Get familiar with this. January 6th was a direct result of the influence of this combination of religion and politics.
The intersection of Dominion theology with right wing politics has created a movement within the Evangelical and Pentecostal/Charismatic branches of American Christianity that pushes churches to use Christian theology and doctrine to achieve political power rather than fulfilling the Christian mission and purpose apart from political power, which is what Christ and the apostles taught. It is anti-Christian in its philosophy and actions, willing to set aside core principles of the Christian faith to gain political power and influence.
That is why a man like Trump, an immoral, God-cursing, demonically-driven demagogue, is so popular among Evangelicals. Trumpism tells Christian leaders that turning the other cheek and loving your enemies, which identify Christian character and are direct teachings of Jesus himself, are for suckers and they are hindrances to the kind of worldly influence and power that he is after. Those who want to "get anywhere in the world," must get themselves into positions of worldly power in government, education, media, arts and entertainment, religion, family and business and that can't be done by loving your enemies or turning the other cheek. That denies core Christian theology, but it fits with some powerful, pseudo-Christian perspectives which incorporate and use theories about "end times" prophecy that causes some Christians to abandon parts of the gospel in a quest for worldly influence.
Understanding Dominion Theology in conservative branches of the Christian church would require reading several different authors on the subject. Dominion Theology branches out into differing interpretations which run along theological and doctrinal lines that separate Conservative Evangelicals, primarily those who are Reformed or Calvinist, from Pentecostals and Charismatics, the latter of whom believe in the active presence of "sign gifts", primarily speaking in tongues and faith healing.
The Christian Reconstruction Brand of Dominion Theology
A quick, thirty-minute read through of the Wikipedia description of Dominion theology will give you the general idea of the broad scope of the idealism that comes from this pseudo-Christian worldview. The "Christian Reconstruction" brand, which is more closely associated with the writings of R. J. Rushdoony in the 1960's and 70's, is found mostly among Calvinists and the conservative, Evangelical branch of the church. Rushdoony was a hard line, far right minister in the ultra conservative Orthodox Presbyterian church, which opposed "modernism" of any kind. Ultimately, he created the Chalcedon Foundation which published a monthly journal defending his reconstructionist perspective, believing that American financial prosperity was a gift from God because it was a Christian nation and maintaining a covenant relationship with God, based on human righteousness, was the key to maintaining American power and strength.
Turning the United States into a theocracy, which is what reconstructionists believe was the original intention of the founding fathers, with laws that legislate social practices mandating Christian doctrinal positions, is the main objective. They believe that a government which implements "God's law" would be permitted to execute offenders not only for murder, but for idolatry, open homosexuality, practicers of witchcraft, anyone who "blasphemes" God or the Trinity, and rebellious youths. They believe that God gifted the rich resources of the North American continent to Christians to establish a nation for his own glorification and as such a government and worldview improved society, making it more righteous, it would usher in the second coming of Christ.
The view is influenced heavily by Calvinism. Jean Calvin, during the Protestant Reformation, set up governments that enforced his own interpretation of Christian behavior and obedience to biblical commands and laws and justified what appeared to be the opposite of what the gospel of Jesus said by appealing to the doctrine of predestination, which is the idea that since God knows in advance which human beings will be redeemed, he has chosen those who will respond to his offer of redemption. Those who will not respond, which he also knows in advance, are already condemned, and are reprobate and unredeemable, destined for spiritual destruction. So their execution is simply an exercise in God's will.
It would be difficult to claim that the intentions of modern day Christian Reconstruction would be much different than Reformation-era Calvinists.
"Kingdom Now" Dominion Theology
The Pentecostal/Charismatic brand of Dominion theology is primarily known as the "Kingdom Now" movement. This is the belief that God is currently involved in choosing people who will work with him now to "take back" (ever heard that term before?) areas within the world that Satan "usurped" or took over were given over after the fall of Adam and Eve. They believe that by putting certain "chosen" Christians in positions of worldly power and influence in government, education, entertainment, banking and finance and international relations, these individuals will be in position to implement the Kingdom of God on earth in this present age, replacing the flawed and "worldly" democracy and the will of the people with the will of God.
They will also be in position to claim the wealth and power associated with being the alleged stewards of God's will and "Christian America". Many of those associated with the Kingdom Now perspective are also part of the "Prosperity Gospel" cult. Paula White, the self-proclaimed "prophetess", who Donald Trump claims is his "spiritual advisor," is a heretical, cultic prosperity gospel preacher. That should explain a whole lot about his worldview. Their god is wealth, the power that comes with it which permits those who have it to live outside the law without consequence, and material possession.
