Warning: This Rector’s Rambling may cause heartburn and distress for those who do not like to hear anything from the realm of politics at or via the Church. This will not be a partisan rambling, but it will name a particular political hopeful. I have written before about how the Church must address political issues, and never from a partisan starting place. My goal is not to offer a commentary on policy or platform, however, I would like to reflect on the tenor and connective tissue of a particular politician’s rhetoric. I am not suggesting whom anyone should vote for. I begin in this manner because I do know how we struggle mightily within the church to speak truth to power, especially the power of the community that tends to want to maintain equilibrium and not cause trouble. There are times when the Church cannot remain silent out of ‘politeness’, and this is one of those times. Where there is great injustice, active hatred, or perpetration of evil, for example, and the church remains silent, we become complicit. For this reason I offer the following rambling not on behalf of or speaking for the parish, but as a prophetic representative of the wider Church (as are all of us). As a final addendum to this warning, this is not a sermon from a pulpit, and you are not a captive audience in the pews. This is an elective medium, so if you are not comfortable after reading this warning you may choose not to read on. And, as I have often said, if you would like to discuss the content of this or any Rector’s Rambling, please call or email me to set up a time for us to sit down together.

In our Advent book study, the first chapter of Rowan Williams’ book rightly started with an exploration of baptism as the root

of our identity as followers of Jesus. In his book, Being Christian, he explains that all baptized Christians are called upon to be prophetic. Prophets, as he says, “act and speak to call the people of Israel back to their own essential truth and identity.” He goes on to say it is, “a matter of the Church expressing and asking important and readily forgotten questions in our society. It is to ask, ‘What is that for?’ and ‘Why do we take that for granted?’ and ‘Where’s that leading us?’ We do it for one another in the Church but I think that we also do it for the whole of our human environment, which needs that sort of questioning for its health and survival.” In our Wednesday evening conversation about this concept our small group shared an awareness that such prophetic witness is not easy and that the church (and its members) are too often silent out of a slightly misplaced desire not to cause trouble or be seen as divisive. Nonetheless, the prophetic voice is an important one, and as the former Archbishop of Canterbury suggests, one of the hallmarks of whom we are as Christians.

So today I want to shine a light on the rhetoric and the ideology that is coming from presidential hopeful, Donald Trump. I believe it is troubling to the “health and survival” of our common humanity. I want us to think about it prophetically, keeping in mind our “essential truth and identity.” I want us to ask the question, “Where is such rhetoric leading us?” His speeches and proclamations do not infrequently contain hateful, racist, and xenophobic rants. Historians and pundits from all parts of the political spectrum have also suggested that his rhetoric echoes the tactics and fervor of the fascist movement that wreaked havoc on the world last century. Now, I will readily and gratefully acknowledge that Mr. Trump is not a true fascist as of today, but clearly he is using some plays out of that particular playbook, knowingly or otherwise. The conditions aren’t nearly what they need to be for him to successfully create a popular uprising with nationalist fascist ideals, nor do I think that is his ultimate goal. I pray that it isn’t; yet that doesn’t necessarily make his words less harmful or dangerous.

And let me be clear on this. I am not taking issue in this context with substance of Mr. Trump’s policies, per se. While policies can be formulated based on things like hate or fear or racism, I’m more concerned at this juncture with the rhetorical style itself. I think that a healthy political system welcomes policy debates. In fact, I think a healthy national climate requires policy debates. But perhaps Mr. Trump represents what happens when prophetic people don’t stop to ask where we’re being led, in this case in terms of political discourse. We haven’t been asking such questions as our political discourse has gotten more and more divided and as we focused more on politicians than substantive disagreements. We haven’t been asking such questions as our political rhetoric has become so divisive at all levels and across party lines. The most troubling aspect of what is crystalizing in Mr. Trump’s rhetoric is the subtle shift he has introduced from policy debate to “people” debate. It’s not an opponent’s ideas that are stupid, it’s the opponent who is stupid. It’s not just the immigration policy that is broken, it’s the immigrants themselves. It’s not radical Islam that is the problem, but all Islamic people. The rhetoric is sharp and it is dehumanizing. It’s been on the horizon in our culture for some time, and now it’s here.

I’ve heard much praise for Mr. Trump’s direct style. That’s one of the things that appeals to many people. I get it. I can’t stand wishy-washy, pliable politicians who stick to scripts instead of answering questions, and changing their answers to suit the climate. I also know that is how people get elected, so I have a pretty low bar when evaluating all of those in a primary race right now. I wonder though if people are fully aware of the shape of his direct comments in this dehumanizing way? My fear is that there is an additional subconscious appeal when he is direct about blaming, shaming, or scapegoating a group of people. This isn’t about political correctness, it’s about the near total loss of civility. I’m not suggesting that we all have to agree on policy. We do have to agree, however, that we will live in a certain kind of society that believes that “all men are created equal”, and which makes room for the other, especially when we struggle to agree with them. But when we use fear and scapegoating of the other to achieve our political ends, which can in turn lead to policy that betrays our basic shared covenant, we set out into dark and troubling waters indeed.

