Chosen?

Enough is enough.

During his inauguration address President Donald Trump recalled the assassination attempt during the campaign.  He has often referred to it as a “divine intervention” and “mandate” from the Most High—namely, God.  He proclaimed, “I felt then, and I believe even more so now, that my life was saved by God to make America great again.”  He believes—or at least acts like he believes—that God has chosen him to make America great again.  In this mission he doubled down that his administration “will not forget our country, we will forget our Constitution and we will not forget our God.”

 

The Orange One is now a god-fearing person on a mission for God.  Near brushes with death can do that to a person.  It can change them.  Or maybe his campaign team saw it as an opportunity for exploitation.  People love a good “brink of death” story that involves religious overtones.  Especially the evangelical.  Whatever the case, he’s been working it ever since—he is the “chosen”.

 

Somehow, I must have missed the memo.  You know the one . . . the one declaring him the salvation of the nation and its citizens. It seems all of the evangelicals got it.  All his MAGA supporters got it. I must have missed the cut.  Being a fair-minded person of faith, I want to give him the benefit of doubt whether I got the memo or not.  A faithful version of the Orange One would be a remarkable upgrade over the previous one from 2017-2021.

 

I really do . . . I really do want to believe him.  At the same time, I am reminded that “words are cheap” and “action speaks volumes”.  Sadly, “the Donald” fails at both as God’s emissary—as God’s chosen.  Neither his words or actions live up to his supposedly divine calling or the promises he made at what many believe was his coronation.  So far there hasn’t been a whole lot of the “divine mission” displayed.

 

It started with the ironic during his oath to the office of the president.  Traditionally the swearing in takes place with the president-elect placing a hand over a Bible (or other religious or symbolic book) while taking the oath.  Trump did not.  Nope . . . with one arm raised, the other hung down by his side.  It was just danglingly there despite the fact that his wife held two Bibles—the family Bible and the Bible used by Abraham Lincoln at his swearing in.

 

For a person called by God to save the nation, one would have thought he’d have no qualms about swearing on a stack of Bibles.  Someone suggested that he was afraid that they would burst into flames or that he would be struck by lightning.  I mean the guy has a remarkable track record.  Maybe he had a brain fart . . . after all he is the oldest person ever to be sworn in as president at 78 years old.  He forgot.  Old people do that.  Maybe, subconsciously, it was a tribute to old Joe.  Whatever the reason, this person of faith missed a public opportunity to show his faith and affirm God’s touch upon his life . . . after all, he said he was the “Chosen”.  People noticed.

 

Come on, we know he is a person of faith.  He told us he was.  He has his own Bible which anyone can buy for the low price of $59/99 or four monthly payments of $25.00.  As Trump proclaims it is “the best” . . . “the finest” . . . “better than any other Bible”.  Probably because it comes in the King Donald—oops, I mean the King James Version—and comes with the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, and the Pledge of Allegiance . . . plus a copy of the handwritten words to the chorus of Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the USA.  It is a Bible that Jesus himself would be proud to own.

 

He could have sworn the oath on a stack of those Bibles that he is selling.  There are plenty to go around as they are sitting in a warehouse in China where they are published.  If you are interested in getting your own copy you had better do it soon before the Orange One slaps the 60% tariff on China.  If you wait too long, it could end up costing you another $36.00.  That’s the American way!

 

Still . . . I want to take him as a person of his word.  Give him a chance (again).  He said, “I felt then, and I believe even more so now, that my life was saved by God to make America great again . . . we will not forget our country, we will not forget our Constitution, and we will not forget our God.”  So far, his words ring hollow.

 

The day after the coronation, the king—I mean, president—and his entourage attended worship at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.  There he heard a sermon that challenged him to honor his position as God’s “Chosen One” by loving others as Jesus did.  Episcopal Bishop, the Right Reverend Mariann Budde called for the Orange One to serve the presidency with honor, mercy, compassion, empathy, respect, and love for the people . . . the “people in our country who are scared” of all the rhetoric spewing from his mouth.  Needless to say, “the Donald” was not pleased . . . angry might be a better word.  Really angry.

 

 In true Trumpian fashion he fumed in the early morning hours on his Truth Social platform: “The so-called Bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a Radical left hard one Trump hater.  She brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way.”  He proclaimed the service “wasn’t too exciting”, “uninspiring”, “nasty in tone, and not very compelling or smart.”  He finished his diatribe by writing, “She is not very good at her job!  She and her church owe the public an apology!”

