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Given that many so-called Christians and Christian Nationalists are supporters of Donald Trump, it seems appropriate to revisit the article, “Who Would Jesus Vote For?” 

The mixing of religion and politics is always problematic. This is not because the moral practices that religion should foster are not appropriate in the political arena. 

It is because mixing politics and religion too often produces a toxic mix of self-righteousness, bigotry and intolerance that is destructive to good governance. History is full of wars, pogroms, genocides and poor, ignorant populations that resulted from mixing religion and government. Afghanistan is a prime example.

Separation of church and state is critical to modern societies. But Republicans plan to end it if Trump wins. So here is the updated version of the 2018 article.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23

“God desires spiritual fruit, not religious nuts,” A bumper sticker 

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness,” John Kenneth Galbraith, economist and author 

It is unfathomable to me that the so called “religious” right supports the election of Donald Trump. Trump exhibits none of the “fruits of the spirit” that, according to the New Testament, are suppose to identify true Christians. Nor does the Republican agenda reflect any Christian “kindness.” But polls show 70 to 80% of white evangelicals will vote for him.

This demographic has voted Republican for a long time. Republicans have been very successful at manipulating conservative Christians with “culture war” wedge issues. It began when the Democrats supported equal rights for blacks. As a result the former Democratic “Solid South” became solidly Republican. It continued when Democrats supported  equal rights and reproductive rights for women. The “godless communists” of the Cold War provided another hot button issue. The teaching of evolution, school choice, gay marriage and “family values” were great divide-and-conquer tactics for gaining political power.

I am reminded of my late sister-in-law who was a far-right, conservative Christian. She once told me she always voted for the candidate who was a “Christian“ or supported “Christian principles.” I suggested she must have been a strong supporter of Jimmy Carter. Carter was our only true, practicing Christian president in recent times. Of course this was not the case. Jimmy Carter was not the “right kind of Christian.”  Apparently the “right kind” of Christians don’t buy into the feeding of the multitudes or loving your neighbor or your enemies as yourself. 

The Bible is full of passages opposing greed and selfishness. Many verses command the pious to help the poor, widows, and orphans. Jesus said it is harder for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to go to Heaven. An example particularly appropriate for current Republican polices is Zechariah 7:8-10 which says, “And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah. This is what the Lord Almighty said,  ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner, or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’”

Republican opposition to national health care, living wages, food stamps and similar social programs hardly show “mercy and compassion” for anyone much less the poor. Their “zero tolerance” immigration policies certainly oppresses the foreigner. They are plotting “evil against each other” (and all of us) with their attacks on Social Security and Medicare.

Republicans claim social programs like Medicare and Social Security are causing the federal deficits. But this is completely false. Social Security is a trust fund paid for with special payroll deductions and is separate from regular federal spending. It has never contributed a dime to the deficit.

Medicare does partially contribute to the deficit because the payroll deductions don’t cover all the costs. Medicaid is funded from income taxes and is part of the annual federal budget. But both of these programs have problems because the of high cost of drugs and medical care. Republicans have blocked all efforts to control medical costs for decades. 

The budget deficit grew explosively during the first Trump administration. This is the result of tax cuts for the wealthy, large corporations and huge increases in military spending enacted by Republicans. Their actions speak louder than their words. Economic facts don’t matter and “family values” are just sound bites for the campaign trail.

As John Kenneth Galbraith said this is all about “finding  moral justification for selfishness.”  Voters should remember this when the attack ads paint the Democrats as immoral and ungodly. God is not on anyone’s political side. I don’t know who Jesus would vote for, but I do know that making political issues into good-vs-evil contests is not good for the country. This is one reason why the founding fathers wisely fostered separation of church and state. 

What we need is rational debate on public policy based on the best available factual information, not made up facts or religious dogma. We need to advance the best interests of the country as a whole. We need wise governance. We need leadership that exhibits the wisdom and tolerance of “spiritual fruit” and we need fewer religious nuts.

The Republican agenda is not “Christian.” Conservative Christians, like my sister-in-law, have been played for suckers. Trump won Michigan by 0.3% or 13,080 votes. Wisconsin went red by less than 1% or only 22 700 votes. Pennsylvania and Florida were both won by 1.2%. You don’t have to fool many of the people to gain power under our undemocratic Electoral College system.

There are two lessons from all this. One, your vote matters! Every vote counts. This is why Republicans push various voter suppression schemes. They don’t want people voting. When people stay home it is easier for them to win.

Second is we need to examine why we vote for a particular party or candidate. Are you voting based on political, ideological, or religious dogma? Are you voting because you, or your parents, have always voted a certain way? Or are you rationally thinking about the best interests of you, your family, your community or the country?

My mother used to say, “God gave you a brain and he expects you to use it.”