Donald Trump may be making a big mistake by selling the “God Bless America” Bible to MAGA supporters. Some people may actually be reading it.
Like Trump Steaks and those hideous gold “Never Surrender” sneakers he's trying to sell for $399, this latest feud may end in failure. Given the opportunistic timing of the rollout during Holy Week, the holiest time in the Christian calendar, it's no surprise that this Biblical venture would be overwhelmed by an angry market.
But if MAGA believers bought these Bibles and looked inside, they would find countless reasons to abandon deeply flawed political heroes.
It is enough to read all the way to Exodus 20, where Moses comes down from the mountain and proclaims the Ten Commandments. “Thou shalt not commit adultery” was the injunction that President Trump boasted of habitually violating, and was heard on the “Access Hollywood” tape. In the same recording, he also boasted that he had “tried” on a married woman, violating another commandment: “You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.”
President Trump is scheduled to go on trial in a New York court next month on felony charges stemming from his brief sexual relationship with adult film star Stormy Daniels. He is also appealing an $83 million civil judgment for defaming author E. Jean Carroll, who sexually abused him in a department store fitting room, according to court findings. I could go on forever.
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“Thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor” is another commandment that President Trump routinely ignores. Of the tens of thousands of documented lies he told, many were falsehoods about his real or perceived enemies. Just this week, he lied about the daughter of the judge presiding over an impending criminal trial, infuriating President Trump by issuing a gag order barring him from lying about witnesses, prosecutors, jurors, and court officials. Ta.
Of course, this commandment is found in the Old Testament, where God's judgments can be harsh and decisive. The New Testament teaches that we are all sinners and that everyone can be saved.
This is the theological basis on which evangelical Christians and their pastors, who may not be President Trump's most staunch followers, justify ignoring the way President Trump mocks many of the Bible's instructions. There is. Yes, he's far from perfect, they tell themselves. But like all of us, he can find salvation through Jesus Christ. We can dedicate our campaign contributions and votes to him, and at the same time pray for his salvation.
But anyone who has paid more than $59.99 to read the “God Bless the USA” Bible knows that Jesus, whose resurrection Christians celebrate this weekend on Easter Sunday, gives detailed instructions for his followers to follow. you will notice. They are summarized in the Sermon on the Mount in conjunction with Matthew 5-7.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth,” Jesus said. “…Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall know the children of God. Because you will be called.”
This is almost the exact opposite of MAGA's tenet, which is like, “Just win!”
Later in the sermon, Jesus said: lest your adversary hand you over to a judge, and the judge hand you over to an official, and you are thrown into prison. ” If President Trump had followed this legal advice, his criminal cases and civil fines would have been reduced.
On another occasion, recorded in Matthew 25:42-46, Jesus gives clear instructions as to what a righteous immigration policy should be. “I was hungry and you gave me no food. I was thirsty and you gave me no drink. I was a stranger. “You didn't take me in naked, you didn't clothe me when I was sick in prison, you didn't visit me,” he says — and act like this. The tragic result of this is the punishment of being gone forever. “
Evangelical voters and their pastors, who presumably know the Bible intimately, have effectively suspended their faith in the words of Jesus. They cite President Trump's willingness to lead the anti-abortion movement, which is one issue Jesus never addressed.
Towards the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus certainly gives President Trump a more meaningful warning as he seeks to take back power. “Beware of false prophets. They come in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”