 

In common terms, Trump was pissed.  No apology came.  The bishop was preaching the Gospel.  It just was not the Gospel of Trump.  It was the Gospel of Jesus.  That’s what the gospel is supposed to do . . . confront personal sin, challenge societal norms, and call people to radical change.  Essentially it forces people to examine their lives and consider a new way of living and relating. This can be unsettling for some.  Apparently, it was for “the Donald”.  The gospel as shared by the bishop not only stepped on his toes . . . it stomped on his toes . . . and he didn’t like it.  Being a person of deep thought, compassion, and faith as God’s “Chosen One”, the bishop really irked the Orange One.  The Gospel challenges even those who are “chosen”.  Maybe he needs to figure out why words of truth angered him so much.

 

Actions speak louder than words.

 

“Remember the Constitution . . .”  In less than one week in the office, the “Chosen One” has blatantly run roughshod over the Constitution.  In total disregard for the 14^th Amendment he has denounced and rescinded birthright citizenship through an Executive Order.  One of his cronies has proposed a new constitutional amendment to allow Trump for be president a third term.  He has asked all federal employees to be snitches and turn in any of their co-workers for speaking about DEI (Diversity-Equity-Inclusion) despite their right to.  This shows so much respect for the Constitution and all that it stands for.  He has also trampled on laws created to protect the rights of citizens—declared the end for a diverse equitable society that includes all people—ripped hard earned rights from the people.  Yup, he really cares for the people of the United States—NOT!

 

He has forgotten our country . . . our Constitution . . . God.

 

The words that he speaks are far from the actions he takes.  In less than a week he has forgotten all of his promises he said he would do as the one chosen by God to save our nation.

 

I really thought my patience for “the Donald” would last longer than five days, but it is hard to ignore the slaughter of our great nation and what it stands for.  I really tried . . . but . . . I can’t do it.  The constant onslaught is killing me . . . practically driving me to drink.  I don’t think there is enough alcohol to do the trick.  I’ve been taught to give people a chance.  People can change . . . so I have been told.  The Orange One has blown those premises out of the water.  God knows I have tried.

 

Donald Trump is not God’s “Chosen One” in any way.  Just look at what he has inflicted upon our nation and its people . . . upon God’s children . . . in less than a week.  Where is the example of the one sent to show “the way”?  Where is Jesus in all of this?  I don’t see him in Donald Trump.  Trump didn’t read the memo that I never received.  I do not care what he says.  His words are the opposite of his actions.  His actions suck.  The god that Donald Trump serves is created in his own image.  If that is the case and we chose to follow him blindly according to the Gospel of Trump . . . then shame on us.  God, help us all.

 

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15. NIV)

 

Let us serve the Holy and love one another.  That is the way.

 

Pious Fraud

Ex-President Donald Trump is lucky.  That is the bottom line . . . he is lucky.  On Saturday, July 13, 3034 he survived an assassination attempt upon his life at the hands of twenty-year-old Thomas Matthew Crook at a political rally at Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.  The assassin missed his mark by centimeters, grazing Trump’s ear.  The shooter did strike three other people, critically wounding two and killing one.  With Trump he missed.  The Secret Service sharp shooters did not.  Crook was killed with a single shot to the head.  The man killed was not so lucky.  The two individuals who were wounded were not so lucky.  Crook was not lucky.  Trump was lucky.

 

Yet it is being called a miracle . . . divine intervention.  As a person of faith, obviously different from those who are calling the “near miss” a miracle, this is offensive.  And I wish they would quit calling it a miracle and say it for what it is . . . luck.

