Monday, September 5, 2016

The Gospel and White Nationalistic Populism


If you are okay with nationalistic white populism then we have nothing else to discuss.

Seriously, my intentions are not to blow you off because we differ in our opinions over such things as health care, national security, taxes, economics and other political/social issues that affect us as citizens of our nation. 

My reason for suspending any further discussion with you goes much deeper than just our differences of opinion over political/social issues or who we believe is best suited to serve as our president or which candidate has the prettiest smile.

Truth is we should disagree with each other. Addressing our differences of opinion in constructive ways is much healthier for us all. Disagreeing over political policies that affect us as a nation is one of the best ways to develop better solutions that transcend the crippling partisan divide. 

For this very reason we need competing voices involved in the political discussions of our time. We need concerned voices that compete with each other for the benefit and betterment of our nation and not to gain an advantage for one political preference or party. We need diverse opinions working together for he Common Good.

We need competing voices that speak as one in terms of what is best for our nation. We need voices of dissent for the purpose of challenging each other’s assumptions and presuppositions over public policy. Healthy debate is good and much needed.

You see politics in America is not a private affair. It is indeed a very public exercise in determining how best we are to be governed by elected officials. Our government officials are in positions of authority by the consent of the people. We the people vote them in and out of office. The extent to which an individual actually participates in this political process will vary of course.

But it is our responsibility to be at least minimally engaged in the process of politics in America. So the notion that one’s politics is very private is somewhat misleading. It can lead to inaction when action is required.

Okay with that said, I’ve been leading up to what I think is a very serious point:

If you think white nationalistic populism is a platform is good for America then once again we have nothing else to discuss.

Why?

Because as I have indicated in previous posts: My Christian faith is what informs my worldview, which incidentally includes my political views. 

If you aren’t aware of this then nothing I say from here on will make any sense to you.

Any political movement that stands in opposition to my Christ shaped values is of no value to me, especially if that movement threatens the principles of a Democracy that continues to evolve or trend towards a better society as a whole.

With that said I will no longer debate with you over whether or not Donald J. Trump is fit to be our next president or Hillary Clinton for that matter. Here’s why:

Donald J. Trump does not have a political platform to speak of, but he does have a platform upon which he solidly stands as a candidate for the President of the United States. 

That platform is White Nationalist Populism and if you are okay with this then nothing I say will matter to you.

But just in case you might listening:

Jesus was no populist. He was not a nationalistic Jewish populist. He was not about building a kingdom just for the Jews though he himself was a full blooded Jew. Jesus was not interested in building a Jewish base of support that would exclude the Samaritans or the Syrians or the Egyptians (the brown people of his day) or anyone else outside the Jewish circle. 

By the way, Jesus wasn’t a Christian either. He did not come to build a kingdom that would exclude the rest of the world but rather a kingdom that would include all people. I’ve become convinced that Jesus would have never endorsed any form of Christian Exceptionalism (let alone American Exceptionalism).

Donald J. Trump and his white populist movement defies everything America should stand for as an evolving Democracy that has been heavily influenced by Christian values. We are making great strides towards inclusiveness in this country but it is not without serious resistance and Donald Trump’s white populist movement stands as a dangerous obstacle that would impede further progress.

Just so we understand each other, I am not saying all these things to prop up Hillary Clinton's campaign. She has her own set of issues for sure. So please spare me further debate over why she should or shouldn’t be elected or why she should be imprisoned. I am talking about an issue far more dangerous to the future of our nation than Hillary Clinton’s emails or her Foundation connections. 

Donald J. Trump is a clear and present danger to the United States. 

He is the living antitheses of the American principle of equality for all. 

But for me personally, he defies the very heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Gospel that I have devoted most of my adult life in promoting and sharing with the world. 

When I read in the Gospels that “God so loved the world” I take with extreme seriousness that all people are of infinitesimal value and worth to God. This is the Gospel upon which I stake my life. 

This is why I would subscribe to the mantra: 

“All lives matter because they matter to God.”

Trump’s white nationalistic populism stands in direct opposition to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and if you're good with that then any further conversation between us is pointless.








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