I can’t help but see the irony of the inauguration of Donald Trump on the same day we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I am not sure there are two people who could be so different, but both with the power to impact the nation, for good or for ill.
Dr. King advocated for America to live up to her promise that “all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the “Unalienable Rights” of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” While advocating for this right of all citizens, he also instructed those who have been denied this equality to not be guilty of wrongful deeds. “Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline.” Dr. King’s goal was unity and, in that unity, freedom for all.
Donald Trump advocates for Donald Trump and those who stroke his ego. All of those Christian nationalists who think he’s the perfect leader, but instead is one who conspicuously did not place his hand on the Bibles before him when sworn in to office. Maybe he couldn’t cross his fingers like we used to when we lied on purpose so he just skipped the effort. Some of his first words of this new term attacked my child’s existence. So many issues going on in our country but he elects to attack a very small majority of people with some of his first words. Donald Trump’s goal is division and continued propagation of hatred while enriching himself and his rich, white male cronies. Many people I know disagree with this characterization. They believe that he has the best interest of America at heart. I would like to say that the next 4 years will prove them wrong, but many have refused to accept the evidence of his past unlawful and immoral deeds so it seems unlikely that any further evidence will sway their opinions.
As I contemplated this day, I have been filled with negative, vengeful thoughts of documenting everything hurtful and hateful this administration does to undermine the United States of America. Then I could use this list to say, “I told you so.” I want to shout about his MAGA followers like Ryan Walters who demand that Bibles be in schools because that will obviously make good Christians. This same man who can’t trust teachers to teach history wants these same teachers to teach the Bible. Go figure, right? I want to scream at the injustices to come with both legal and illegal immigrants will be rounded up like vermin despite the majority of them being productive members of society because of fearmongering and unearned hatred. The risk of unleashed violence on minority populations is overwhelming to me.
Yet God has been whispering in my ear a reminder that judgement is for Him, not me. God has been reminding me that my call as a follower of Jesus is to love my neighbors as myself, even those whose every belief I despise with every ounce of my being. God has been reminding me that I am to pray for my enemies even when the words taste like acid in my mouth. So I will love and I will pray. I will not give Trump and those like him a seat at my table with God. I will not let them interfere with my call as a follower of Christ. I will find ways to serve those who Jesus served – those on the margins: the orphan, the immigrant, the transgender, the lost. I don’t know how just yet, but I know God will lead me when I listen and trust Him and not get distracted by the enemy in whatever form he takes.
In the words of Dr. King, “Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’”
Discovering Grace 