Hello, my friends,

The question I probably get the most from my readers lately is about the theological beliefs around the deification of politicians. Specifically, Donald Trump.

To be honest, I have hesitated to write about this for a long time for two main reasons.

1. I think there needs to be more nuance and complexity taken into consideration between why a particular individual Christian would support Donald Trump, which may be different from the reasons why an entire broader theological movement would do so, like Evangelical Christianity. As I said in a recent article, reducing an individual’s personhood to the things we disagree with about a broader movement prevents us from actually understanding and even loving that individual as we should. So, what I write here today may or may not apply to our family member or our neighbor who supports Donald Trump and we need to be careful about the conclusions we draw.
2. As a writer with a public platform, I will often have readers read my critique of a particular theological movement or politician as if it is an automatic endorsement of what they assume to be the “other side” of said movement or politician, even when I never mention the “other side.” This has more to do with the false binaries we so often use to define religious and political topics, which often prevent us from being able to see nuance and complexity, let alone issue thoughtful critiques. No matter the “side.” In our current time in American history, Christianity is being co-opted politically by the far right to a far greater extent than it is by the far left. The far left is more likely to be anti-religion than to use religion for the sake of political control. So to claim that “both sides” are co-opting Christianity equally is simply incorrect. If the far left ever rises to the level of threatening our democracy and corrupting the Christian faith to do so as the far right is currently doing. If the far left begins deifying politicians as their political saviors as the far right is doing, then you will see me write about that here as well. But until then, my focus is going to be on what is currently happening. So, what I write here today shouldn’t be read as an automatic endorsement of whatever one might assume to be the “opposite side” of the topic at hand. As a pastor and a writer, I am focusing on what is currently happening within American Christianity. No matter where we find ourselves on the political spectrum as followers of Jesus, we are all susceptible to the temptation of conflating our faith with partisanship and our own unique form of fundamentalism. My hope is that as we learn and understand why it is currently happening so much on the political right we will take this as a lesson to avoid doing the same thing ourselves in our own political and religious engagement.

So all this to say, my intention with this article is to do my best to try to answer the question mentioned above, which I have received from many of you. What follows is a description of theological shifts within a particular movement within Evangelical Christianity that has led to the mainstream theological justifications we are seeing in the media and online, particularly around Donald Trump. I hope you read my words in that spirit.

But first, here are some resources to consider:

​-Trump Prophets Are in a Frenzy After the Assassination Attempt, by Matthew D. Taylor. Taylor is someone whose work I have come to admire. He is a senior scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies (www.icjs.org) and the author of the forthcoming book The Violent Take It By Force: The Christian movement that is threatening our democracy. He has spent so much time tracking the Christian movements within the political sector and in this article, I gave you above, he illustrates well that it should be something we need to keep in mind as the 2024 election draws near.

​-How Many Americans Believe in Modern-Day Prophets? What Does that Entail? by Paul A. Djupe at Denison University. This article is filled with important data about the belief system I will be writing about below and how many Americans believe in modern-day prophets and how that belief influences mainstream political theology. It is certainly worth a read.

​-Throughline's 'We The People" series. One of my favorite history podcasts is doing a series on constitutional amendments. They go into the context of how they were formed and why, but more importantly, how they are viewed today. I have found it so helpful and I think you might too.

Okay, onto today’s content.
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Partisan Prophets and the Deification of Politicians

I have always been opposed to Donald Trump. In 2016, I thought he was unfit to lead anything let alone our country. Since his presidency and everything that has happened since I believe that even more fervently than I did before. As a Christian and an American, I believe he and the political movement around him represent a major corruption of our Christian faith and pose a great threat to our democracy.

In 2016, I remember thinking as I watched him on the campaign trail in 2016 along with all the other candidates that he not only didn’t have a chance of winning but I didn’t think any of my fellow Christians would support him either.

Especially when the Access Hollywood tape surfaced, I thought that would be the nail in his political coffin when it came to Christians supporting him.

I then remember how much my heart broke when I found out how wrong I was. As a pastor, I then watched countless people begin to question if they belonged in Evangelical Christianity anymore because of this. I even saw others begin to question their faith entirely for the same reason. Evangelical Christianity seemed to abandon everything it taught those of us who grew up in the movement, all for the sake of political power.

