Contempt fuels US political campaigns and social media, and many profit from it. But it’s a dangerous way to lead a country.
By now you’ve heard or read the words spoken to President Trump during a prayer service at Washington National Cathedral.
I was in Fort Good Hope, NWT in a Northern Store on the day of the presidential inauguration. President Trump’s speech was broadcast through the store’s sound system. But it was the next day at a prayer service that a pastor’s sermon caught the attention of the world.
Bishop Budde
The Right Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde has served as the Bishop of Washington for the Episcopal Church since 2011. She was invited by the President’s office to deliver a message. And deliver a message she did. Rare is the sermon that instantly goes viral.
Rev. Budde in a thoughtfully worded message said, “It goes without saying that in a democracy, not everyone’s particular hopes and dreams will be realized in a given legislative session or a presidential term or even a generation. Not everyone’s specific prayers – for those of us who are people of prayer – will be answered as we would like. But for some, the loss of their hopes and dreams will be far more than political defeat, but instead a loss of equality, dignity, and livelihood.”
She reminded the nation, “…the culture of contempt that has become normalized in our country threatens to destroy us. We are all bombarded daily with messages from what sociologists now call “the outrage industrial complex”, some of it driven by external forces whose interests are furthered by a polarized America. Contempt fuels our political campaigns and social media, and many profit from it. But it’s a dangerous way to lead a country.”
Pleading For Mercy
“The first foundation for unity is honouring the inherent dignity of every human being. As all faiths represented here affirm, is the birthright of all people as children of the One God. In public discourse, honouring each other’s dignity means refusing to mock, discount, or demonize those with whom we differ, choosing instead to respectfully debate across our differences, and whenever possible, to seek common ground.”
She pleaded with the President, “Let me make one final plea, Mr President. Millions have put their trust in you. As you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and independent families who fear for their lives.
And the people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings; who labor in our poultry farms and meat-packing plants; who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shift in hospitals – they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals.”
Backlash and Pats On the Back
And for that, Budde has received death threats amid a fierce backlash that only added to a polarized nation.
I have no skin in the game aside from being a pastor. I stand with Bishop Budde. How Christian leaders responded is an indictment against the politicalization of their religion.
My response would be a pat on the back.
Franklin Graham saw otherwise. “Trump stands with truth… he’s not purposely out there lying or misleading people. But this lady is. She’s misleading people, and she was wrong.”
I respect Rev. Graham. Many evangelical leaders share his opinion. I’m not one of them.
And other Christian leaders were less circumspect in their responses.
Apostate Priestess or Fearless Leadership?
Denny Burk, a Southern Baptist who is president of the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, called Budde “a false teacher who has no authority or right to speak in the name of Jesus. We don’t need (the president) to be led away from Christ by an apostate priestess usurping the pastoral office.”
Rev. Mitchell Felton, South Carolina. “I thought Bishop Budde gave one of the clearest depictions of moral leadership and moral clarity in a time where that is just not present.”
Tony Perkins, head of the Focus on the Family related Family Research Council, said Budde represents “the cause of America’s decline. The cause of America’s decline was not what was sitting in the pew but what was standing behind the pulpit. What we heard today was not a prophetic voice from the church, but rather pathetic.”
Rev. Jen Butler, “She’s the first to really find her footing and show no fear. The more we fear a tyrant, the more power they have, the more we stand up in compassion, the less power they have. She did what needs to be done, and we hope to see our elected leaders do the same.”
Pastor Joe Rigney, said, “Women’s ordination is a cancer that unleashes untethered empathy in the church and spills over into society.”
How The President and Others Responded
President Trump wrote, “The so-called Bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a Radical Left hard line Trump hater. She brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way. She was nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart. Apart from her inappropriate statements, the service was a very boring and uninspiring one. She is not very good at her job! She and her church owe the public an apology!”
Pastor Lucas Miles, senior director of TPUSA Faith, “On the very first day of Trump’s return to the White House, a woke clergy member hijacks a church service to promote partisan rhetoric, personally attacks the President of the United States, and distorts the truth about illegal immigration.”
Pastor John Amanchukwu, “Many fear a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but there is nothing worse than a wolf in Bishop garments. She’s heretical, diabolical, and should have NEVER had the opportunity to minister in the presence of President Donald J. Trump.”
Ryan Helfenbein, Executive Director of Standing for Freedom Center. He said Rev. Budde “completely missed the mark and was a far greater reflection of the liberal sickness so pervasive in American churches than they are on the American president.”
Pastor Lorenzo Sewell, Detroit, Michigan, “There is nowhere in Scripture that we see that a leader would stand up without God’s permission and speak to someone who is in authority… What happens in the midst of our Christian tradition is that we think that we can stand before kings and just act like we can say whatever we want, how we want in the name of God.”
The Last Word
The last word goes to Rabbi Micah Streiffer, in the Jerusalem Post. “Speaking from a pulpit is an inherently political act because it deals with social ethics. Unless you’re talking strictly about private ritual matters, giving a sermon necessarily involves encouraging people to confront their own behaviours and choices. How we treat others we use resources. How we care for our planet, the people on it, and the vulnerable in society.”
And, “The Hebrew Bible institutionalizes this responsibility in the form of the prophet. A prophet is a kind of social critic who reminds people of the gap between moral expectations and actual behaviours.”
It’s going to be an interesting four years.
What do you think? Please join the conversation and post a comment below. Thank you.
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