One of the most disheartening anecdotes of the presidential election was how the religious right remained loyal to Donald Trump even in the face of his many outrages on the trail–particularly the “Access Hollywood” tapes. They managed to convince a whopping 81 percent of white evangelicals to vote for Trump. After all, to the minds of the likes of Franklin Graham, Ralph Reed, and James Dobson, such minor details like respect for women didn’t matter nearly as much as ending abortion and marriage equality.
Well, one member of the 19 percent of white evangelicals who didn’t vote for Trump has something to say to the religious right–and it isn’t pretty. Holly Love, a teacher and blogger from Atlanta, speaks for a number of radical-lefty Christians–including this writer–when she let Trump’s enablers, particularly what passes for leadership in the religious right, have it for their support of the Orange Calf.
In an open letter published in her blog, “Lovely Introspection,” Love takes dead aim at the “spineless fools” who continued to back Trump–particularly those who bill themselves as “such ‘devout Christians’ and supporters of ‘family values.'” She rolls her eyes at how these so-called leaders “knew (Trump) was unfit,” condemned every “racist, vulgar statement” that fell from his lips, and were well aware of his blatant lies–er, “alternative facts.” And yet, they still support Trump “out of absolutely shameless self-interest.”
Love is particularly appalled at how Trump’s supporters still back “the orange goon” because he has empowered them. She thinks they’re so drunk on that power that they are now supporting measures they previously opposed and “twisting Scripture to support his most egregious policies.” As far as Love is concerned, “what happens next” will fall squarely on the shoulders of Trump’s enablers. She thinks that if they’ve had any sleepless nights of late, they will be well deserved for supporting Trump in the face of his outrages.
I first happened on Love’s blog in December, when she wrote about how out of place she felt in her former church because the great majority of the people who went there supported Trump. While she has been much more supportive of social justice issues than most other evangelicals, the 2016 election made her realize “how far removed I am from the evangelical tribe.” She was “embarrassed” at how so many evangelicals brushed off Trump’s outrages because they weren’t directly affected.
The final straw for her came two Sundays after the election, when her pastor talked about how Christians are supposed to be “gardeners, not soldiers.” While she initially thought it meant that Christians weren’t supposed to be culture warriors, she realized that it also seemed to discourage Christians from speaking up against Trump if he kept up his outrageous act once sworn in. She didn’t think she could do that in good conscience. Why?
“Jesus is with the poor. Jesus is with the oppressed. He is with the marginalized. Jesus is with the groups of people that Donald Trump’s supporters mock, shame and attack, whose schools and places of worship they deface.”
Preach it, sister.
We talked for a bit on Facebook, in part because we’re kindred spirits of a sort. After all, we’re both left-leaning evangelicals from the South–my home in Charlotte is just five hours north of Atlanta. She was particularly heartened when I showed her a clip of the last service at my church before the election. A guest speaker talked about how the church has to do a better job in bringing people together, particularly in a city as divided as Charlotte–a division that exploded full-force after the Keith Scott shooting.
As Love and I know all too well, until very recently, being a Christian in the South almost always meant being a hard-right Republican. But there are more of us out there who don’t fit that mold than it may seem–and we’re speaking out. Bravo, Holly.
(featured image from Love’s Facebook)