Perhaps it shouldn’t, but still to this day, it shocks me how demonizing the former president is towards women, people of color, immigrants, veterans, and people with disabilities, all while praising foreign dictators.

What shocks me even more though is how Christians still support and even justify such rhetoric. Especially when he so blatantly uses Jesus as a mascot for his own pursuit of political power.

I am thankful for prominent voices within Evangelical Christianity like Russel Moore and David French who have consistently been opposed to Donald Trump within Evangelicalism, even at the expense of their own positions and livelihood. There are also countless stories just within the conservative denomination I served in from 2005-2021 of pastors getting pushed out or removed for daring to oppose Donald Trump and the theology that is used to support him. The Christian support of Donald Trump has brought huge fractures within American Christianity that will be with us for a long time to come.

As Richard Rohr said so eloquently on Twitter in 2016, “The evangelical support of Trump will be an indictment against its validity as a Christian movement for generations to come.”

So, while I am troubled by Donald Trump himself, as a Christian and as a pastor, what concerns me even more is the kind of Christianity that continues to support and justify him as God’s chosen one no matter the harm it causes. Without the majority of Evangelical Christianity supporting him, it is most likely that he would have never won an election. Also, without the theology of modern-day prophecy within Evangelical Christianity, January 6th wouldn’t have happened either.

So, theology is really where we need to start when we try to answer our question for today.

To understand the anatomy of this theology, we really need to look at the theological movement that is advocating it most within Evangelical Christianity. That movement is the New Apostolic Reformation. Notable American figures who have expressed alignment with this movement are Mike Johnson, Doug Mastriano, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert and Charlie Kirk.

This movement is one of the fastest-growing movements in nondenominational Christianity. As you can probably guess by its name, it seeks to emphasize the supernatural nature of the apostles of the early church. Namely, prophecy, miracles, speaking in tongues, divine healing, among other things.

While there is nothing wrong with those desires at face value, just as with anything within Christianity, it is how those desires are applied and acted upon that needs our attention. It is the “fruit” such desires produce.

What doesn’t seem to be well-known about this movement is that while it is a minority movement within Evangelicalism, it has a very strong media empire and an army of modern-day prophets, wealthy televangelists, and media personalities that give it an outsized influence on mainstream Christian theology as a whole. This influence allows it to reach beyond its own movement into many other Christian circles.

For example, I am sure you have heard of Donald Trump being compared to King Cyrus in Isaiah 45. I have heard this from many Christians, most of whom wouldn’t consider themselves to be part of the New Apostolic Reformation. This theological perspective advocates that just as God used a pagan Persian king like King Cyrus to allow God’s people out of exile and return back to the promised land, God is using Donald Trump, an imperfect man, to bring Christians out of their persecution and exile in the United States and restore America to its Christian foundation.

As a pastor, I first heard about this “prophecy” in an email from a dear elderly woman in my own congregation in 2016 when I was serving in the church of the Nazarene, which isn’t affiliated with the New Apostolic Movement. She was so enthusiastic about how God was raising up “our own King Cyrus” for us. Like many pastors, I was not only confused by this but completely unprepared for how “viral” this prophecy already was within Christian circles. It had more influence over the people I served than I did.

Come to find out, this prophecy originated with one man by the name of Lance Wallnu who attended a meeting in Trump Tower in 2015 along with a group of religious leaders to talk with and lay hands on Donald Trump to pray for him. Walllnau claimed that during that meeting, God had told him that “The 45th president is meant to be an Isaiah 45 Cyrus.” ​

This is the power of this movement's reach. This is the words of one man, yet by 2016, it had become so viral online that I was getting emails about it from people in my own congregation in Boise, Idaho. I and many other pastors have had the unwanted responsibility of navigating such viral, online theology with our congregations ever since. In many ways, it feels like fighting an uphill battle. There is no way our single sermon on Sunday, or our midweek Bible study, or even our home visits can compete with a constant diet of online viral theology like this. Local pastors like myself often felt “outgunned” by the magnitude of theological misinformation out there, which is one of the major reasons I began writing publicly.