Dominion Theology is not Christian
As a self-described Christian, once an Evangelical but now as one who rejects the use of that description because of its political implications, but who continues to believe in the gospel message of Jesus Christ, I reject any form of Dominion Theology as an aberration of Christian doctrine and as a theological heresy, and churches and church leaders who promote it, teach it in their churches and preach it in their sermons are heretics. I've seen some Christian theologians refer to it as "pseudo-Christian" because it does incorporate elements of the biblical narrative, though they are incorrectly applied and interpreted.
Acceptance of it is denial of the "new covenant" instituted by Jesus who proclaimed that his kingdom, the "ecclesia" or the church, was "not of this world." It is a means by which an elite group of self-appointed individuals acquire control of worldly power and wealth, not to bring about the Kingdom of God on earth, but to endow themselves with those things from which they would personally benefit.
Those who promote Dominion theology, whether it is Reconstructionism or Kingdom Now, or "Seven Mountains", which is a variation of the Kingdom Now movement that believes Christianity should seek the worldly power that comes from dominating all social, cultural, government and financial institutions, deny what Jesus and the Apostles said about the power of God, and the nature of his Kingdom. Both Paul and Peter acknowledge that no power is held on earth except that which has been permitted by God, and that his will and purpose is being achieved in this age, as it has since the resurrection of Jesus, in the "Great Commission" of the church. To claim the use of worldly influence and political power as a means of establishing God's Kingdom on earth is to deny the very foundational principle of Christian faith. It is using the very powerful influence of Christianity as a means for a political faction to claim wealth and power for themselves.
While I do not believe the New Testament book of Jude is a specific prophecy regarding those who promote Dominion Theology, I do believe it is a prophetic warning which aptly describes what is happening among some of the conservative branches of the Christian church in the United States. There is an intersection between various forms of Dominion Theology and right wing Republican politics. Christian leaders in many cases have abandoned the spiritual Kingdom of God in exchange for the worldly influence of politics to achieve their ends, which are not consistent with the ends of the church according to Jesus.
As Jude says, "For certain intruders have stolen in among you, people who long ago were designated for this condemnation as ungodly, who pervert the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ."
It's these abberant, heretical views, which came in on the coattails of Donald Trump, which explain how it is that millions of American Christians have submitted to the political leadership of a man who flaunts his immorality, particularly his adulterous affairs and his worldly image, denies any Christian confession of Christ, ridicules principles like turning the other cheek and loving your enemies as being the deeds of "suckers", "who indulges his own lusts, is bombastic in speech, flattering people to their own advantage." (Jude v. 6)
This is a Prevailing View Among the Religious Right, and in the Republican Party
A representative Democracy which guarantees individual rights, makes all of its citizens equal in terms of their ability to influence and participate in government by voting, and which has, as one of its core values, protecting the rights of the minority, is not compatible with any of the forms of Dominion Theology. Nor is religious liberty that completely separates the church from the state, both ways, and includes those who practice a form of Christian faith that is different than the majority view, other religious beliefs, such as Judaism, Islam or Hinduism, or those who practice no religious belief. Those people would all be subject to some form of discrimination, or would be excluded from society, under any form of Dominion Theology.
It is the aim of most forms of Dominion Theology to take over the government of the United States and "turn it back into the Christian nation that the founding fathers intended it to be." The only problem with that aim is that the founding fathers did not intend for the United States to be a "Christian nation" and most of the principles written into our foundational documents, specifically the Constitution and its Bill of Rights were from influences of the Enlightenment, not the institutional, state-controlled church, or the small, scattered American denominations of it that existed at the time. But historical facts have never stopped those who believe that the intentions of those who founded this country were to create a Christian theocracy of sorts, believing that the white Europeans who settled here were a new "covenant people" in the same way that Hebrews were the "chosen" people of the Old Testament, given the resources of the virgin continent of North America to establish the Kingdom of God on earth, in some form.
The attempt to take over the government has already begun. There are many Dominionists in all branches of the government. They have been elected to public office, they have been appointed to the judiciary, including the federal courts. Among the politicians who openly identify with and follow this Dominion perspective are Ted Cruz, Michelle Bachman, Sam Brownback, Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin and Rick Perry. And while they have not openly identified as such, Marjorie Taylor Green, Lauren Boebert, Paul Gosar, Madison Cawthorne and Matt Gaetz all frequently use Dominionist rhetoric.
