Finally, something MAGA and I can agree on – God sent us Donald Trump.
But here’s where we part.
In my spiritual view, God – the Universe, the Great Creator — wants us to listen to our better angels, to be our best selves, to make life meaningful on the planet while we’re here.
He sent Trump to show us that even good people are vulnerable to a compelling messenger of evil.
We see that all over our country. While many label the MAGA belief system as hate, and much of it is, those same finger pointers don’t understand that a lot of the movement is made up of good, well-intentioned people who have been co-opted by ill intent disguised as Christianity.
Once you eschew facts and truth and need only the word of one man for something to be considered your truth, the evil has its claws in you. The messenger knows he has you. He’s diabolical, so he’s not going to use that trust for good. He does something like put out a platform, sees how unpopular it is, and then claims it’s not his platform. Presto. They buy it.
As historians have noted – in some cases, pounded – Germany didn’t just wake up one day and turn over power to a madman. It happened over time. One insecure shape-shifter – is there a better way for “the devil” in the Christian belief system to show himself?
They will tell you they don’t care who he fucks, cheats on, cheats with, rips off, lies about. He’s not my minister or priest, they say. I don’t need him to be a Boy Scout, they say.
Good thing, because he sure as heck isn’t.
He’s a demon seed with charisma and bad hair. He’s an enchanter who uses his guile to amass power. He’s the guy sitting there with 34 felony convictions as speaker after speaker at the Republican National Convention talks about them being the party of law and order.
Huh?
I picture Jesus scratching his head, wondering how the American MAGA masses got to a place where Trump is the model for their distorted brand of Christianity. They think God saved this guy to save the world? “Divine intervention,” they cry about an alleged bullet that grazed his ear. No justification given as to why that same God took the volunteer firefighter or the thousands of Americans who have died due to gun violence as our weapons obsession escalates.
They trot out Bible verses like they apply here. Like God preordained Donald Trump to grace us with his transcendent leadership.
Wake up, holy people.
God sent him to us to show us who we are. To hold up a mirror to how easily evil can seep in and then saturate a populace.
They don’t like comparisons to Hitler or mentions of dictatorship, but his own running mate said it. Who knew Trump would ultimately take it as a compliment and put JD Vance’s unqualified ass on a presidential ticket? He’s a yes man now, so it all fits.
This is how evil ascends.
Demonize the press, existing institutions like the courts, immigrants, democracy, anyone who disagrees. Cast them as heathens.
This is a script for the fascist takeover of a country. God as director, illustrating to us how it plays out with Trump as leading man and the millions who show him blind loyalty (emphasis on blind) as the supporting cast.
Our loved ones, in many cases, have been swept away right before our eyes. The modern version of Anne Frank won’t be hiding in their attics or basements or garages.
It’s up to the rest of us to squash this faux ‘God’s will’ narrative if we’re ever going to sleep soundly again.
[Editorial Note: This is my 28th installment in a series I began in order to give my writing some flow after being in a healing phase from knee surgeries for a year (2023-24).]