This theology didn’t stop with King Cyrus either. Since 2016 I have seen viral posts and heard people around me compare Donald Trump to numerous figures in the Bible from King David (because of his anointing despite his treacherous acts against Bathsheba) and even Jesus himself (because of how Trump is seen a savior like figure being persecuted on our behalf). As you have probably noticed, we have seen a theological progression of Trump being compared to King Cyrus in 2016 all the way to him being compared to Jesus himself in 2024.

I don’t think I even need to remind you the viral theological comparison between Jesus’ own trial and the trial of Donald Trump, stating in a post “If you are not sure you can vote for a convicted criminal, remember, you worship one.” This post included a picture of Trump’s mugshot next to a picture of Jesus hanging on the cross.

As someone who grew up Evangelical, I cannot tell you how much whiplash I felt seeing Trump compared to Jesus and hearing Evangelicals say things like “Let’s Go Brandon” which is just a clever way to use the F word towards Biden, all from the same people who railed against church kids like me for using words like “geez” when we got upset because it was just too close to taking the name of Jesus in vain. I cannot tell you how much whiplash I felt having such vitriol directed at me for calling out the immoral character of a presidential candidate by the same Evangelicals who declared "character matters when it comes to presidents!" during the Clinton administration when I was growing up. It only goes to show how easily blasphemy and theological justifications become when political power is at stake. It seems to only continue to build as we inch closer to the 2024 election.

As you may have seen online after the horrible assassination attempt on Donald Trump’s life, the prophecy world went supernova. Almost immediately, modern-day prophets took to social media to post videos and scriptures to point to how this miraculous sparing of Trump’s life was the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy and proof of God’s anointing on Donald Trump’s life to be the savior of “Christian America.”

On the Thursday evening after his brush with death, Trump echoed this theology, telling a crowd that “there was blood pouring everywhere, and yet in a certain way I felt very safe because (then pauses and enunciates) I had God on my side.” This was the theological theme at the RNC as well, where Sarah Huckabee Sanders said to a cheering crowd, “God almighty intervened because we are one nation under God and He is certainly not finished with President Trump.” This was followed by Senator Tim Scott who said, “If you didn’t believe in miracles before Saturday, you better be believing right now!”

According to U.S. representative Lauren Bobert, the assassination attempt proves that Trump is like Jesus, saying “Jesus laid down his own life. No one took his life. He laid that down for you and for me and history repeats itself.”

I believe this kind of theology is actually an effect rather than the cause. Growing up in the world of Evangelicalism, I can tell you firsthand that so much of this same worldview I was given was shaped by three central themes.

1. Apocalyptic. There is a deep belief that we are close to if not currently in the “end times,” which deeply shapes how current events are interpreted. The hugely influential Left Behind series is a prime example of what many believe about the end times and the war between good and evil. Because of this narrative, I deeply saw it as both my Christian and patriotic duty to “take a stand” against the demonic forces threatening both my nation and my faith.

2. American Christian persecution. I deeply believed the world was out to get us simply because we were Christians. Once you believe there are dark shadow groups working together to bring down Christianity, you begin to see this everywhere. This belief was also constantly reinforced not only by Christian leaders and the Christian literature I consumed but also by politicians themselves, who claimed to be the "Christian candidate."

3. America is a “Christian nation.” I deeply believed that America was a Christian nation without understanding that “Christian” meant only how I and the group I was in defined “Christian.” I certainly didn’t think “Catholic” or “Amish” or “Methodist” when I defined “Christian,” because I didn’t consider those people “Christian.” America was supposed to be a “Christian nation” according to how my sect of Christianity defined “Christian.” Of course, this caused me to read the history of our nation, including the founding fathers, through my preferred lens of “Christianity.” This perspective was very much confirmed by the help of revisionist historians like David Barton, who paints an inaccurate history of a “Christian America.”

