On the 4th of February, 2022, The New York Times published an opinion piece by David Brooks. This article, “The Dissenters Trying to Save Evangelicalism From Itself”, outlined the experiences of multiple evangelical leaders who were “breaking ranks” from the evangelical world. The columnist featured names such as Thabiti Anyabwile, Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Rachael Denhollander, Russell Moore, Tim Keller, and Lecrae; painting them as dissidents in increasingly political evangelical regime. The New York Times writer attempted to illustrate the corruption of the evangelical establishment by bringing up the story of Russell Moore, who resigned from SBC leadership after encountering “resistance to addressing the racism and sexual abuse scandals in its ranks.” While some may see this schism of Christianity as a political issue, Brooks claims that this is only a part of the problem.
“The proximate cause of all this disruption is Trump. But that is not the deepest cause. Trump is merely the embodiment of many of the raw wounds that already existed in parts of the white evangelical world: misogyny, racism, racial obliviousness, celebrity worship, resentment and the willingness to sacrifice principle for power.”
David Brooks, “The Dissenters Trying to Save Evangelicalism From Itself” – Feb 4, 2022 1https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/04/opinion/evangelicalism-division-renewal.html
Michael Bird’s analysis of the same article gave him a similar impression. Bird describes this new “Coalition of the Faithful” as embodying “truth over tribalism”, and the ability to “speak truth to power, whether right-wing or left-wing.” 2‘The Evangelical “Dissenters”‘, Michael F. Bird, 2/10/2022 – https://michaelfbird.substack.com/p/the-evangelical-dissenters Despite the “dissenter” label, this new movement is portrayed as a unifying movement, capable of speaking truth to any political party. In a world where Trump is only a manifestation of the uglier issues underneath, this new evangelical movement should unite all of Christianity, right?
In light of recent events, the answer appears to be: “No.”
Setting The Scene
The first event to catch my attention was the suspension of Kyrie Irving (an NBA player) from the Brooklyn Nets. Irving had a shoe contract with Nike worth $11 million, now cancelled after sharing an Amazon link to a documentary. Nike made clear that Irving’s tweet sharing the video was “hate speech”, and that they would no longer launch his new Kyrie 8 shoe.3New York Post, Nike ends longtime partnership with Kyrie Irving over anti-Semitism controversy – https://nypost.com/2022/12/05/nike-ends-longtime-partnership-with-kyrie-irving/ When asked about the incident, Kyrie stated he had been researching his own name (“Kyrie, eleison” means “Lord, have mercy”), when he stumbled across a Amazon Prime documentary called “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America.”4https://netswire.usatoday.com/2022/10/29/kyrie-irving-full-explanation-for-why-he-promoted-an-antisemitic-filmkyrie-irvings-full-explanation-for-why-he-promoted-an-antisemitic-film/ In order to continue playing in the NBA, Kyrie was forced to apologize and disavow everything.
In more recent news, Ye (aka Kanye West) was featured in a viral interview on Infowars with Alex Jones and Nick Fuentes. He had recently been on the receiving end of the heavy, unforgiving hand of cancel culture. Ye found almost every company he worked with banning him from their platform or cutting contract ties – including Adidas, JP Morgan, Twitter, Gap, Instagram and more.5https://www.businessinsider.com/kanye-west-companies-cutting-ties-adidas-gap-balenciaga-vogue-tweet-2022-10 For their reasoning, some companies cited the fact that he was seen wearing a “White Live Matter” t-shirt. Other companies, such as Ye’s bank, did not bother to give a rationale. His accounts were frozen almost overnight. Ye also received threats of jail time, losing visitation rights to his children, and being institutionalized (again).
The latest accusations against Ye frame the cancellations as result of his anti-Semitism, pointing to multiple points in the 3-hour Infowars interview where Kanye stated that he “loves Hitler.”6You can watch the full interview here – https://odysee.com/@VINCENTFUSCO:b/ALEX-JONES-FULL-Thursday-12-1-21-%E2%80%A2-Ye-West-In-Studio-With-Alex-Jones-Uncensored-Unchained-Raw While I do not find value in confirming that particular sentiment, the fact that Christians everywhere felt the need to condemn the Ye and Nick duo was very concerning. In particular, voices in Christian leadership were fixated on the fact that Ye had dinner with former president Trump about a week prior to the interview. Al Mohler voiced his opinions on Trump’s hospitality by stating “That dinner should have never taken place” and warning Christians that there is “no public or private justification for such an act.” 7“The Briefing”, Dec 5, 2022 – https://albertmohler.com/2022/12/05/briefing-12-5-22 Russell Moore, another voice from the “Coalition of the Faithful”, stated on the Christianity Today podcast that having dinner with someone who was a “clearly awful person” was unconscionable. Moore acknowledged that some Christians would liken this scenario to the Biblical example of Jesus eating with tax collectors and sinners, but quickly stated this was a “ridiculous comparison.” 8Christianity Today, “The Bulletin” – Ep. 4, https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/podcasts/bulletin/guess-whos-coming-to-dinner.html
Evidently, someone hit a nerve. Christianity’s reaction to this whole situation makes even less sense when you listen to the interview. Ye’s partner, Nick Fuentes, clarified that he was not a White supremacist (despite the media’s attacks), and had a segment where he brought up serious moral issues with Talmudic Judaism. While Fuentes claims to be a Catholic and I am (definitely) not, I found myself agreeing with the majority of his statements. For Ye’s part, stating that he “loves Hitler” was the most offensive thing I could find; but even this statement sounded more fairly innocuous, especially in the context of his other assertions.
