his complete lack of knowledge of how Christianity works.  He said that himself, "I understand--sort of--the Biblical reference. I understand the mentality...but."  But what?  He sort of understand but not really, because it doesn't seem to be worth much because it's not getting Christians anywhere in this world.  So what he is asking is for Christians to join their cause and change their beliefs and values, adopting the violence, deceit, duplicity, dishonesty and the vile disorder that characterizes Trumpism.  

When Christians leave their faith behind to pursue worldly success, they lose their identity as the church, and they become just another political faction or pointless sect.  And unfortunately, many of Trump's white, Evangelical supporters have done just that.  They've let their politics change their faith.  

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?  Mark 8:36 ESV