 

If people could let sleeping dogs lie, I would not be so offended.  But they can’t . . . not even Trump can drop it.  At a recent political rally in Bozeman, Montana—just up the road two hours from where I live—they were still harping on the miraculous intervention.  The Billings Gazette reported: “Multiple people told Montana Free State News Bureau that they believe Trump was saved from the assassination attempt by God.  Trump said the same on stage.”  Trump stated at the rally, “For those of you that don’t believe in God, I believe there’s only one reason that could’ve happened.”  The article goes on to say: “Sunam Jang, 27, who traveled from South Korea to attend these rallies across the U.S., said that the near miss ‘can’t be explained any other way than God,’ a sentiment echoed by multiple rallygoers.” (August 11, 2024, Billings Gazette newspaper) 

 

For whatever reasons, the assassin missed.  Could have been, as Trump has stated, the fact that he turned his head to look at a chart when the trigger was pulled . . . and it missed him and grazed his ear.  Trump buys that . . . as he stated at the rally in Bozeman: “By the way, the border chart?  I love that chart.  I’m here because of that chart.  I’m gonna sleep with that chart tonight.” (Billings Gazette, August 11, 2024, newspaper) Could be that the shooter was a poor shot . . . his other attempts were way off the mark resulting in an innocent individual being killed and two wounded.  Obviously, he was not a trained sniper like the Secret Service member who shot him in one shot.  Could be a miracle, but I doubt it because the pieces of the meaning of “miracle” do not fit together to complete the deal.  No, it was just plain old luck.

 

As a pastor I have always viewed a “miracle” as a revealing of the Holy . . . revealing of God . . . a revealing of a Higher Power.  It is not what happens in a particular situation—no matter how extravagant it might be, but that the Holy is revealed to the receiver of the gift and those who are witnessing the event.  That is the first part.  The second part is that something changes in the one who receives the miracle and those who witness it . . . their lives change.  Consider the miracles in the New Testament of the Bible:

 

The great haul of fish (Luke 5:1-11)

Jesus casting out an unclean spirit (Mark 1:23-28)

Jesus healing a leper (Mark 1:40-45)

Raising the widow’s son from the dead (Luke 7:11-18)

Stilling the storm (Matthew 8:23-27)

Curing the paralytic (Matthew 9:1-8)

Healing the blind men (Matthew 9:27-31)

Curing the woman afflicted for 18 years (Luke 13:10-17)

 

With each of the miracles around Jesus, the Holy was revealed . . . the presence of the Holy was made aware . . . it was the Holy that makes it all possible and the Holy is seen.  Having seen the Holy at work, people are changed . . . their lives change . . . they act differently, live differently, speak differently, they are different.  This completes the miracle.  It comes full circle.  That is a “miracle”.

 

At first, I was willing to consider the “miracle” aspect of what happened to Trump.  Maybe God did intervene . . . made the shooter miss . . . spared Trump’s life.  It would certainly fit the story being thrown around by the Christian National movement that deems the Holy using whatever means is necessary to restore the nation to Christianity (their form, of course) . . . even a decrepit and immoral individual like Trump.  Trump was quiet following the attempt and swore that he had changed his campaign goals and was now focused on uniting the nation.  That gave me some hope.  I was willing to give the man the benefit of doubt.  That lasted about five minutes into his speech to the Republican National Convention before he was back to his spewing of hatred, belittlement, and nastiness.  Nothing had changed.  It was the same old Trumpster . . . weird and unhinged.

 

There was no “miracle” that day in Butler, Pennsylvania.  People can weave the events of that day into a “miracle” if they want to, but it was not a “miracle”.  Trump was lucky.  Plain and simple—lucky.  What has happened is the evolution of “pia fraus” or “pious fraud”.  This Latin term is used to describe fraud in religion or medicine.  A pious fraud is the faking of an event (miracle) to justify the means—in this case, building upon the idea that this individual is the chosen vessel of God to redeem the United States of American back to its Christian Godliness.  It is a deceptive play on the beliefs and faith of individuals to pull them into the desires and wants of the one twisting the truth.  It is a game . . . a nasty game.

 

If Trump had changed his tune . . . changed his actions . . . stopped the name calling . . . told the truth . . . changed his life . . . well, I might have bought the “miracle of Bethel”.  But he didn’t.  Nothing changed.  It is the same old, same old Trump.  If it had been a “miracle” we would see it as a revelation of the Holy and all that the Holy represents and desires for creation.  This was no “miracle” . . . this was pious fraud.  Unfortunately, by the record, something Trump knows much about.

 

Trump was lucky.  This was no “miracle” . . . no intervention by God.  It was plain old dumb lucky, and Trump was the recipient.  Don’t let anyone tell you differently.  Miracles reveal the Holy . . . miracles change people . . . and in this nothing changed.  Yup, dumb luck.  That is what it was.