It’s Time to #Refocus

Folks, it is time to #refocus. We are living through a period of time filled with events that the majority of us have never experienced. It is a time when friends have become foes. It is a time when families have become disconnected. It is a time when employees have been pitted against the employer. It is a time when children have been separated from their friends. It is a time that division has become the norm, and I think it is absolutely intentional by the “powers that be.” 

Now, don't get me wrong, I understand that people have been divided on different issues throughout history, but this is different. It feels different. Maybe social media makes it seem more than what it is? But, I don't think so. 

I remember talking with my mom leading up to the Trump/Biden showdown and she made a comment that was interesting to me. She said, as a child, her parents (my sweet Nana and Granddaddy) never discussed politics and if they did it certainly wasn't around the kids. Mom lived through the Civil Rights Movement and, even then, it wasn't as in your face as we see today. I don't say this to discourage parents from talking with their children about politics, rather I want to encourage it, especially from those of us who value freedom for our children. It is certainly a better option than public schools teaching our kids about politics. Folks, it is time to #refocus.

We see so many people scattered right now and who could blame them? It is a confusing time for everyone and folks want guidance. We want someone to make this insanity make sense, and the go-to, it seems, is the State. Since the inception of man-made governments, people have looked to them for guidance no matter despite the countless atrocities they have committed throughout history. But why? It reminds me of a quote attributed to Albert Einstein: 

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”

It is time to #refocus. 

But where does this confusion come from? Confusion is from a lack of understanding and uncertainty. What drives uncertainty? Simply, fear, the unknown. Fear has a way of putting us in handcuffs with no way out. I suffer from extreme claustrophobia and just the thought of covering my face with anything freaks me out to no end, so you can only imagine the battles I have fought through these past few months. Creeping through a parking lot to make sure someone else isn't covering their face so I don't have to explain this very strange phobia that many don't understand. Did God create me with this phobia? I don't know, but I do know it is real. 

I also know that it was never a fear that affect anyone else until all of this started; it was just a thing that I never had to explain. When I think of fear in my life, I think of my baby brother TJ who died last year, something I will never stop talking about. TJ was terrified of this virus and took every precaution the State insisted on. He didn't die from Covid but the fear instilled by corporate media and the State forced him into self-isolation and he drank himself to death. I bring this up because fear needs to be recognized, where it comes from and its power over us. Fear, certainly, isn't from Jesus.

“I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.” 

Psalm 34:4-5

It is time to #refocus

Before I continue, I want to make it clear, I am not only speaking to the reader of this article but to myself as well. I am just as guilty of this. To this day I listen to a lot of politically charged podcasts, and our own podcast could be lumped into that as well, which honestly is what got me to thinking over the last few days before writing this. I will not discourage folks from listening or paying attention to what is happening politically because it absolutely has an effect on each and every one of our lives. It is important to be informed. I say all of the time that “willful ignorance is the worst kind of ignorance”.

Ignorance in itself isn't bad, it just means you don't know. Willful ignorance is intentional. One recurring theme I have noticed while listening to these shows is “we need to work through the system to make this insanity make sense”. 

I’m not down with that, especially as a Christian. People are straining to hear the whisper amongst the screaming. People are seeking some hope while navigating the insanity. We know where that hope is, and it certainly won't be found in the halls of Congress or any Governor's mansion. That hope has and will continue to be found with Jesus. 

“I am the way and the truth and the life”  

John 14:6

Jesus is the most consistent King this world has ever seen, so why do so many Christians revert their faith back to the State? Don't get me wrong, I understand the allure. It is very tempting to work through the State to preserve Liberty but that's all it is, a temptation.

“And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, to you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours. And Jesus answered him, it is written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve”

Luke 4:5-8

Some of you may be saying, “well that just isn't practical today, lives are at stake!” Yes, I agree, lives are at stake! Liberty is fleeting! But where does life come from? Where does Liberty come from? One of my Bad Roman Project cohorts who has been with us from the jump is Abby Cleckner, and her favorite verse on Liberty is extracted from Galatians:

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage." 

