Since the early 1980s, with the rise of the Moral Majority Movement and the Religious Right, much of the American political and cultural landscape has been dominated by a very specific type of Christian, commonly known as conservative evangelicals (though I think this is a misnomer).
This wing of the Church has successfully taken over much of American media – including radio, television, and the Internet. They have successfully lobbied in politics at every level of government. They were a major force behind the elections of several presidents – Ronald Reagan, both George Bushes, and now Donald Trump. Their version of Christianity and its connections with power and money are all throughout American society. Even in the small town where I grew up, I was once active in a conservative evangelical church in which pamphlets were handed out instructing their congregants how to vote, and I recall another instance at another local church in which the local Republican Party came by for signatures after worship.
This partnership between American big business, politics, and conservative churches seems like it has always been the case. For many of us, the last 40 years feel like a lifetime (and as someone born in the early 90s, it has been a lifetime). However, we must remember that this has not always been this way.
In comments Robinson posted on the pornography site, he praised Hitler, called himself a “black NAZI,” said he supported slavery, confessed to formerly “peeping” on women as they showered, admitted an affair with his wife’s sister; and called civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. “Martin Lucifer Koon.”
Donald Trump endorsed Robinson’s current campaign to be North Carolina’s next governor, praising him as “Martin Luther King times two.” According to Raw Story, many evangelical leaders in North Carolina say they still support Robinson and that he clearly loves Jesus. The very same Jesus who said that we should judge the tree based on its fruit (Matthew 12:33-37).
More and more of those who previously worked for Trump are now warning about him, stating that he lacks a moral backbone and lies constantly—which most of us had figured out already, but now even those who were once his supporters are starting to realize the truth. Not a moment too soon!
Stephanie Grisham, on the right in the picture below, worked for Trump when he was president, called herself a “true Trump believer,” and was, among other things, his press secretary. She recently urged Republicans to vote for Democrat Kamala Harris instead and revealed what Trump says when he thinks no one is listening.
“When people were dying in intensive care units, he was mad that the cameras weren’t filming him,” Grisham said. “He has no empathy, no morals, and no fidelity to the truth. He used to tell me: ‘It doesn’t matter what you say, Stephanie. Say it enough, and people will believe you.'”
Trump’s campaign responded to this in a very calm, professional, and nuanced manner. No, of course not.
The question that arises, of course, is whether that doesn’t make Trump an even bigger “dummy with mental issues” since he hired her to be responsible for his communication with the outside world. The claim that it’s Grisham who is lying and not Trump is bizarre, given that he has been caught lying over and over again.
Grisham’s account of how Trump was annoyed that TV cameras were filming intensive care patients instead of him is also confirmed by another of his former employees, Olivia Troye, who also urges Republicans to put democracy above party and vote for Harris instead of Trump.
Other former Trump employees who are warning about him include his former Secretary of Defense, Mark Esper, who has called him a “threat to democracy,” and his former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, who has said that he is “unfit to be president.”
Micael Grenholm is a Swedish church historian, author and an editor for PCPJ.
Pentecostals & Charismatics for Peace & Justice is a multicultural, gender inclusive, and ecumenical organization that promotes peace, justice, and reconciliation work among Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians around the world. If you like what we do, please become a member!
Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. – Matthew 7:15
Beloved, don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. – 1 John 4:1
American Evangelicalism has been taken over by hypocrites. It is not new as this trend started several decades ago, but now we can see clearly the corruption before us. Conservative Christians, who claimed to be standing up for “traditional Christian/family values” supported a rich, womanizing con-man for president. People like John MacArthur, Wayne Grudem, and many leaders of American Evangelicalism made claims that Trump was the lesser of two evils since he was supportive of “traditional Christian/family values” despite being a flawed candidate. MacArthur in particular likes to take shots at LGBT people and said that he endorsed Trump in 2020 due to Trump’s social conservative views. However, Trump doesn’t seem to agree with MacArthur:
John MacArthur, like many of the leaders of American Evangelicalism, is a hypocrite and false prophet. Which I know this is strong language, but I am genuinely upset over the sad state of the Evangelical Church, and its hypocritical ways. How these people claim to follow Jesus but seem to ignore everything he said. How they are “pro-life” while against welfare services, pro-war, and anti-pandemic relief. Continue reading False Prophets and False Idols: The Sad State of American Evangelicalism→
300 years ago a movement of revival started within British and later American churches. This movement called the Church to return to the Gospel. It called the Church to share the message of Jesus with others and to follow Jesus more boldly. This movement was very diverse for its day. It affected most Christian denominations in the English-speaking world, and it touched many Christian communities. It was an international, interracial, intercultural, and interdenominational movement.
This movement promoted education, social reform, and inclusion in the Church. This movement was one of the main forces behind social justice movements for much of its history. Abolitionism, poverty-relief efforts, the Social Gospel, Labor Movement, Civil Rights Movement, and many other important causes were at least influenced by this movement.
The movement that I am talking about is Evangelicalism, but despite Evangelicalism having such a long and noble history, most don’t recognize it today – at least not in the United States. There are a number of factors that contributed to this:
First, Evangelicalism has always had a white supremacist wing. Even though Evangelicalism was indispensable in the abolitionist and civil rights movements, there was also always a segment that opposed those movements. On the one hand, you had John Wesley who argued strongly against slavery, but on the other you had Jonathan Edwards who owned slaves. There are still schisms in American churches over this exact issue. The Southern Baptist Convention is an example of an American Evangelical church founded on white supremacist principles. Continue reading It’s not Evangelicalism Anymore→
I waited to write this article for PCPJ as I wanted to see who the winner of the US Presidential election would be. This morning (Saturday, November 7th), the news broke that former Vice President Joe Biden defeated President Donald Trump.
Full disclosure: I am a member of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, and I donated to Joe Biden’s campaign. I am happy that Trump has lost this election. Donald Trump has always concerned me, and all of us at PCPJ have been critical of President Trump on numerous occasions. Having said that, I am also disappointed in Biden’s election. Joe Biden is simply the lesser of two evils rather than the person we need to advance the Reign of God. Biden’s election could be seen as a battle won rather than the winning of a war. Continue reading Will Biden Really Promote Peace and Justice?→
A couple of days ago, President Donald Trump met with a group of inner-city pastors to discuss policy (especially regarding the criminal justice system). Interestingly, most of the pastors present at this meeting were Pentecostal and Charismatic, and they praised the president during the meeting.
Here at PCPJ, we are deeply critical of President Trump’s policies. We have discussed many of them at length, and we even wrote (and I co-signed) a letter criticizing the president several months ago. In this article, I do not want to beat a dead horse and simply further criticize the Trump administration on policy. However, I do want to address a much larger issue — the baptizing of our partisan politics. Continue reading The Dangers of Baptizing Our Politics→
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