Do I have your attention now?
What Would America Look Like Under Dominionism?
So all of those conspiracy theories, especially the basis for the whole Q-Anon theory, and all of the "Christian nationalism", which I more accurately describe as "white Christian nationalism," the tendency toward white supremacist influence, attacks on Critical Race Theory and the distorted criticisms of Black Lives Matter, do find common political and philosophical ground in Christian Dominion theology. The impetus of the movement is toward what they claim will be taking America back to its Christian roots. America's representative democracy was an Enlightenment influence, not a Christian principle, so overthrowing democratic rule is a key point of the reconstructed republic. Those who would become the government would be those individuals who claimed to be "on God's side" as he reclaimed the United States for his own Kingdom, redeeming it from Satanic control. There would be no elections, no term limits and no recourse for redress of grievances.
"Religious liberty" would become "Christian domination." Only the perspective of the Dominionists in charge would have any kind of religious liberty. Their religious principles would be taught in the schools, promoted in public institutions and in government. "Liberal" denominations would either be restricted to their own venues, or outlawed, depending on who was in charge. There would be little tolerance for any other religious perspective.
The Constitution would become a vehicle for enforcing "Biblical law," a set of codes which would likely include literal interpretation and enforcement of the Ten Commandments and laws based on the religious beliefs of the dominant group. Economic and social discrimination against people of color, which would include Latinos as well as African-Americans, Native Americans and Asians, anyone who was not of Caucasian, European descent, would face discrimination in educational and economic opportunity. We already have a court system that is tilted against racial and ethnic minorities. We would go back to the days of Jim Crow, and conceivably, to the days of the antebellum South.
Things considered to be immoral by those who were in charge would become illegal. Not only would abortion become illegal, but women who had one would be subject to arrest and trial on murder charges. That's already being considered in some states. Obviously, same-gender marriage would be outlawed, and where that would end is anyone's guess. Any kind of sexual contact or activity between same-gender individuals would be illegal, and would be subject to the death penalty. And what would you do with Trump and his older two sons, who are open about their sexual exploits and immoral behavior? Well of course, they would be exempt. :-(
It's hard for some of the apologists for this perspective to argue that there's no intention to be racist or discriminatory, and that it is only reform of the Constitution, and resetting it to their distorted perspective of its original intended purpose that is their goal. Most racism, especially the belief that the black race is destined for servitude, emerges from some of the Genesis narratives about the post-flood re-settlement of the world, including the "curse of Ham" nonsense, which is still pervasive among far right Pentecostal and Fundamentalist sects. NPR: Slavery and the "Curse of Ham"
There is no "covenant" relationship offered by God in the Bible to any nation or country or political entity in the world since Jesus offered his covenant and established his "ecclesia," or church. His "kingdom," which he clearly described and defined, is spiritual, and the members of the universal church are connected to each other by their common acknowledgement that Jesus is the Christ. There is no way for a country to be "Christian," only individuals can become disciples of Jesus and there is no provision for some kind of additional blessing to be bestowed upon a country based on the number of its citizens who acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
The United States is a Christian-influenced nation, in that Christianity, in multiple branches, is the predominant religious expression of its people, but there's no Biblical doctrine to support the claim that there's some kind of protection or benefit given to such a country. There is nothing anywhere in Christian doctrine in the Bible that offers any other nation or country in the world the same kind of theocratic, covenant relationship that God had with Israel in the Old Testament. That covenant ended with the resurrection of Christ and the establishment of the church, which is the body to which the new covenant applies. The church's commission is a spiritual one, not political or invested with worldly power. Since that is the core conviction of Dominion Theology, and that belief denies the Christ covenant, it makes those who believe in its principles heretics and churches they lead are apostate. (I John 4:1-3)
Intersecting with Trumpism
I doubt that the former President cares anything at all about turning America into a Christian nation. He lives outside the law anyway, and if Dominion theology was established in the constitution, his immoral behavior and his lack of ethics would run counter to the governing philosophy. If Dominion Theology ran the government, Trump, his kids, and most of his inner circle would be guilty of moral crimes deserving imprisonment or execution. But Trump claims to be the ultimate "deal maker" and many of those in the Evangelical political right are willing to overlook his faults and give him a complete pass in order to use him to get what they want. The Evangelicals who are currently in office who push this perspective are too repulsive to win a Presidential election. Their need for a morally bankrupt, corrupt, sexually abusive, emotional cripple like Trump shows that most of them don't believe God exists and are just using religious faith to bait voters.