Galatians 5:1

One retort I get when mentioning this verse is, “well Paul is clearly talking about sin”, and I reply, “Of course he is. Check out 1 Samuel 8. When Israel demanded a king did God not see that as a rejection of Him? Is it not a sin to reject God? Paul talks about “yoke of bondage” go read 1 Samuel 8 again and God lists everything that will happen when we demand a king”.

 It is time to #refocus.

People are hurting. People are confused and scattered. People are seeking some consistency, and people are seriously seeking some hope. As Christians, we know where that hope is. Live a life that makes people ask you questions about why you aren't worried about government edicts. 

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” 

Matthew 6:25-27

Our guy Jesus dropped some truth bombs. It is time to #refocus

Love y’all,

Craig Harguess

The Astonishing Conversion Of America Into A Secular Society

Modern America is anything but a religious society. Regardless of how you measure it, Americans are less religious now than ever before and the rate is accelerating[1]. Church attendance is down, the nation is in moral decline, and social trust is evaporating. For anybody old enough to remember the US decades ago, these trends are painfully obvious. But what are the causes of these trends, and why now?

There are numerous factors that contribute to these trends, like immigration, urbanization, culture, etc. Unfortunately, there is no objective way to measure the exact cause. But one source is unmistakable: public schools. Over the last 60 years, schools have slowly removed prayer[2]. Prayer in school wasn’t making people religious, but it serves as a good proxy for secularization and the growing hostility towards religion. As schools have pushed out prayer and religion, Americans have become increasingly secular. It is to the point now where many consider mention of God or Jesus as hate speech[3].

History of Public Schools

Since the inception of the American Public School System, reformers have used schools to manipulate children and mold them into “good” citizens. Initiated by Horace Mann, the early American school systems followed the Prussian model to generate compliant soldiers and factory workers[4]. Later, the Protestant elites of New England used schools to “Americanize” waves of immigrants from mostly Catholic countries. Instead of encouraging immigrants to send their children to Catholic schools, the elites passed Blaine Amendments in most states, which forbid public money from supporting parochial schools[5].

Another interesting development during the early periods of public schooling was the introduction of the Pledge of Allegiance[6]. With prayer in school, there was never a conflict between God and nationalism. However, now that prayer is gone, children are left with nothing but an admiration of the nation. In fact, public schools routinely teach history in ways that lionize US Presidents. Even though easily debunked, schools teach countless myths about American History, especially with regards to presidents[7]. The lies surrounding Lincoln are so outrageous that they stretch the credibility of public schools and expose their underlying mission of indoctrination.

Desegregation

Of course, it is impossible to review schools without recognizing the tremendous roll of public schools in desegregating American culture. Just as the schools were previously used to enforce racial differences, reformers used public schools to change culture[8]. Today, a segregated society is unthinkable, so something clearly had to be done. But the important lesson is to understand that reformers turned to the school system as their agent of change.

Since then, social changes have vastly accelerated. Racism was always the big ticket item of American reformers. But once it was largely defeated, reformers moved on to other pet projects. The fight against racisms did not pit schools against religion. However, the next wave of reforms challenged many long held religious beliefs.

Role of Women

The role of women in society was the next major reform. As with every reform before, the public schools lead the way[9]. Of course, here leftist egalitarianism and religious traditions are squarely in conflict. Like every challenge before it, the reformers won. In the US, women now account for more than half of the workforce[10].

With both parents out of the house, the State fully consolidated raising and educating children. The rise of after school programs (aka ASP) is an obvious consequence of this trend[11]. Instead of spending time at home with religious parents and family, more and more children spend their entire days at public schools immersed in secular environments which are openly hostile to religious beliefs.

