Tag: Adam Kinzinger

Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: “I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, who frustrates the signs of liars and makes fools of diviners, who turns wise men back and makes their knowledge foolish, who confirms the word of his servant and fulfills the counsel of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited,’ and of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built, and I will raise up their ruins’; who says to the deep, ‘Be dry; I will dry up your rivers’; who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose’; saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’ and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’” Isaiah 44:24-28  

It appears my prediction that the Christians will not abandon their ‘Cyrus;’ even after months of his continuing the Big Lie involving a shock and awe barrage of lies on various media outlets and better than 60 miserably failed lawsuits ejected for lack of evidence, leading ultimately to a violent insurrection and assault against a co-equal branch of government, we will not let any sense of conscience intervene from turning our back on the One we’ve been told by our authorities is God’s Man. It will be interesting to see future polls come up with harder numbers on how many of us will have fallen away from the faith (in Trump.) Deducing recent Republican behavior, it seems they understand which way the wind is blowing. There are unashamed mainstream arguments in support of That Man. I find this both shocking and disheartening. Despite all the lies, depravity, failed predictions, and a direct assault upon democracy, we will not buckle to rise against our leaders who fuel what is worst in us.

The Republican Party quakes in fear of him because we Christians back the liar and the traitor; all but a few in the party are too self-serving to stand up to Trump as he cements his position as the king maker. They know what kind of man he is; they know he is guilty, but they were too greedy, unprincipled, and cowardly to be rid of him. Yeah, he’s guilty they say; but they’d love to have him back. More so than this, they erected a golden image of him to welcome him home.

Just like the idols of antiquity, the object itself is not what was worshipped but rather the spiritual entity who had been called to reside within it. In Sioux City, Iowa, Trump bribed the Christian establishment with an offer of power—we are still under the spell. The spirit itself is not Trump; he is only the vessel, an image of what really drives us—fear, resentment, and the desire for control. And this, dear Christians, is what nullifies whatever attempt you may make to brush aside the charge of idolatry since most of you would deny that you literally worship Trump. As in ancient times, the power of a local god was invited to inhibit a vessel to some perceived benefit. To the god it was offerings, respect, and adulation. To the humans, it was some access (and to some extent a measure of control) to (and over) that power the god possessed. The modern play on this theme has the local god, Trump (supposed billionaire and business genius, television star and general celebrity,) promising the power of the presidency (real, earthly power) to the Christians so they may do God’s work (because God himself can’t do it any other way I suppose. And to this I ask, what do you think meant when He said not to put any other gods before Him?) The bribe was taken, we were then off to the races turning Trump into our Cyrus through our prophetic networks to provide holy evidence that the choice of this vessel, and what would be done with this power, was indeed God’s will. Was it?

In this progressing clown show, I have become the outcast and the heretic. According to the Bible the legitimacy of a prophet is determinable. When speaking for God, if what they say does not come true, or even if what they say come but call us to follow other gods, then they are not to be feared. Period. There is no shortage of evidence which show our prophets were (and still are) dead wrong about Trump; their predictions turned out to be false. (The atheists do a good job cataloging all the ridiculous things we say and do.)

I provided a link above which outlined the main arguments Christian make to justify supporting Trump. Pretty much the arguments involved grabbing and using worldly power to do God’s work. That’s it. Honesty? Integrity? Kindness? Self-control? Humility? Peacemaking? No. The ends justify the means. If it be through lies, blatant racism, and cruelty, so be it—Christianity will have power.

The spirit Christianity has made a deal with, in exchange for power, is white Christian nationalism. The white people have been dominant for centuries; our cruelty throughout that time was immense. Now we are losing that majority advantage so judging by the actions the Republican Party is taking it is evidently God’s Will that the existing power structure (i.e. white supremacy) be maintained. You all are free to deny it, but it is in the one discernable policy position made it CPAC 2021—it ought to be much harder to vote (so only the right people vote.) I’ve honestly been told by an educated Trump supporter that many people, although citizens, should not be allowed to vote because they won’t vote the right way. This terrifies me, and I’m white. The theme, ‘America Uncancelled’ is laughably hypocritical; Trump gets up there and calls everyone to destroy those who have opposed him. No other voice is acceptable. (I haven’t even got to the worst of it.)