There are all kinds of heretical, deviant doctrines and theology that come out of this movement, including white Christian nationalism. But the "Christian" and "biblical" aspect of their politics is only a means to an end, which is the concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a few. There may actually be some in this movement who really do believe that the world will get better when Christians take over the United States government. What I believe is that those who are part of this movement know very well that they will become the beneficiaries of vast wealth and power if they accomplish their goal and that is exactly what they are after. Otherwise, they wouldn't have any use for a moral degenerate like Donald J. Trump.
Let Me Be Clear...
Let me be clear: While Dominion theology, Reconstructionists, Kingdom Now advocates and Catholic Integralism use Christian terminology and Biblical quotations, they are not, in any way, shape or form, true and genuine Christian faith. I'll repeat that. Dominion theology, Reconstructionism, Kingdom Now theology and Catholic Integralism are not in any way, shape or form, true and genuine Christian faith. They make up a demonic force, masquerading as an angel of light, distorting true faith and deceiving Christians into a subversion of their faith. This is all a distortion of biblical theology, specifically eschatology or "end times" prophecy.
That this aberrant theology is able to gain ground in the church is due to the fact that most of the members of a Christian church have very little knowledge of biblical theology, have largely developed their own beliefs based on bits and pieces of what is preached and taught in their church, getting most of what they believe from the billion dollar Christian media, which, like the secular media, is in the business of selling products, not guarding theological or doctrinal integrity.
The most prominent and visible supporters of the Religious/Political right among Evangelicals are those who have made a fortune peddling the gospel. And their interests align more with immoral, worldly, corrupt, secular billionaires when it comes to government than they do with the gospel of Jesus Christ and belief in the existence of God.
"My Kingdom is Not of This World"
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. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here."
Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?"
Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."
Pilate asked him, "What is truth?"
After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them, "I find no case against him."
John 18:36-38, NRSV
There is no need to stake out territory in this world, and reclaim it for God from satanic domination. God is already in control of it. The biggest temptation Jesus faced, more than once according to the Biblical narrative, was to elevate himself to a position of worldly power. When he was tempted in the wilderness, it was the third temptation that he faced. When confronted with his arrest and his trial, he was tempted to use his power to save himself. His critics mocked him with that temptation. Many of those who clamored for his crucifixion were disappointed that the one claiming to be their Messiah wasn't going to use his power to free them from Roman rule. It's pretty clear that the intention of Jesus was to keep his church from being corrupted by worldly power, not to use it to dominate the world.
Had he resisted his arrest, he did indeed have the power, without having to call on any human assistance, to free himself. But that would have completely subverted the purpose of his existence and it would have denied God's redemptive grace to humanity. Dominion theology and all of its branches is a selfish aberration of Christian faith, a turn away from trust in the spiritual power of God, and toward the temptation of worldly power to achieve selfish ambition.
Paul's prophetic words to Timothy, which were meant for his time and his place, are also relevant to our perspective:
You must understand this, that in the last days distressing times will come. For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, brutes, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to the outward form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid them! 2 Timothy 3:1-5, NRSV
Many Christians click their tongues at "the world" and apply these verses to the immoral behavior they see there. But this looks a lot like what we saw in our own government between 2017 and 2021. Do you see anything there that looks familiar now, after being given that thought? I certainly do.
Christianity has never thrived when it was enforced by the power of the state. It loses its essence and meaning immediately. The new covenant, instituted by Christ when he empowered the church, was a spiritual kingdom. It redeems and transforms lives. Change and serving others are the result of a transformed life. The mission and purpose of the church is to testify to the redemption and transformation. When Christianity is enforced, it loses its redemptive, transforming power and becomes oppressive.
A nation cannot be "Christian." Only individuals can be Christians. And the influence of Christians on other people is a living and verbal testimony of faith. Behavior is changed by a transformed life, not by force, intimidation or cultural dominion, which robs the Christian testimony of its spiritual power.
There are millions of Christians in America who see this for what it is, as a gross, misleading distortion of Christian faith, a use of doctrine, theology and identifying terminology that is deceitful and destructive. They see it as a satanic inspired, infiltration of their churches. Preventing it from doing even more damage is taking a toll, dividing churches when small groups of members who have bought into this anti-Christian perspective and demand that their church leaders acknowledge it and promote it from their pulpit. It is causing an unprecedented decline in attendance and membership among the denominations and churches that it is infiltrating.
The Signal Press is making an effort to expose this lie for what it is. Thank you for reading and considering this honestly.
No comments:
Post a Comment