Marriage

Finally, government destroyed the last remaining pillar of traditional, religious lifestyle with Obergefell v. Hodges [12]. Now, it is a hate crime to mention the religious nature of marriage. Like every other reform, the change is most extreme in public schools[13]. Schools across the country teach children that marriage is between any combination of genders and anything to the contrary is bigotry.

Conclusion

Thorough American History, reformers used public schools to push agendas. These agendas have always worked to displace religion with the modern egalitarian consensus. This consensus lionizes public leaders and minimizes the role of family and religion, especially in the public domain. They radically transformed America into a thoroughly secular culture and society.

If you care about religion, however, not all is lost. As the American government descends further into disfunction, people are waking to these trends and opting out of the system. More and more parents home school their children, especially since the nightmare treatment of children during the COVID pandemic. The recent wave school voucher laws which give parents the choice to send their children to private, religious schools using public funds is another beacon of hope.

Concordia

In my novel, Concordia, There Must be a better Way, a team of visionaries create a nation. One of their key accomplishments is the separation of education and state. This gives parents complete control over their children’s education, which is the only long-term solution to preserving religious beliefs. When concluding the book, the main character and hero, Paul Walters, says:

It is my hope that we can show the world that education is too important to leave to self-interested bureaucrats and corrupt politicians.

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About the Author

Rudy Fenimore is the author of Concordia, There Must be a Better Way. A software expert by day, he writes on nights and weekends to connect with people and escape the boredom of the software world. A dedicated husband and father of three, Rudy enjoys spending time with family, especially in the great outdoors. When not working, he enjoys tennis, weightlifting, gardening, and hiking.

Connect with Rudy

Get the book

Blog: concordia.blog

Twitter: @1concordia

Christians Without Borders

I grew up in churches. My father was in the military, a servant of the United States Empire, which required my family to move pretty frequently. Wherever we ended up, my Mom made sure to find a local church for us to attend on Sundays. 

Most of the time, these churches were Baptist or Southern Baptist—all of the time, these churches subtly mixed worship of the American Empire into their services. The church where I accepted Jesus as my savior had a roof painted like a giant American flag. Cringey, right? 

During my childhood and young adult years, I was taught in church that the Empire was good. The Empire's actions were valid and righteous. We must protect the Empire and confront and defeat her enemies.I believed these ideas to be true. I also believed the Empire's borders were under attack, with evil people constantly wanting to infiltrate and compromise the Empire's sovereignty. Secure borders keep us safe...or so I was told. 

As time progressed, I realized that many of the 'truths' I was taught when I was young were, in fact, propaganda. Chief among these are the myths surrounding borders. For at least 30 years, the Empire has had an issue at its southern border. The south edge of the United States is a gateway to Mexico which connects the Empire to Central and South America. Centuries of meddling in these regions' cultures and economies have led to considerable disparities in prosperity between the Empire and the Central and South American countries. 

The meddling specifically by the United States Empire has allowed drug cartels to overrun many of the nations in Central and South America. These cartels are the de-facto government and rule their territories with iron fists. The more actions the US Empire has taken to curtail the cartels(via the failed war on drugs), the more solidified the cartels' power has become. Millions of people have fled the violence and poverty caused by U.S. meddling and the cartels’ rule. 

Where do these people flee to? The southern border of the U.S. Empire. A line on a map that divides 'us' from 'them.' Debates have raged for years as to why people come to the United States. Undoubtedly, the reasons are as varied as the countries they are leaving behind, but it is undeniable that most people are attempting to find peace and prosperity that is understood to be unattainable in their homelands. 

For the last three decades, the U.S. Empire has tried to prevent people from crossing its southern border 'illegally'. Billions of dollars have been spent to “secure the border” and prevent both people and goods from crossing it. Despite all of the efforts and money that is thrown at the situation, the border conditions have remained essentially unchanged. People remain desperate to reach a place where they have a chance at safety and prosperity. 

