I hope the mainstream, moderate people who call themselves Christians in Morris hang in there. My own perception is that the fervor is not overwhelming at the two ELCA churches and Federated of Morris. Plenty of nice people to be sure, and among the older folks they are probably clueless about the political overtones with the commitment to Christianity today.
We hear the term "evangelical" in the news. Sometime it would be nice to get a precise definition. The generally accepted definition now seems squishy. It seems more like code language than anything. Surely these people are Republican and it's just a matter of how far right they want to go, how reactionary they want to be. It has been said that the rapid growth of the "nones" - that portion of the population having departed from organized religion - springs from the association of Christianity with right wing politics. The millennials sense something is up. And a child shall lead them.
People who make their living in religion notice the reality. They have to be attuned to membership and money. In theory the proper principles and commitment to Christianity's tenets should promote those objectives.
We learn that 81 percent of "evangelicals" voted for Trump. Shall we put the local Apostolics in with the broader evangelicals? In terms of basic attitude and comportment, they seem similar if not identical. I have asked before: Is it possible that even one local Apostolic did not vote for Trump? We can rattle off some of the other local church names that seem to equate with "evangelical." How many non-Trump voters in this swath of people? Even one?
It becomes a concerning thing when you worry about our basic fate as a nation. What about our economy where the pivotal factors have nothing to do with social and moral questions? How well-schooled are you all on the Federal Reserve? There's a well-established saying "don't fight the Fed." There's a general understanding in the Beltway, even if not put forward in firm legal terms, that politicians don't rock the boat with the Fed.
Someone like George W. Bush, surely an ideological conservative, understood that. The current president is so off the wall, eccentric and ignorant, almost going beyond a parody of himself, we wonder what on earth is going to happen. The seeds may be getting planted now, the seeds for eventual catastrophe. Ignore these words at your own peril.
Evangelicals embraced Trump to a greater extent than they did Bush or the squeaky-clean Mitt Romney. It puzzles the heck out of me.
Excessive zeal maybe?
There is a very iconic local resident who has displayed a Trump flag in front of his residence just north of Morris. Are we witnessing some sort of mass delusion? Why have so many among us fallen for the amoral reality TV star? One possible basis is fear. I once read that extreme conservatives feel fear as a matter of instinct, I mean if there's a sudden loud noise right behind them.
Fundamentalists were once scared of Darwinism. We hardly need to review the fear felt by Southerners toward civil rights. The evangelicals of today seem to fear the loss of the kind of comfortable world once defined by Norman Rockwell. Sadly, Rockwell's vision of America was idyllic in a way that brought actual criticism of his artistry. I wouldn't criticize him on that basis. Art is always about engendering emotional reaction, and if you want to imagine that Rockwell's vision was even in reach, if that infatuates you, then fine. Really. Art is imagination.
Right at the present there's an outcry over a public body in the suburban Twin Cities wanting to discontinue the Pledge of Allegiance. Maybe this is a perfect lab example of what I'm talking about. One might argue that the Pledge is simply a waste of time or a distraction, that it says nothing about what's really in your heart anyway. The second I read this news coverage, I knew the likes of Fox and Friends would pounce all over those poor people.
Evangelicals hope that Trump-appointed Justices will toss out Roe vs. Wade, never mind the Pandora's box that would result. At the same time, they seemingly give not a thought to Trump browbeating the detached Federal Reserve and helping set the stage for a blast of hyper-inflation. Quantitative easing? Trump criticized Janet Yellen for not raising interest rates fast enough. Yellen was a powerful woman, something that seems to play mind games with him. Now he threatens to fire or demote the Fed chair if interest rates aren't pushed down dramatically.
Quantitative easing was an emergency measure. What new territory might we be entering now? Oh but the evangelicals simply want abortion attacked. Or, to stand in the way of gay people's rights. A whole new church was established in the Morris area because of the gay rights thing (anti-gay rights of course). That church calls itself Lutheran. It's not ELCA of course because the ELCAers are progressive, calm and reasonable. We don't scare easily.
My deceased mother never connected partisan politics to her religious faith. She wouldn't even comprehend the kind of discussions we're having now. My own little issue with Lutheranism is that Martin Luther was such a virulent anti-Semite, his language contributed to what happened to the Jews in the mid-20th Century. I was so shocked when finally researching this, I will never view Lutheranism the same.
But Mom would like me to continue attending First Lutheran Church in Morris.
Is there hope? There is always hope. The Evangelical Immigration Table has asserted that Christian faith demands that the White House and Congress do better with treating children and families who seek asylum at the Southern border. I hope that iconic person with the Trump flag outside Morris would go along with this. The next time you see an Apostolic - they're easy to spot - bring this up.
Addendum: The millennials will be succeeded by a generation for which a suggested term is "iGen."
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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