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” Hosea 4: 6

There have been plenty of dog whistles blown to signal the white supremacists during the Trump administration (e.g. ‘stand back and stand by.’)  CPAC 2021 blew one loud and clear embedded in the design of the stage. The uninformed might not recognize it but the understanding white supremacists sure as death and taxes received the message. The majority, despite universal education, do not know much about history, or that symbols on any media, seriously mean things, carrying and conveying meaning and history with them. The mere presence of the stars and stripes (with all it is supposed to represent) could serve as effective camouflage what is being telegraphed right out in the open. Since truth itself has been smashed, it is all too easy to dismiss any questioning as ‘outrageous.’ And those who question (authority) are just supposed to submit, keep our heads down, and accept that it was just an honest oversight. Yeah, right.

The stage was made in the image of the Odal Rune. It’s an old Norse symbol the Nazis adopted to emphasize their Aryan heritage. Specifically, it was a badge of the SS Race and Settlement Main Office. You can even find a picture of the symbol on a banner at the fatal white supremacist rally in which Trump said there were many fine people present. The symbol is well known in that crowd and it means something serious to them. Just know Christians, those who have been commissioned to extend peace and kindness to the weak, poor, alien, and outsider, is that this abomination is what they in the halls of power have been empowered to display—by you. There is deadly meaning in that symbol. Serious oppression is coming unless the Godless can stop you.

I have been struggling mightily in my faith. I feel alienated as my peers bemoan the rise of the socialists and grouse about the invading armies of Latinos coming from the south—as if these things are our biggest existential threat (if they even exist at all; but hey, let’s try to find a middle ground for sake of the integrity of the law, decency, and the peace, shall we?) They complain about the elites but yet further empower these people to limit the voice of the people who appear to be threat to the white, Christian way of life. My peers do not recognize the threat to themselves which is far greater than any imagined demonic cabal of pedophiles, socialists, or Mexicans. Such kinds of threats have emerged to power unnoticed, and when they finally were it was too late.

“First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist

Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist

Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist

Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew

Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me”

Martin Niemöller, German Lutheran pastor

The threat the white Christian faces, even if the hammer of the state should not specially land upon him or her, is to be complicit in a crime. The crime is that we are all sons and daughters of Adam, all of us are equally loved by God, yet we draw the thin blue line between us and those who are not us. Such is driven by fear and lack of faith, quite frankly. Those who are the worst among us prey upon this fear to divide us for their own benefit. We do not seek to win anyone over, or even to imagine there are sins to which we need to bring to light. Mercy comes only to those who are perceived to be either of us or are submissive to our authority and their assigned place. There are tons of historical examples to back up this assertion.

Adam Kinzinger, one of the few who would dare stand against the depravity in his Party, the man in Satan’s service who is in Trump’s crosshairs, slated to be cancelled for his heresy, said something which sums up a good part of my experience growing up in the church, “…we have these really strict rules that you have to follow that nobody can follow, but everybody at the church is going to act like they are and you’re the only one that isn’t.” This common posture, this charade, has strongly contributed to where we are now. We call our opposition socialists yet we all too happy to receive our common benefits. The only difference is who gets paid and who does the paying. Socialism doesn’t bother us at all as the right people get paid—and those are the ones who act right. The hypocrisy is lost to us—we ourselves practice against what we preach. We, a Christian nation, with all it’s ideals of equality and representation, have turned our churches, and thus the national ethic into a big, fake, rigged game to which we righteously assert that only the right people should be allowed to vote. You believe you are the right, the chosen, people to decide who the right people are (and no, I’m not advocating allowing non-citizens to vote—though I do believe that it should be a lot easier than it currently is to become a citizen.) With this (impedance of access) you (we I suppose) are just justifying a continuing form of slavery. The more we persist in the charades and the little manipulations of perception in the power hierarchies, these divisions will continue to grow as you become increasingly threatened and fearful of those who are not you.