The response by Christians in the U.S. has primarily matched that of the government. The prevailing thought is anyone who would violate the United States' laws and not respect the Empire's borders are criminals. Criminals, you see, are not worthy of being part of the Empire. Criminals could never be good Romans. What does this have to do with Christians? Christians, sadly, care about the borders of the Empire almost as much as the Empire does, but the Bible and Jesus himself tell us that this should not be the case. 

Borders, for a Christian, should be irrelevant. For reference, first, let’s take a look at the parable of the Good Samaritan. In Luke Chapter 10, we see Jesus layout how Christians should treat people from other countries and cultures. Here's what the text says: 

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"

He answered, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"

In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'

"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"

The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."

Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."

In Jesus' time, Jews hated Samaritans. The Jews saw themselves as the superior culture and race, while the Samaritans were considered unclean. While the relations between Jews and Samaritans aren't a 100% correlation to American Christians and immigrants’ relations, there are some parallels we can draw. 

We can see in Luke Chapter 10 Jesus breaks down the barrier between Jews and Samaritans. He is crossing the border that separates 'them' and 'us.' The man speaking to Jesus wants to wiggle off the hook, he wants to know who exactly these “neighbors” are he is supposed to love as himself. This is when Jesus hits him right in the feels. Your neighbors? Your neighbors are those folks you detest. The folks whom you have always been taught are lesser than you, not equal. 

Jesus plainly shows us who our neighbors are: everyone. Yes, even the people we don't like. Yes, even people from other cultures. Yes, even people from other countries. Yes, even people who 'illegally' cross imaginary lines on a map. 

In addition to showing us who our neighbors are, Jesus also guides us on how we should treat our neighbors. The Good Samaritan spends time, resources, and money to help a man he just met; you'll notice the Samaritan didn't ask the man what his reason for being on the road was, nor did he ask where he came from or if he had committed any violations of the law. The Samaritan saw a man in need and helped him. 

There are people in need at the southern border of the United States and many other places worldwide. When we, as Christians, use the border as an excuse to overlook people in need, we are no better than the men in the parable who didn't help, and we certainly aren't loving our neighbors. Rather, we are in defiance of the way Jesus instructed us to treat people. 

Governments use borders to establish their sovereignty and power. Borders tell us who we should care about and who isn't worthy of our time, resources, and money. But they are never mentioned by Jesus. The reality is, borders should be irrelevant to Christians. 

We have other examples of Jesus setting this precedent that borders are irrelevant. In Acts Chapter 1, Jesus ascends to heaven and gives his disciples instructions for the future: 

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Christians are to carry the story of Jesus everywhere. To the ends of the world. To all of humanity. There's no mention of crossing borders legally (or illegally) or even respecting the sovereignty of the nations we carry the Good News to. 

We aren't told to carry the Good News to the cultures and people who we like, the ones we deem worthy, but we are to take it to everyone. EVERYONE. 

Later in Acts, we see just how Jesus plans to empower the disciples to accomplish this task: 

"And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.

They were completely amazed. "How can this be?" they exclaimed. "These people are all from Galilee, and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!"

Through the Holy Spirit, God empowered His disciples to preach to people of nations. Their languages weren't a barrier, and no one asked the people in the crowd that day what their legal status was. The Gospel was preached and God was glorified. 

My fellow Bad Romans, I ask you today to look at borders in a new light. Borders are a means to an end for secular government. They serve a purpose for government, and that purpose isn't beneficial to people in need. Jesus did not need borders, He had no love or concern for their protection. So, in turn, we, the image-bearers of Christ, should not concern ourselves with the government-drawn lines on a map. 

Instead, we should love our neighbors. Help people in need. Take the love and Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth, and to all people because they are all our neighbors. No more excuses. No more borders.

Jesus Is the Epitome Of Everything a “Bad Roman” Wants to Be

During Jesus’ lifetime, the Jews of the Intertestamental period existed under the occupation of Rome in their ancestral home of Judea. The two things they had going for them were the geographic promises of God in Gen 12:7, that they would possess the land of Canaan and the identity that came with the promise of Gen 12: 2-3 as the means of God’s blessing to the world. These promises became barriers to their recognition of Jesus as the promised blessing.

