The Miracles of Trump’s Christian Cult: Transforming Vice Into Virtue, Slander Into Truth, Brutality Into Patriotism, and Sadism Into Justice

“Morale was deteriorating and it was all Yossarian’s fault. The country was in peril; he was jeopardizing his traditional rights of freedom and independence by daring to exercise them.”

Over the past nine years I have watched the political-religious leaders of the Christian Right defend the indefensible actions of President Trump from his first campaign right up until today. Every time I see another do this, I am reminded of the words of Joseph Heller in his classic novel Catch 22:

“The chaplain had mastered, in a moment of divine intuition, the handy technique of protective rationalization, and he was exhilarated by his discovery. It was miraculous. It was almost no trick at all, he saw, to turn vice into virtue and slander into truth, impotence into abstinence, arrogance into humility, plunder into philanthropy, thievery into honor, blasphemy into wisdom, brutality into patriotism, and sadism into justice. Anybody could do it; it required no brains at all. It merely required no character.”

I often doubt my faith, but I am still a Christian, but it is often very hard to do this. I find it hard to trust people who make every excuse for the malevolence of Trump and his cult of sycophants. If I wasn’t already a Christian I couldn’t think of a single reason to follow the false God of men like Robert Jeffress, Franklin Graham, Lance Wallenau, or any of the host of big name Evangelical Christian preachers, alleged “prophets”, and Roman Catholic Bishops who excuse the behaviors of President Trump and his decadently despicable defenders. Sadly, these included people that I once thought that I knew and respected. I often feel like Henning von Tresckow, a German General and anti-Nazi resistance leader who said:

“I cannot understand how people can still call themselves Christians and not be furious adversaries of Hitler’s regime.”

I used to think that most people like to believe that religion is a benign or positive influence in the world. As much as I want to believe the positive aspects I have to admit based on the historical and sociological evidence that this is not so, especially during unsettled times of great change. We live in such an era and when it comes to identity, God is the ultimate trump card.

If one wonders why the most fanatical individuals and groups on earth are tied to religions, whether it is the Islamic State and Al Qaeda, Boko Haram, Hezbollah, Orthodox Jews, radical Hindus and Buddhists as well as militant Christians. Of course all of these groups have different goals, but their thought and philosophy are quite similar.

Robert Heinlein wrote:

“Almost any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so.”

Heinlein, the author of the classic Starship Troopers was absolutely correct. Just look at any place in any time where any religion, sect or cult has gained control of a government. They are not loving, they are not forgiving and they use the police power of the state to persecute any individual or group that is judged to be in error, or even worse has the gall to question their authority.

The Christian Nationalists in the United States school around with Trump, seeking to legislate their religious agenda into law. They are being remarkably successful in accomplishing that at the Federal, State and local levels. Thanks to the Supreme Court’s conservative Catholic majority the last bulwarks our founders erected between Church and State are falling like dominoes.

Samuel Huntington wrote in his book The Clash of Civilizations:

“People do not live by reason alone. They cannot calculate and act rationally in pursuit of their self-interest until they define their self. Interest politics presupposes identity. In times of rapid social change established identities dissolve, the self must be redefined, and new identities created. For people facing the need to determine Who am I? Where do I belong? Religion provides compelling answers….In this process people rediscover or create new historical identities. Whatever universalist goals they may have, religions give people identity by positing a basic distinction between believers and non-believers, between a superior in-group and a different and inferior out-group.”

Huntington was right. True believers, those believe that it is superior to all others believe that this entitles them to be atop the food chain. People who don’t believe like them be damned, if not in this life with the help of the government, then most certainly the next.

We see this today when conservative Christians write laws that allow them the right to discriminate against other people based solely on their religious beliefs in order to secure themselves the preeminent position in society. The late Gary North was one of the most eloquent expositors of the Christian Dominionist movement, the direct theological ancestor of Christian Nationalism. North was a long time adviser to Ron and Rand Paul and other conservative Christian politicians. He wrote:

“The long-term goal of Christians in politics should be to gain exclusive control over the franchise. Those who refuse to submit publicly to the eternal sanctions of God by submitting to His Church’s public marks of the covenant–baptism and holy communion–must be denied citizenship, just as they were in ancient Israel.”

The Christian Nationalists are not a benign or benevolent bunch of Boy and Girl Scouts. They are power hungry and encourage violence in the name of God. They believe what North wrote, and they are full of fascist rage.

North’s father-in-law, R.J. Rushdoonny, was both his mentor and the founder of Christian Dominionism, developed a strong idea of theological violence, of course justified by the Bible, particularly the Old Testament, and the wars of Israel against its enemies. His theological descendants of the Christian Nationalists believe the same. Rushdoonny’s ideology is much like the Islamic State, Al Qaida, or the Taliban. It is ruthless and bloodthirsty. In his book The Institutes of Biblical Law, he explained:

“Israel was attacked by Amalek. According to Deuteronomy 25:17, Amalek “feared not God.” Amalek’s attack on Israel, according to the “Midrashic lore,” was an obscene defiance of God and a contempt for God. Where men attack God’s people, there we often have a covert or overt attack on God. Unable to strike directly at God, they strike at God’s people. There is thus continual warfare between Amalek and Israel, between God’s people and God’s enemies. The outcome must be the blotting out of God’s enemies…. the covenant people must wage war against the enemies of God, because this war is unto death. The deliberate, refined, and obscene violence of the anti-God forces permits no quarter… this warfare must continue until the Amalekites of the world are blotted out, until God’s law-order prevails and His justice reigns.” (R.J. Rushdoony, The Institutes of Biblical Law Nutley, NJ: Craig Press, 1973 p. 318.)

These are not idle thoughts or words. Now that Trump has won the election they are in a position to work with Trump to take their vengeance on their enemies. They will do this with the help of any of the multitude of pro-Trump militias that will be deputized following Trump’s inauguration, as they share the same enemies.

The great American philosopher, Eric Hoffer wrote:

“The impression somehow prevails that the true believer, particularly the religious individual, is a humble person. The truth is the surrendering and humbling of the self breed pride and arrogance. The true believer is apt to see himself as one of the chosen, the salt of the earth, the light of the world, a prince disguised in meekness, who is destined to inherit the earth and the kingdom of heaven too. He who is not of his faith is evil; he who will not listen will perish.”

That is why religious true believers of any faith are capable of such great evil. Please do not get me wrong. I am a Christian, a priest, a historian and a theologian. But because I am a historian I know just how insidious those who hold their religion over the lives of others can be. I also know that from bitter experience.

In my book. Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: Religion and the Politics of Race in the Civil War Era and Beyond (Potomac Books of the University of Nebraska Press, October, 2022) I wrote about how the Christian faith was used by the militant slaveholders, secessionists, and racist terrorist groups like the KKK following the war, the segregationists, and by much of MAGA today has done so much damage to our country.

I guess that is why I am even more wary of religious true believers than non-religious true believers. While the non-religious ones may sacrifice everything for the sake of power and control in this life, and often commit the most heinous crimes against humanity, their hatred is bounded in space and time to this earth. But, religious true believers are not content with that. Their enemies must be damned and punished in this life, and for all eternity, without hope of salvation.