Cal Thomas: Faith and politics

PAUL BUTLER, HOST: Today is Thursday, October 13th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from WORLD Radio, supported by listeners like you. I’m Paul Butler.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard. Commentator Cal Thomas warns against a form of nationalism that blurs the distinction between God's kingdom and nations.

CAL THOMAS, COMMENTATOR: The subject of Christian Nationalism is again appearing in our political life, inhabiting a portion of the Republican Party. It is nothing new, having taken many forms in the past, including Moral Rearmament, Prohibition, Christian Reconstructionism, Moral Majority, and the Christian Coalition.

In each incarnation, people have been told that something approaching Heaven on Earth can be accomplished through the political system and through a government led by folks who believe as they do. Each time it has failed.

Leaving aside for a moment the flaw in the theology of Christian Nationalists, let’s apply some pragmatism to these movements, including the latest called “ReAwaken America,” led by retired General Michael Flynn, who was Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser for 22 days.

As the respected Pew Research Center has noted, “The decline of Christianity continues at a rapid pace.” That is reflected in the profile of people who are attending General Flynn’s rallies. They appear to be mostly older and virtually all-white, hardly the image of an America that will follow their generation.

According to Pew, “sixty-five percent of Americans” self-identify as Christians, but it is a diverse group. Among them are Mainline Protestants, who generally vote for Democrats. Among Evangelicals, there are also divisions, with some voting for Democrats and others favoring Republicans. Roman Catholics, too, are divided, especially on social issues such as abortion.

The question for Christian Nationalists then becomes: how does this minority within a minority within an even smaller minority expect to win elections in sufficient numbers to pass legislation that will reverse what they see as a moral and cultural decline? If it could be done, would it not have been done by the previously mentioned movements which enjoyed a larger percentage of like-minded people?

Oklahoma entrepreneur Clay Clark heads the ReAwaken America organization. An Associated Press story on a recent rally in Batavia, New York quotes him: “I want you to look around and you’ll see a group of people that love this country dearly. At this ReAwaken America Tour, Jesus is King (and) President Donald J. Trump is our president.”

That comment sums up the fusion between faith and politics.

This ideology, this misplaced faith that a fallen humanity can – or should -- impose a worldview through government that a majority do not share goes back to at least the time of Jesus. In the Book of Acts, the Disciples asked Jesus, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?” (Acts 1:6) They were looking for an earthly kingdom with themselves in charge. They wanted to throw off the Roman occupation and “take over.” Later, Jesus would respond to Pontius Pilate who asked Him if He was a king: “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.” (John 18:36) That statement is a powerful rebuke to those who seek a kingdom that is and that would be as flawed as they are.

Perhaps these well-intentioned but misguided people should obey the commands of the one they claim to follow (and I don’t mean Donald Trump). When that has been done in the past, culture was changed. A re-awakened America won’t come through politics and government by whatever name it is called.

I’m Cal Thomas.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.