- “Jesus runs the world.”
- “Whether it’s the Zionists, or Hitler, it’s not the person: It’s Satan using the people [that are] controlled by demonic forces.”
- “I know I’m a child of God, and I know Jesus died for us.”
- “Jesus is the real king of Israel.”
- “Either Jesus said so or Jesus said no.”
- “I love the Zionist. I love the people that blocked my bank account, because God runs the world and uses everyone.”
- “We all need Jesus Christ.”
Watching the interview for myself forced me to reason that the reactionary condemnations of it had precious little credibility. Ye is clearly a Christian; was this Christ-centered message a form of hate speech? When I proclaim that “we all need Jesus Christ”, would other Christians also be required to dis-invite me from their dinner plans?
A New Playbook
If we even had rules before, the rules have definitely changed. In place of the rule book, there appears to be an unequal double standard, usable only by the evangelical elites. Skipping any ecclesiastical proceedings, Al Mohler has essentially instructed his listeners that Ye is not worthy of Christian fellowship. In a similar fashion, Russell Moore has used his influence to ‘socially excommunicate’ Ye from his circles, all without a trial. Is this the new “Coalition of the Faithful?”
In today’s decentralized Christianity, it seems as if the social cancel culture is the only power play available to these “dissenters.” This new maneuver has the ability to bypass all forms of church government, and is especially powerful when echoed by the secular, main-stream media. The fact that Ye continuously returned to talking about Jesus made no difference to the new evangelical regime – the anti-Semitism label had been placed.
It should be clear that the new rulebook of the elite will not allow Christians to violate social dogmas and remain under the umbrella of evangelicalism. If you don’t understand the relevant social tenets, you appear to be on your own. Anti-Semitism in particular appears to have been a poorly constructed label since it’s inception. When Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, a Russian Christian novelist, was given a similar designation, he wrote:
“As for the ‘anti-Semitism’ label, the word has, like other labels, lost its precise meaning due to thoughtless use, and different social and political commentators over the decades have understood a variety of different things by it.”
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, in a letter to Richard Grenier – 1985
The rules of this new condemnation game are obvious: you just don’t win.
The New Regime
Don’t let the New York Times opinion fool you; this new form of evangelical leadership is not comprised of “dissenters.” They are the new evangelical elite. Their power does not lie in theological argumentation, or church discipline. Instead, they wield the power of a secular society, isolating any Christian that would dare to violate these cultural orthodoxies. If you do not bow before their cultural idols, you are not allowed to approach. If you state that your Christian love extends even to Hitler, you are not worthy of their hospitality.
Luke 14:12-14 makes clear that God does not want Christians to use their dinner table as a sacred place, available only to the meritorious. Indeed, we are blessed when we feast with those that cannot repay. Romans 12:16 says that we are to “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.” If Christians are not willing to associate with the lowly, it evolves into an overrated club. We must not ostracize one another for the sake of maintaining an image.
“The Apostle means to say: Do not regard those who rank highly in the world, and do not be displeased with such as are despised. Take a cordial interest in those that are lowly, and have pleasure in them. ”
Martin Luther, “Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans”, Theodore Mueller translation – 1954 (p. 161)
In order to live in harmony with one another, we cannot banish the brother or sister in Christ that is lacking societal cachet. Remember that we cannot control the actions of others, but we can control our attitudes towards them. To harbor bitterness or hatred at a time like this is to ignore the blessings of overlooking an offense (Proverbs 19:11).
Though I may be despised by the elite I call my brothers, my table will always be open to them.
Sources:
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- 2‘The Evangelical “Dissenters”‘, Michael F. Bird, 2/10/2022 – https://michaelfbird.substack.com/p/the-evangelical-dissenters
- 3New York Post, Nike ends longtime partnership with Kyrie Irving over anti-Semitism controversy – https://nypost.com/2022/12/05/nike-ends-longtime-partnership-with-kyrie-irving/
- 4
- 5
- 6You can watch the full interview here – https://odysee.com/@VINCENTFUSCO:b/ALEX-JONES-FULL-Thursday-12-1-21-%E2%80%A2-Ye-West-In-Studio-With-Alex-Jones-Uncensored-Unchained-Raw
- 7“The Briefing”, Dec 5, 2022 – https://albertmohler.com/2022/12/05/briefing-12-5-22
- 8Christianity Today, “The Bulletin” – Ep. 4, https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/podcasts/bulletin/guess-whos-coming-to-dinner.html
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