The escalation of left-wing agitation across America has attracted a growing number of religious leaders who feel compelled to opine on events of the day in a theological context, most recently on display in Minneapolis. A variety of clergy gathered Thursday to condemn the death of 37-year old Renee Nicole Good, who was shot and killed the day before during an altercation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers conducting operations in the city.
Of course, religious leaders should rally the faithful in the wake of tragedy, enjoining them to pray for, support and help those affected by it. But problems arise when people try to jam the square peg of Christian orthodoxy into the round hole of current events. Doing so is invariably incomplete, often to the extent of being misleading or contradictory.
“We reject the violent tactics of this federal surge of ICE presence that’s already led to the loss of life,” said Rev. Martha Bardwell. “We renounce this evil.” Bardwell, a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), went on to encourage those in attendance, “to push back against this reign of terror, as clergy, as neighbors, as elected leaders, as Minnesotans.” Also speaking at the event was ELCA Bishop Rev. Regina Hassanally. She said, “As followers of Jesus, our Scriptures teach us we have this hope as an anchor, so that we will not be swayed by winds of scheming, trickery, deceit, or lies.”
It’s difficult to reconcile the comments of these two Lutheran ministers. Bardwell’s characterization of the shooting death of Good as “evil” seems particularly unusual. If the shooting of Good was a premeditated killing, then evil would certainly be an apt description of events. But it’s impossible to believe the ICE officer who shot Good planned it, given that it happened as the woman accelerated her Honda SUV toward him as he ran to assist his fellow officers. A terrible event? Yes. A mistake? Possibly. An evil killing? No.
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As for “pushing back against this reign of terror,” Bardwell’s remark sounds more like an invitation to further violence than the guidance given to the ancient Christian church in Rome by the Apostle Paul. He wrote, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities.” Paul went on to rightly observe, “Rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good.”
Whether one agrees or disagrees with the laws and policies of the federal government, Paul’s admonition to the Romans is also common sense, particularly in light of today’s political landscape. Immigrants who come to America legally have nothing to fear from ICE, while those who come illegally do. Similarly, people who obstruct or disobey law enforcement may also face consequences. Any harm that befalls those who ignore Paul’s instructions is akin to an unforced error, a self-inflicted wound.
Bishop Hassanally’s comments about scriptural hope as a defense against “scheming, trickery, deceit, or lies,” is true but seem misplaced in this context. One can reasonably argue that pronouncing an unresolved police action “evil” and inciting people to resist lawful enforcement operations, as Bardwell did, constitutes all of the behaviors Hassanally warns against.
This illustrates one of the many problems with trying to shoehorn Christianity into protests against public policy. Neither the faith nor the Bible is so simplistic as to be boiled down to hand-picked talking points from Scripture. For example, most people know that Jesus Christ taught us to love our neighbor. Fewer know how He drove money changers from the temple in Jerusalem with a whip, as recorded in John’s Gospel. Which version should we emulate, the neighbor-loving Jesus or the whipping, table-breaking Jesus?
Bardwell’s comments about baptism were similarly curious. “Every time we gather as a community around the baptismal font, I, as pastor, get to address the congregation, and I say to them, ‘Do you renounce evil?’” This is a significant departure from my own Lutheran baptism, in which the minister asked, “Do you renounce the devil, and all his works, and all his ways?”
People generally know who and what the devil is, in concrete terms. Much more subjective are secular concepts of evil. According to Rev. Bardwell, ICE enforcement actions are. She does not agree with the current policy on immigration, so she has declared it evil and urges congregants to renounce it.
Telling the people of Minneapolis to be calm, go home, be with family and friends, and obey the law, is closer to scripture than inciting them to renounce and push back against the law by fear mongering over non-existent reigns of evil terror. There are plenty of left-wing politicians sowing discord in the aftermath of Renee Nicole Good’s death. We don’t need the clergy adding to the agitation.
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