We’ve already shrugged away a violent insurrection inspired by a mountain of lies (as confirmed by numerous authorities charged with maintaining election integrity and over 60 court cases thrown out for lack of evidence) about a stolen election (including the lie that Mike Pence had the power to overturn the election but wouldn’t do so because he was faithless) as no big deal. It’s no big deal that POTUS was targeting and squeezing election officials to find the votes to overturn the election. Our leader in the Senate admits that Trump is guilty of fueling this whole mess with a pile of lies concerning an election he lost by 7 million votes, but that they’d love to have the guy back for more. We erected an image in his honor and invited him back into power, telegraphing the event by displaying a symbol which says, with Trump as kingmaker and the Republican Party as the edifice of administration, whites will have power. It is unlikely explicit verbal statements of this kind will be given (unless in a gross slip up which may wake people up,) but the winks have been given. It is as simple as that. The nightmare continues.

As I’ve said, I’m struggling with my faith. If I honestly believed our ‘prophets’ actually spoke for God I would have to turn my back to the whole mess raising both middle fingers to you all as I turn. If this is what Christianity is, if white Christian nationalism is God’s will then I want no part of the church and no fellowship with God. The white Christian nationalist’s god is a monster. Fortunately, I don’t listen to our spirit-filled teachers to learn about God and His Will; I keep tabs on them with the hope of better understanding our carnality and our will. Jesus and His eyewitness apostles taught us differently about what God wants from us. Admittedly, I’m a rough sort with a long history of rebellion against lies, bullying, manipulation, gaslighting, shame, threats, and violence. My history, and my reactions to all of those stresses, makes me who I am; and I’m slowly learning to thank God for it. Kinzinger’s honesty and reflection on a powerful cultural reality has filled me with a hope that I am not alone. And indeed, my faith is bolstered by those who stand against Christian Nationalism, the usurpations of our ‘prophets’ upon the faith, and the utter depravity of what the right majority of us, in fear, support.  

Brother Kinzinger, I stand with you and admire your courage. Stand fast, you are not alone. You’ve inspired me to maintain my search for what faith really means. As I understand it now, faith means to apologize to those I’ve wronged, to empathize as best I can with those whose pain I could never fully understand, but to come aside them to show them that I care. To not pretend to be something (or someone) that I am not. To love the truth and seek it always. To seek justice, mercy, and equality for all of God’s children (regardless of whether they believe in the right things or not.) To never fall into the trap of believing the ends justify the means. To be brave even when I’m feeling alienated and alone. To attempt to control the expressions of my anger in the face of injustice and depravity. To know that I am a sinner, yet I am still dearly loved by my Father.

I offer this prayer in public as an invitation to the struggle,

Thank you Father for your Word. In all of our depravity and selfishness, I admit my own sin. Your Word is Truth; yet what is written in the Bible is not all truth—far from it. Despite what we do to abuse both truth and each other, I trust that You not only love us, but like us humans as well. We are not worms but Your image bearers; (and how could you not like that?) You’ve woven into us a desire to seek, explore, and discover. Understanding my own experience as a father, I delighted in seeing my children grow and learn, and didn’t that often sweat too much what I thought were mistakes and at times rebellion (some more serious than others.) Help me to understand and extend the same courtesy to You regarding Your intention towards us as our Father. Thank you for my life and all you have blessed me with—two beautiful daughters who both have justice and mercy in their hearts. Thank you for my wife whose wisdom, gentleness, and mercy has surely made me a better man. Help me with my temperance and feelings of alienation so that I may stand for what is true, just, and merciful without being swallowed up by the emotion. Help me to be positive and to see people as you see them. I learned from Your Word that Jesus holds the scepter of judgement. We’ve been called to stand up for what is right, but I am convinced this not to be done by us by force. Only Jesus has that right. Help me to persuade those who have taken up the scepter to use worldly power execute judgement on Your Son’s behalf with wisdom and the least amount of anger possible out of an angry man with unclean lips like me. Help me to discern between deceiver and deceived—standing against the former while being appropriate with the latter. Complicity is not an option. I must speak out against what is wrong, but I’m conflicted about how I should do it. Help me guard my heart, as it is hurt and angry. Help me guard my head, as it is unsure, struggling, and confused. I am weak, but I still place my trust in You.

Thank you,

Amen