In the midst of this turmoil between their understanding of the promise, and Jesus as the fulfillment of that promise, Jesus began his public ministry. Jesus would buck repeatedly at the methods of thought, belief, and behavior he found entrenched in the minds of the religious leadership in Jerusalem and the Temple. Jesus’s presence and instruction were turning the Jewish world on its head; undermining systems that had developed through hardship and rational thinking, in favor of the freedom God wanted his children to experience in Christ.     

The Five Controversies

The Apostle Mark describes Jesus’s time in Capernaum by shining a light on five controversies Jesus evoked.

1. Mark 2:1-12

   Jesus forgives a paralyzed man’s sins and then, to prove He had the authority and power to forgive sin, he heals the paralyzed man and tells him to get up, grab his bed, and go home. The Scribes who witnessed Jesus' actions thought to themselves, “only God can forgive sins, ” and they were right, but they were unaware and ignorant of who Jesus was. The Scribes, who knew the Scriptures front to back, had become so concerned with conformity and tradition, instead of compassion and love, that they missed the Messiah sitting right in front of them.                      

2. Mark 2: 13-17

   Jesus upsets the religious leadership again by associating with sinners. The Scribes and the Pharisees question Jesus’ bona fides because no righteous man would associate with sinners for he himself would become soiled. In the established religious leadership minds, Jesus is demonstrating that he is not someone who can be followed. In response to these accusations, Jesus explains he has to be with them (the sinners) if He is going to restore them to fellowship with God. To avoid sinners is actually counter to God’s Law to love one’s neighbor as oneself and lead them to righteousness. The Pharisees and Scribes misunderstood the Law, which allowed them to use it as a weapon against people instead of a means to elevate and restore them to fellowship with God.

3. Mark 2: 18-22

   This time they recruit the disciples of John to join the Pharisees to show how the righteous and faithful of God fast twice weekly while Jesus and his disciples do not fast at all. The point they aimed to make was that Jesus does not follow orthodox faith practices and therefore He should not be followed at all. In the eyes of the Pharisees, Jesus is a bad Jew who will lead others down a path to destruction. 

   Yet Jesus uses three examples to show them something new and better has arrived if they would just step back and see the reality before them in Mark 2: 19-22. Utilizing three examples Jesus explains that this new system cannot be joined with the old tradition because they are not compatible. The old must be replaced and release its control. Likewise, the new cannot be contained in the same vessels as the old because the new way would burst the old. In other words, people must be born again to fully understand the Law and the Kingdom of God. 

4. Mark 2 23-28

   To truly drive the point home, Mark describes how Jesus upset the Pharisees by not following their hypocritical understanding of the Sabbath in Mark 2 23-28. The Pharisees attempted to show Jesus as an unworthy leader because his followers were violating their rules on the Sabbath, but Jesus responds by showing the Sabbath is for man, not the other way around. Basic human needs must still be met on the Sabbath. However, the Pharisees were using the Sabbath as a hammer against their fellow man when God gave it as a blessing.

5. Mark 3: 1-6

   The fifth controversy, in Mark 3: 1-6, is similar to the fourth.  Jesus is inside a synagogue, surrounded by the enemy. Jesus asks the Pharisees if it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do evil, to save a life or to kill?  The Pharisees did not respond, so Jesus healed a man right in front of them. Jesus did good on the Sabbath and they were not too friendly or happy about it.  The Pharisees proceeded to leave the synagogue,  seek out the Herodians, and plot ways to destroy Jesus. So, in response to the good  Jesus did on the Sabbath they were angry, but they had no problem doing evil on the Sabbath as they sought out people to kill him. In so doing the Pharisees showed the hypocrisy of their Sabbath observance for what it was.

