Editor:
A recently broadcast comment by an Iowa voter chilled me to the bone. When asked about former President Donald Trump’s indictments, she responded, “My savior Jesus Christ was also convicted, but he was innocent and died for my sins.”
I find this comparison to be theologically bewildering and politically dangerous. She is evidence of a rising wave of Christian nationalism, which I consider horrifying.
Our nation’s founders realized the danger of mixing religious fervor with political power. Europe was filled with bloody examples: the Crusades, the Inquisition, colonial oppression and forced conversions, trials and executions, and gory more.
There is a reason that the words “Jesus,” “Christian” or “church” appear nowhere in our founding documents. Seeing any political figure as savior or redeemer elevates him/her to a status only God can occupy. Devotion to such a figure is a perversion of faith and a threat to anyone who disagrees with it.
If this becomes a dominant movement in our country, it threatens to destroy the freedom of religion that has been a pillar of our greatness. God help us.
The Rev. Fred Opalinski
Reading
Editor’s note: Opalinski is a retired Lutheran minister.
Source: Berkshire mont