Time to call out the lies

and manifest the light

No.

3rd Sunday after Epiphany - Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10, 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a, Luke 4:14-21.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor…” - Jesus

"I was saved by God to make American great again." - Trump

It was stunning to hear Trump claim to be God’s chosen in the same week that the gospel reading is the account of Jesus preaching in the synagogue. As with so much that comes out of Trump administrations, that he made such a claim is hard to believe. But he did.

The values of Jesus and the values of Trump are so different. Claims to the contrary must be called out.

Jesus spent his days teaching, healing, feeding, forgiving and praying. He ate with the rich and he ate with the poor. He interacted with people who were regarded as outcasts: tax collectors, Samaritans and lepers. He lived what he preached with humility and put himself on the line for what he believed and for the sake of others. His spokespeople call for justice, mercy and compassion.

As Trump himself says, he favors the rich. He prioritizes policies which terrorize and actually hurt the poor, women, people of color, queer people, immigrants and asylum seekers. He tells lies that he knows are lies. He reserves his highest praise for himself, and he will never put himself on the line for anything or anyone. His spokespeople call for revenge and retribution.

I have been heartened by the statements made by Episcopal bishops. We have heard Bishop Mariann Budde’s appeal to Trump during her sermon at the National Cathedral. Hers has not been a lone voice.

Bishop Craig Loya (Minnesota) wrote:

“In the midst of a world full of those hungry for power projecting a false lordship, we proclaim as the true Lord the one who achieves victory, not through becoming one more strong and violent actor who rules by defeating their enemies, but who fearlessly meets the world’s madness with a humility and vulnerability that are deeply rooted in the unshakable power of love.”

Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows (Indianapolis) said:

“Our families include migrants, undocumented immigrants, trans kids and adults, and LGBTQIA siblings. Those who are threatened by the recent executive orders are not ‘other’ — they are us.”

Bishop Deon Johnson (Missouri) said “This time calls on us as people of faith to live into our mandate to be places of safety and sanctuary… a visible compassionate voice for immigrants, asylum-seekers and refugees.”

Bishops E. Mark Stevenson (Virginia): “…[T]he use of Christian language, or of any scriptural language, to advance a case that God values one nation in this day and time more than another is contrary to the gospel. For God so loved the world, not one people…”

Thanks be to God for the words of these Bishops, and for the deeds, done and yet to be done, which manifest the light of Christ in our world.

Peace.

---

Photo: Original: Storming of Capitol photo, author Tyler Merbler from USA CC2.0 Facsimile Christ Painting, artist Heinrich Hofmann (PD) Maga Hat cropped from Donald Trump supporters (48555431171), Marc Nozell from Merrimack, New Hampshire, USA Derivative work: J JMesserly based on the images listed above. (PD), CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Source for statements by Episcopal bishops: “Bishops Challenge President, Policies” by Lauren Anderson-Cripps, The Living Church, January 23, 2025.