I don't often write about politics. News rarely stays at the forefront of my mind, but it has been impossible to ignore since the election. It's hard to shrug off the impact of recent policies, especially as a black woman whose life is devoted to ministry and community building through nonprofit work. Last night, I went to bed after reading political news, and this morning, I woke up with a question echoing in my mind: Cyrus or Saul?
I am a believer and know that there is a varied spectrum of political beliefs among Christians. I don't think Christians should only vote one way because there are principals that align and reject Christian morals on both sides. I just believe maybe it's time for us to be more honest with ourselves and our motives. Whose heart are we really interested in serving? Are we sure about whose choice put us in the situation that we are now, God's or our own? Do we know who we’ve lifted up, Cyrus or Saul?
Many Christian nationalists and evangelicals hail Donald Trump as the Cyrus of this generation. In the Bible, Cyrus was a pagan king who showed favor to the Israelites and helped rebuild the temple. There are some who see Trump as a political figure chosen by God to show favor to Christians and cause Christian morals to be the law of the land. But this description falls glaringly short of the actions of our current president, who seems more concerned with pacifying Christian voters than obeying the Christian God.
What if Trump is more like a Saul? What if Christian nationalists cried out as the Israelites did in the Old Testament, "Give us a king" because they wanted a power they could point to and a leader eager to impose his will on others? What if they continued their cry, their lobbying, their voting, their ignoring of his morals and hateful rhetoric, to the point where God said, "Give them what they want"?
And only now are some asking if this is what we really wanted. I am concerned for the church’s heart. How can we only care about policies as long as they don't affect us personally? I'm saddened that we claim a faith built on the premise of being free from the law and yet are so eager to put the rest of the world under our commands. I'm disturbed how we've become more interested in demanding a lifestyle, than seeking true transformation of hearts and souls. I know it's easier to vote than to take the time to share the love and truth of God. But what does it matter if others are forced to live out our values and stay separate from our God? What does it matter if we gain Washington and lose our witness in the process?
Before Saul was chosen, God warned them that He viewed the asking of a king as a rejection of himself and that it would come at a dangerous cost - the cost of a society exploited to please the desires of the king, the cost of freedom for their sons and daughter, and the cost of their resources and strength stripped without regard for their future. Even at this warning, they still wanted a king. Saul turned out to be a rash, disobedient man who would sell out his loyalty to God for wealth or influence and who would allow others to fight his battles. He may have convinced some that his desires were the will of God simply because he was king, but God always had a prophetic voice to show him the true reflection of his heart.
In the same way, we knew Trump's policies, the cost to our economy, the empowering of hatred, the loss of future resources locally and globally, and the increased vulnerability of those already at the mercy of institutions that don't always value them. And yet, they cried out for a king. Our president sells his allegiance to the highest bidder and the most profit-making policies for the already wealthy. His policies that align with the church are only honored when they don't conflict with his bottom line. Does this sound like a Cyrus or a Saul to you?
I know that I have more questions than answers. But I also know that there's no king rises up without a prophetic voice there to always share the truth. May those prophets rise up. May every one of our political and religious leaders begin to see the true reflection of their hearts. May we put faces to cost of their policies. May the resistance be honorable but unrelenting. May we all figure our part. Amen.
Sonya Curtis-Tshuma
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