Being “bad” to do good

By being a “bad Jew” Jesus was able, through his action and language, to reveal how limited the Pharisees’ and Scribes’ understanding of the Word of God was. Instead of bringing people closer to God they were driving people away and making it nearly impossible for people to build a relationship with God. This was the same age-old problem of the Abrahamic nation that resulted in their banishment to begin with.

In modern times, Christians are often being good citizens of a nation-state at the expense of being good Christians. Christians have created idols out of the State and all of its bodies, often placing the military, the flag, a political party, or the authority of Government above and before their Christian beliefs. In the United States, Christians have elevated these idols to the status of gods and place hedges around their faith in their Creator if it conflicts with any of their idols. This hypocrisy of faith often becomes a barrier to others believing in Jesus but also keeps Christians from actively living out what God has called us to be in this world.

It is time to be good Christians. If we will be faithful to the Kingdom of God, it will seldom equate to being a faithful patriot to a temporal nation-state.

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About the Author

Ian Minielly is a full-time vocational pastor. He considers himself an “oddball” in ministry for his peaceful understanding of the Kingdom of God and how limited of a role Christians should have with the State.

Regarding how he came to this stance, he says, “God spared me and showed great mercy in opening my eyes to love, and against war and the State. To see the great work God did in me, previously I spent more than seven years as an intelligence analyst for the Defense Intelligence Agency, focused on Counter-Proliferation of WMD material and systems. Prior to that, I spent more than nine years in the infantry and Special Forces (I was a Green Beret). Once I became a believer, I found the biblical expectations of God were in opposition to my profession in the military and my nationalism. God slowly peeled this understanding back and I left the army and nationalism.”

Ian has published three books, Emily's Tears, Revoked Consent, and The Genetic God, which are available on Amazon.

He also has a YouTube channel if you would like to see him in action!

God Weeps for His Church

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Biblical tradition has a way of hunting down and haunting the worst inclinations of people.  The prophets were bold enough to do this in real-time. Regardless of the character, biblical prophets gave necessary, albeit challenging, direction to God’s people.  Hosea, for example, went to such lengths to demonstrate God’s displeasure with Israel that he married a prostitute, “for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” He then named their subsequent children for God’s anger – “I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel,” “No Mercy,” and “Not my People.” Hosea goes on to conduct divorce proceedings with Israel on behalf of God, speaking to their idolatry, insolence, and deference to kings in place of the Lord, before God offers forgiveness for repentance.

Now, I'm no prophet.  I don't claim to have a word from God burning within me to reconcile His people to Him.  What I do have, like the prophets of old, is a hard word for American Christians. For too long, the Church - the body of Christ - has clung to ‘Ol’ Glory’ and the tenets of particular political parties instead of Christ Himself.  I find myself included in this group more often than I care to admit. 

In a political climate where ripping paper and shirking handshakes are business as usual, divisiveness and persuasion-polarization are nearing a fever pitch.  That's not to say this is the worst these United States have seen; we killed half a million of each other in a so-called "civil" war, we shot fire hoses and sent dogs on protestors for equity, we've survived the Great Depression and the Great Recession, 9/11, and the wars of Communist Containment and the Global War on Terror.  

Today, though, the discourse has shifted.  We aren't arguing ideologies; we're battling neighbor against neighbor over practically anything.  These aren't ethereal principles being advanced squarely in the political arena; this is the Colosseum with a line in the sand.  We want ever-more extravagant theatrics in place of debate, and we're all told to pick a side. This is progressivism in contemporary terms.  Every facet of life is political because every facet of life is due for examination with a federal lens. It is our duty as Christians to not only resist this basest urge but to divorce ourselves completely from it.  

Based on the latest Pew data, American Evangelicals and Mormons have an empirically Republican bent, while historically black Protestant churches are reliably Democrat supporters.  Both camps of political Christians have been resounding supporters of their most recent presidents, Donald Trump, and Barack Obama, respectively. Each report "ascribing a high-level of importance to their personal faith and say they participate in religious activities," yet the question is, 'where are the fruits?'

