South Park’s Critique of MAGA Christianity

South Park makes the rounds yet again in their latest episode. Years ago, the show depicted the Iranian dictator Sadam Hussein in bed with Satan. But this time around, it was not a foreign dictator sleeping with the devil, but the president of America himself.

This latest flash in the pan was stirred on by a couple of factors. The first was South Park’s recent contract with Paramount, which has a monopoly on media entertainment. In their episode, South Park puts Paramount on blast. But the second has to do with President Donald Trump’s ties to the late serial child sex abuser and trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein. In that episode, the creators of the show include a brief but sharp critique of MAGA Christianity.

Trump and Epstein

As always, let us provide some context. According to New York court documents, Jeffrey Epstein “created a vast network of underage victims for him to sexually exploit in locations including New York and Palm Beach.” These girls, some of whom were at least 14 years old, were often abused several times by Epstein.

But Epstein was not a lone wolf. The court documents refer to “employees,” “associates,” and “recruiters.” But the wickedness went further than this. As Julie K. Brown, author of Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story, said in an interview:

we know that his operation went far beyond Palm Beach, in fact, was an international sex trafficking operation.

In January 2024, thousands of pages of documents were released, revealing the names of 150 people connected to Epstein. Among these was current President Trump.

Aside from these court documents, photographs show Trump’s interactions with Epstein in past years. And when asked if he and Trump ever socialized around underage girls, Epstein replied:

Though I’d like to answer that question, at least today, I’m going to have to assert my fifth, sixth, and fourteenth amendment rights, sir.

MAGA Christianity in the South Park Episode

Much of the new South Park episode focused on Trump’s ties to Epstein. But in the first moments that we see the US president, there is different social commentary happening.

Trump walks to the White House, passing through a crowd. Most men wear suits and the famous red MAGA hats. The women are clad in swimsuits. One woman sits on a table in front of two men wearing a hat that says, “Jesus Saves.” There are golden balloons hovering in the shape of crosses. And American flags fill the scene.

As Trump makes his way, a song plays:

Faith in Christ
We’re bringing back Christ
There’s money in Christ
Bringing back Christ
Christ makes the money
Christ makes the money
Christ makes the money
Christ makes the money

The song is simple and cutting. And there’s considerable amount of meaning in what the show producers are saying through it.

Christ and the MAGA Movement

The affluent, sensual crowd depicted in the episode is a far cry from what many of us think when we think of Christianity. But make no mistake. The show producers are not disrespecting Christianity outright, although their show has been known to disrespect religion in the past. They are instead criticizing a very specific kind of Christianity.

Men like Epstein and Trump are very wealthy, unlike Christ who taught that it is better to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). The Christianity that follows men like these uncritically, then, is one which is disconnected from the economics of Jesus’s teachings. “We’re bringing back Christ,” but which Christ?

For this crowd, it is a Christ which is profitable to invest in and to “bring back” into society. It is a Christ stands for the wealthy elite, for the rich and unaccountable. And ultimately, what the show producers are saying is that for certain people, figures like Trump become Christs themselves.

Rather than reducing to a mere partisan point, this point is one which Christians should appreciate and seriously consider. Too often, churches turn into corporations. One’s relationship with God turns into a transaction. “Christian virtue” gets reduced to a middle class ethic of prosperity and security. Despite our common misperception that we are persecuted in the US, the Christian marketplace flourishes as it baptizes secular commodities and trends.

This kind of corporate Christianity is worse than cultural Christianity, precisely because it mistakes wealthy elites for Christ’s second coming. And this kind of Christianity mistakes national prosperity and partisan victory for the common good.