Trump, Power, and Evangelical Loyalty: A Reflection on Gaza

Well, I suppose you might be expecting my reaction to the election results. Honestly, I am still processing things.

I will say, at this point, that I am deeply grieved—as I have been for some time now—at the state of the Church. I suppose that the election provided more confirmation that the Church is deeply broken and, as I have thought for some time now, maybe even irreparably broken. But more on this in an upcoming post.

When I say this, I do not intend to suggest that there are no Christians. The sentiment is more like the exhortation to the Church in Sardis in Rev 3:1-6. The Church in Sardis is dead (Rev 3:1). Yet, John concludes, “You have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy (Rev 3:4).

My initial thoughts on the election

I have feared for the past few months that our focus on Gaza and the West Bank has been lost. Things are getting worse—if that were even possible. The title of a recent report in 972+ Magazine says it all, “Exterminate, Expel, resettle: Israel’s endgame in northern Gaza.”

Things in the West Bank have also deteriorated. So much so that pastor Munther Isaac recently declared on an IG feed, “The West Bank is becoming unlivable.”

Yet, we remain focused, understandably so, on our domestic affairs.

So, what do I think about Trump and his re-election?

My first thought is that it means almost nothing to the Palestinians.

For all the convictions by some Trump loyalists that he is not beholden to the neo-cons and the deep state, when it comes to Israel Trump is no different from any other elected official. He knows that in order to gain and maintain power, he must acquiesce to those who got him elected. In this instance, the pro-Zionist cause. After all, Miriam Adelson gave $100 million to the Trump campaign. If we believe that came without strings, we need more help than this post can offer.

NB: I am firmly convinced that Trump is not pro-Israel because of some ideological conviction that they are God’s chosen people. As I see it, Trump’s support of Israel is motivated by his quest for power. The evangelical right was once again very influential in his election, and he intends to please them in exchange for power.

With this being said, let me here are some thoughts on the continued war on Gaza.

NB: because this post is quite long, I will split it up into smaller posts over the course of this week and next. 

Jesus’s call to non-violence

I have noted before that I believe Jesus calls us to a life of non-violence (I prefer this over the nomenclature “pacifism”). After all, Jesus affirms violence begets violence: Matt 26:52, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.”

I have had this conviction for many years now. During this time, I have had to face the reality of, “But what if it were my family?”

Thus, I have prayed that nothing would ever happen to my family. I worry that my values would go out the window if someone did something horrible to my wife and my children.

I recently listened in on a webinar in which Rania Elias shared the horrific story of her son’s (Shady Khoury) detainment. I have heard stories like this for years. But I knew I needed to listen anyway.

Hearing Shady’s story made me wonder:

–       What would I do if some foreign entity illegally detained one of my children and accused them of acts they did not do?

–       What would I do if days, weeks, and months went by without a word on my son’s well-being?

–       What would I do if, when my son returned home, it was evident that he had been beaten and tortured?

–       What would I do if I learned that he was blindfolded, handcuffed with zip ties, and interrogated harshly until he “confessed,” which he refused to do?

–       What would I do if he explained to my wife and me how he was deprived of food for significant periods of time, made to sleep on the floor, and exposed to the cold without sufficient clothing or blankets?

What would you do? What would you want to do?

NB: More than 10 years ago, I was with a large group waiting to enter a Congressional dinner in DC. While the staff prepared our meal, we waited about an hour just outside the hall in the Congress building. During this time, I met and had a wonderful discussion with the then-executive director of Defense for Children International-Palestine. I asked him what percentage of Palestinian children who are detained in Israeli prisons are tortured. He replied that it depends on how you define torture. He proceeded to add that he thought 90% of the children experienced torture.

Suppose we lived in a community in which many of our children were similarly detained.

What if one in every five children in your community were killed by these forces? Suppose an 11-year-old child of one of your neighbors was shot and killed.

Would you join forces with your neighbors to resist?

What if it wasn’t just the military that wreaked havoc on our community? What if some of the citizens of this foreign entity came into our city and began confiscating our parks and homes? What if they did so under the protection of their military, so any resistance to them proved even more disastrous for our community?

What would you do? What would you want to do?

What if these invaders then came into our homes and brought violence with them? What if they did so with weapons and under the protection of the military?

What would you do? What would you want to do?

. . . to be continued

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