It doesn’t take a lot of time on the internet to find behaviors, statements, and policies from both parties and presidents that poorly represent Christ or make the country less safe for faith adherents.  To name a few:

• The bipartisan support of the federal domestic spying program.

• The seemingly never-ending wars of the Middle East.

• CIA torture program.

• The ever-growing list of governmental powers and its associated bloated budget. 

• The rampant and grisly drone program known world-wide for targeting weddings, funerals, and school buses full of children.

Many of the worst aspects of the American government are common ground for the political class.  Yet Christ-followers are not flooding the streets or rebuking these policies in any meaningful way.  Institutionally, the Church remains silent on much of this, instead choosing only to affirm social issues they deem worthy.

Instead, conservative Christians attempt to justify war crimes, the pardoning of war criminals, torture, despotic immigration measures, and a record-setting military budget on Christian grounds.  Conversely, liberal Christians can be found publicly supporting abortion, questions on marriage and ‘social justice,’ and turning a blind eye to the same foreign policy atrocities as their counterparts. 

This phenomenon isn't just misguided theology.  It is the worst aspect of an increasingly partisan and growing state apparatus that intrudes upon all aspects of life and therefore necessitates picking a political team. Some refer to it as mere tribalism, that peoples' tendency to organize along "in-group" lines manifests in such ugly ways.  Christians, though, should see the political process for what it is in our terms: idolatry. 

Throughout Hosea – and within the rest of the prophetic and historical books of the Bible, beginning in 1 Samuel 8 – God's anger is directed at this very inclination in His people.  The Israelite's belief in man-made social organization, be it rulers or erudite policymaking, to usher in God's will for them was a great offense to God. It was hubris to think kings could establish a utopian vision of peaceful coexistence in love-filled communities while subduing the earth.   But it wasn’t only pride, rather, a direct repudiation of God’s order. Creation wasn't to hand the reins of control to man, but rather an invitation to ride along in the cart while God led the way. 

Historically, liberal Christians, particularly those in the black community, are motivated by injustice when picking political sides.  Yet injustice continues, even within the ranks of the Democratic party, it is often perpetrated directly upon the poor and minority communities they claim to support.  Abortions, draconian laws, the separating of families for non-violent crimes, oppressive police states, and hefty tax burdens are all foisted upon these folks by the very representatives they vote into office.

On the other hand, conservatives have tended toward traditional means of governance, including ‘original intent’ within Constitutional ‘exegesis,’ to preserve the liberty to worship and the values of Christianity.  Yet, the blood of innocence cries out from the earth, spilled from regulators and warmongers lurking in DC these very Christians are frothing to support. The Christian Evangelical movement is wholly distorted by red-faced bluster about patriotism and ‘walking with a big stick,’ moot principles for those meant to inherit this earth.  

As flags were unfurled and hearts were covered, American Christians should have been the first to take a knee.  Not for one particular issue, but for the glory of God. There is no functional difference between the statue of Nebuchadnezzar and the monuments American's hold dear.  The worship of the golden calf and the obsequious praise of the stars and stripes are one and the same. What’s worse, Christ-followers aren’t being threatened with the lion’s den, but worship stone and paper joyfully.

Brothers and sisters, resist the urge to venerate troops or the framed-faces of presidents adorning our walls.  Sing your songs not to cloth and stone but to God’s glory, and refuse to pledge your allegiance to any king but Christ. For we are called to be set apart from unbelievers for God’s sake, not to be unrecognizable in the crowd of faces seeking man’s direction.

Contributors

John Dangelo is a Christian, husband, father and full-time emergency room nurse.  As a former Marine Corps veteran, John writes about the relationship of Christians and the state, foreign policy, and has been featured with antiwar.com.  You can follow his blog and Instagram at antiwarwarvet.com and @antiwarwarvet.