The combination of these three perspectives creates a potent cocktail theologically, compelling folks just like me to seek a political savior to not only prevent perceived Christian persecution in the United States but to restore Christians out of exile and bring America back to its “Christian roots.” This theological perspective creates a narrative where the stakes are so high and the foundations of both our faith and nation are being threatened by utter destruction that we need to gain victory by any means possible.

This theology was a central driver in what led to the events of January 6th. As religious scholar Matthew D. Taylor's work has shown, “A central reason there were so many Christian symbols, Christian Bible citations, Christian songs and Christian preachers there that day was because they felt it was their responsibility to bring to fruition the myriad Trump prophecies.”

During the rally right before the siege on the capitol that day, Trump stoked this apocalyptic fervor when he said to the crowd gathered there, "We fight like hell. And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore," he said.

There are two main reasons this kind of theology concerns me.

1. It deeply conflates Christianity with partisan loyalties. One of the main characteristics of prophets in the Bible is that they weren’t champions of the empire or earthly kingdoms. They were defenders of the powerless and the vulnerable, who were often oppressed by the empires of the world. They spoke truth to all those in power, religious and political, even at the expense of their own life. The events around Jesus' own death reveal this same theme as well. So, these hyper-partisan prophesies we see actually flip that theme on its head. It champions politicians as saviors sent by God, not to liberate the poor and the powerless, but to liberate Christian America and placing Christians on the thrones of political and religious power in our nation. Whenever you hear someone claiming to be a prophet who then conflates the Christian faith with a particular politician, a political party, or the Christian right to political power, that’s when you can be sure they are not following the legacy of the prophets in the Bible in any way.
2. Lastly, this theology sets a dangerous precedent. As we saw on January 6th, if what is believed to be “God's will” isn’t achieved, like if Donald Trump loses the 2024 election, this can cause adherents to this theology to react in harmful ways, like election denialism or perhaps even political violence. I just don't think that kind of extreme reaction to loss or defeat is reflective of the way of Jesus at all.

How To Respond

When I have been in conversations with people who believe in this kind of theology, what has been most helpful is to actually care about their heart. Theologies like this are clung to because of legitimate feelings of fear, isolation, and love for their families, their faith, and their country. It grows out of the same concerns we all have right now.

Whenever I have simply listened to their fears, their worries, and their concerns, there is an open door to speak words of truth, hope, and love into their lives. I am able to remind them that we cannot confine God to a political party or a single politician. When we do that, it actually says more about how much we have allowed fear to captivate our hearts than it does about God. When we do that, it actually shows how little we trust in God rather that how much we trust in God.

God doesn’t need a political party, politician, or Supreme Court to preserve and enforce God’s will. God is worthy of our worship and our trust because God is so much more powerful and so much more capable than the powers of this world. So when we act as though God needs those things in order to succeed, we are actually claiming a lack of trust than an abundance of trust.

I am able to remind them that they don’t have to carry the fate of the entire world on their shoulders, but they can trust in Jesus and rest in his peace. I then do my best to try and comfort their fear by reminding them of the everlasting, all-powerful God we claim to worship.

The last thing someone who believes this theology needs is another person condemning them or making them feel foolish. That is part of the main reasons people find belonging in theologies like this. People have consistently dismissed their fears, mocked their intelligence, and belittled their concerns, which simply reinforces this theology in their minds and closes their hearts down from even being willing to hear alternative perspectives.

As I alluded to at the beginning of this article, the appropriate response to fundamentalism isn’t fundamentalism from the “other side.” Responding to fundamentalism with more fundamentalism just perpetuates fundamentalism. As a former fundamentalist myself, I can tell you that the only appropriate response to fundamentalism is love. It was love that brought me out of fundamentalism. A love that listens even when it disagrees. A love that values others even when they don’t see the world the same way. A love that focuses on a person’s feelings of isolation, fear, and worry in order to bring comfort and encouragement rather than condemnation.

I know that it isn’t easy and sometimes it isn’t beneficial or even safe to try this with everyone. But in those moments when someone might open up to you and advocate this kind of partisan prophecy, I guarantee you that showing your love for them is going to make the greatest possible difference, more than any debate or judgment ever will.

As the book of James puts it, "Human anger does not produce God’s righteousness... But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." -James 1:20, 3:17-18

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