Jamin Bradley

Most of the pastors I know are baffled by Trump. His deception, lying, pride, bullying, stereotyping, and demeaning attitude have us shaking our heads in wonder as to how so many Christians have chosen to turn him into God’s prophetic choice and champion. Not only does such thinking fly in the face of good gospel theology and biblical prophecy, but the fruit of the Spirit is not there.

So why don’t you hear more explicit comments from pastors on this issue? There are many reasons, but two core ones:

(1) We’ve created a social dynamic where pastors can discuss anything except politics. For some reason, politics are considered so important, sacred, and personal that pastors are expected to stay out of it—which makes no sense to our job as your spiritual leaders.

(2) Pastors are scared of their congregants. Many of them have tried to speak against Trump and the things he’s done, but they were martyred by their churches for it. Those who weren’t fired were expected to apologize or not do it again. If they pressed on anyway, they lost half their church.

All of this is a double standard. Pastors know they can use Republican-charged words openly in a sermon. Indeed, they can probably get away with outright endorsing a Republican candidate from the stage and expect cheers from a fair amount of the room. The same endorsement will load up their social media posts with likes and comments. What pastors are not allowed to do from the stage is challenge Republican thinking or candidates. (Though they may challenge Democrats, which may again bring about some cheers.) Can you recall witnessing this double standard in your churches?

The same Christians who came down on a democratic Clinton for moral issues have fully endorsed a republican Trump despite the characteristics mentioned above. Therefore, Christian politics do not seem to me to be about morality. It’s about something else. Is it single-issue voting around abortion? Maybe. Is it our unwillingness to challenge the traditional paradigm that a Christian must be a Republican? Maybe. Or maybe it’s something else.

The religion of Babylon is blinding, and it will eat you alive if you let it. Whether you vote for Trump or not, make sure your heart is clear of the Trumpism that turns the man into a god and you into a worshipper. May our eyes always be on Jesus.