Evangelical’s and Trump 2017-29

I do NOT claim to be an Evangelical Christian; have heard of them, think I may know a few, do not hate or really love any for any reason, but think I should describe what I believe they are to me. In that way, I can compare myself and POTUS Trump to them.

 A check at Wikipedia states it is a worldwide trans denominational movement within Protestant Christianity that maintains the belief that the essence of the gospel consists of the doctrine of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ’s atonement.  Well, that sums it up well, but is hard to get my mind around this explanation. It further states that they believe in the centrality of the conversion or the “born again” experience in receiving salvation, and the authority of the Bible as God’s revelation to humanity and spreading the Christian message. Whew!

I understand, the Methodist Church, the Baptist communities of churches and perhaps some Anglicans are good representatives of this movement.  Evangelicals are among the most dynamic religious group movements in the contemporary world. Since I do NOT want to make this a religious critique, I will leave it at this and allow any to look up the word Evangelical at your leisure and learn more about it.

The main thing, in my mind, is this.   Evangelicals are religious. They are mainstream in many ways, sometimes fundamental in belief in many cases, and basically conservative in nature.  Those are not bad things at all, but does put them in a slot of identifying how they feel to a degree. They have a good bit of history about them and I think of The Reverend Billy Graham is a prime example of an evangelist, promoting this faith. As a total, they represent about 28 percent of the U.S. religious groups in the U.S. or about 91 million total.

POTUS Trump is identified as a Presbyterian, which is not actually listed as being an evangelical religion. In a book he wrote, “The Art of the Deal”, which he highly touts, there is no mention of religion and he stated, “I don’t like to analyze myself, because I might not like what I see” he told biographer D’Antonio. He has stated he does attend church occasionally, on Christmas, Easter and “special occasions” (weddings?), but is too busy on most Sundays. I used to do this myself, I admit, and many do so. 

OK, he does not sit in church waiting for the voice of God or sitting through a service or confessing his sins, or other religious doings and that is fine with me. I don’t care, that is his life, not mine!

But, it does bother me that the religious leaders or those in power at the Evangelical church feel he is Evangelical enough to promote him, endorse him and follow him as they do.  He, in my mind, does not follow the tenants of any Evangelical religion, any fundamentalist actions, or even Christian beliefs. I am not being judgmental about this, but more of stating factual thoughts of how he acts in life.

To say they are Evangelical, fundamental in religious thought, religious in general and promote him as being “one of their own” is Bullcrap to me.  It is hypocritical and not realistic. If they, The everyday practicing Evangelical’s, are part of Trump’s “BASE” that he loves so much and if they still support him, then they are lying to themselves in the process, and Trump loves this and them.

Den Betts