Evangelicals- Presidential Despair

Evangelical: of or relating to a Christian sect or group that stresses the authority of the Bible, the importance of believing that Jesus Christ saved you personally from sin or hell, and the preaching of these beliefs to other people.

Some of you may remember when Mitt Romney, a Mormon, was the Republican nominee for President in 2012 opposing the incumbent President and Democrat Barack Obama. Billy Graham, through his son Franklin, “blessed”, though did not endorse, Romney paving the way for Evangelicals across the country to effectively have someone (read not a Democrat) to vote for. What many have forgotten about this episode is that the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association website removed a page shortly after this “blessing” which identified Mormonism as a “cult”, along with the Unification Church and Scientology.

So far, neither Billy nor Franklin Graham have offered Donald Trump an endorsement or a “blessing”. At least I am not aware that they have. What they have offered is a “voters guide“ on their website and their “interpretation” of each candidate’s position on the following Evangelical hot button topics; 

1. The Supreme Court
2. Religious Liberty
3. Abortion
4. National Security

The narrative concludes with this quote from Tony Perkins, president of the Washington, D.C. based Family Research Council; “It is the church—armed with the Gospel—that can fix hearts. It is the Gospel that transforms lives. It is the church through the witness of the Holy Spirit that can preserve a culture. But without the space to do that openly in public, it’s difficult. And elections in our country determine that.” Well, so much for the separation of church and state. As I read this statement, it is only through the Christian faith that 322,762,018 American citizens can grow, thrive and find happiness. So what do the other 96,828,605 (30%) non-Christian American citizens do, just watch?

If you read the guide you understand why I use the word “interpretation”.  There is a very simple intent implied, the Democratic party does not stand for or support Evangelical morals or values. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your point of view, Evangelicals aren’t 100% sure Trump does either but he has one thing going for him and one thing only, the big R in Republican.

I live in a densely populated Evangelical area and this has been the quietest I have ever seen them during a Presidential election. Once they lost Ted Cruz it seems as if they have been wandering the desert without a Moses. I know at the end of the day most Evangelicals will vote for Trump, but not for Trump, while they wait for the second coming of………Ronald Reagan.