Some have said that we should ignore Mr. Trump’s most troubling outbursts because the reactions he gets merely feed the

beast, so to speak. And that is true, to a point. What is most troubling, however, is that his remarks are seemingly celebrated and endorsed by a larger and larger number of people. A campaign that began as a bit of a political sideshow has, to date, displayed a resiliency to stay on top that no one expected, whether they typically wear blue or red on election night. The more severe his comments, the better he seems to do. He draws crowds by the tens of thousands, and gets cheers for comments that make the majority of folks cringe. There must be an opposing chorus that stands and speaks together to say that such rhetoric and its underlying ideals are not Christian, and certainly not American in the classical sense. We must ask ourselves where such rhetoric is leading us if we don’t?

I understand the root of his popularity. I am a student of history. I have read a fair amount about the world wars of the last century and the political mindsets that set the stage for war and arranged the chess pieces on the board for what I’ve seen play out in my own lifetime. I know how people become disenfranchised, how they look to blame someone for struggles real or perceived, and how we quickly let fear overtake our better judgment from time to time. Humans have been scapegoating, labeling, and excluding “the other” based on race and creed for about as long as there have been humans on this earth. I understand that there are people frustrated by political and governmental systems that don’t work fairly or justly for everyone. But such fears and experiences cannot be allowed to shape our collective lives in ways that run contrary to the tenets of our faith and the foundations of our democracy and our freedoms. Such fears and experiences can bring out the worst in us if we let them.

Rowan Williams suggested that prophets ask, “Don’t you remember who you are?” So what is our “essential truth and identity?” The prophet Micah asked, “What does the LORD require of you?” The answer was, “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Jesus teaches us in Luke’s gospel that it is the Samaritan who was the neighbor to the man lying beaten on the side of the road. His teaching was that the despised enemy was the righteous actor because he loved “the other” and that we should do likewise. In several places Jesus lifts up love of God and neighbor and loving one another as the most important things we are called upon to do.

As Christians we are taught not to be afraid. We are taught to welcome the outsider and to care for the less fortunate. We are

taught to do these things even in the face of great personal cost, up to and including our own lives if necessary. It’s a radically hard teaching, but it remains the teaching, nonetheless. Our calling is not to feed the dark places of this world by adding to the darkness, but to chase the darkness away by shining the loving and peaceful light of Christ into the darkness. This may sound trite and Polly Anna to some, and if it does, then we haven’t been listening to Jesus or the Church’s teaching. Few truly trite things are so difficult to achieve. Regardless, we are called upon to bear the gospel light, be it difficult or easy.

When hateful and dangerous words are allowed to stand without challenge from those of us who would rather be polite than bear witness to our faith, bad things can happen. That darkness grows. This is true no matter who the speaker is; political hopeful or political incumbent; guest at a cocktail party or a friend at lunch. If such dehumanizing scapegoating goes unanswered, the conversation beings to shift. The goal posts move as the definition of what is ‘moderate’ and ‘normal’ moves further and further from what is truly normative. Extremist groups have been on the rise again in Europe in recent years, and they are apparently on the rise here now as well. It usually takes awhile for movements to take root and really engage in a meaningful way, but they all start somewhere. The current rallying point, or rather rallying person, may change before the movement becomes truly destructive on these shores, but we have before us the spark of a movement. As Smokey the Bear might say, only we can prevent the fire. Again, I’m all for debating on issues. I grieve the demonizing of other human beings. History tells us where that will, in fact, lead us.

Darkness grows when those of us who bear light keep it hidden. Don’t hide your light, or perhaps I should say don’t hide the light of Christ in you. Don’t keep silent when you encounter hatred or racism directed at persons instead of ideas. Ask for God’s help when you realize that you are afraid of a person or a whole group of persons. I have. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “The enemy is fear. We think it is hate; but it is fear.” We are in a season that reminds us that people called out for centuries from a land of darkness, and we know that living in darkness is scary. The light is coming, yet again, into the world, and the darkness will not overcome it.

Do not be afraid. Do not be silent. Let your light shine.

Tom+

In the Lord I'll be ever thankful,
in the Lord I will rejoice!
Look to God, do not be afraid;
lift up your voices: the Lord is near,
lift up your voices: the Lord is near.
~ Taize Chant