In my last post, I shared my struggle with the question of whether, as a pastor, I should post about politics in the age of Donald Trump. Many of the responses included comments like this: "How can people who call themselves Christian support that man?"
I have decided to take this question literally, and, as a spiritual exercise, I will try to answer it. In reading these answers, I suspect some of my liberal friends may find their blood boiling. But I am not trying to articulate these arguments because I agree with them. Neither am I denying that less noble reasons also drive many people - including many Christians - to support Trump. Those I will address on another occasion.
In this post, I am simply trying to articulate some of the reasons that good, Christian people I know and love support Donald Trump. Perhaps you know someone perfectly decent and honorable like this, too - a cousin, a grandfather, an old friend from childhood.. Maybe you will want to keep this person in mind as you ponder my answers to the question: how, in good conscience, can they do it?
1. HE'S NO WORSE THAN ANY OTHER POLITICIAN ...
Some Christians I know are distrustful of politicians altogether, and have concluded that President Trump's many flaws do not set him apart from all the rest. Even as I reject this view myself, I can identify with the disgust that some people experience when they think about politics, and I can understand why some might conclude that drawing moral distinctions between politicians is a fruitless exercise.
2. ...OR AT LEAST NO WORSE THAN HILLARY CLINTON.
While I disagree, some people I know remain convinced that Hillary Clinton is entirely untrustworthy, in part because she and her husband, Bill Clinton, ran their foundation as a perpetual political campaign. In this view, some elected officials may rise above the corruption inherent in the art of politics, but in the 2016 presidential election, we were given a choice between two who did not, so that left the game wide open to other considerations.
3. HE IS ON THE RIGHT SIDE WHEN IT COMES TO MY ISSUE.
Some people are, of course, single-issue voters. Single-issue voting seems to me a short-sighted way to think about politics, but I feel very strongly about some things, and I can sympathize with people who organize their political views and practices around something they care passionately about.
4. HE DOESN'T TALK LIKE A POLITICIAN
Early on in his presidential campaign, Donald Trump distinguished himself from other candidates by his manner of speech. Trump's unscripted manner of speech often came off as rambling, even incoherent, but it proved very effective in tapping popular frustrations - especially those of white evangelical voters - in ways that utterly escaped his Republican opponents in the primary campaign, and Hillary Clinton in the general election.
5. HE IS THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
Early on in his presidential campaign, Donald Trump distinguished himself from other candidates by his manner of speech. Trump's unscripted manner of speech often came off as rambling, even incoherent, but it proved very effective in tapping popular frustrations - especially those of white evangelical voters - in ways that utterly escaped his Republican opponents in the primary campaign, and Hillary Clinton in the general election.
5. HE IS THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
Some Christians I know interpret this verse from Paul's letter to the Romans as requiring support of the President: "Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God." (Romans 13:1) To my mind, submitting to governing authorities does not require that we refrain from opposing them politically, and in this I stand in a fine American political tradition. Still, I recognize that for some people a respect for those in authority is a grounding principle of their faith.
6. GOD CAN USE ANYBODY
An old friend challenged me recently, asking, "doesn't scripture suggest that God can used even flawed individuals for a divine purpose?" Indeed it does. According to the book of 2 Samuel, King David, one of Israel's greatest Kings and the author of many sublime Psalms, was a duplicitous philanderer ... so, at least on that front, there is scriptural precedent for President Trump (and, yes, for Bill Clinton and John F. Kennedy and surely other American presidents). I don't believe the idea that God can use a scoundrel for larger purposes means we should support scoundrels in their mischief and malfeasance, mind you. But I agree that it is an important part of the Christian faith that God is not limited by our human limitations ... and this, it seems to me, is good news for all of us.
7. HE'S A REPUBLICAN
This is the most obvious answer. Some Christians simply like the constellation of ideas they associate with the Republican Party - lower taxes, smaller government, strong national defense - and so they support President Trump because, in most respects, he is pursuing a rather orthodox Republican agenda. This answer is honest and direct, and I respect people who are up front about it when asked why they support President Trump.
THE QUESTION OF CHARACTER AND MORALITY
I've tried my best to articulate dispassionately some of the reasons why some good Christians might support President Trump. If there are others, I welcome hearing them. But these reasons all beg an important question: at what point should our moral qualms about a politician's character and conduct outweigh our other reasons for lending them our support? Right now, this is a question confronting many good Republicans I know. But it is a question that people of all political persuasions would do well to ponder it, as I will do in my next post.
NEXT UP: What if Donald Trump had been elected as a Democrat?
NEXT UP: What if Donald Trump had been elected as a Democrat?
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