The Question Christians Must Now Ask Themselves

 

By Michael Candelori from Philadelphia - Donald Trump Rally 10/21/16, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=52425435

By Nicholas Little

If you didn’t wake up today with a slew of questions running through your mind, it can only be because you didn’t sleep last night. People of all political persuasions and philosophical bents across  the world are asking themselves “What now?” But the group for whom the biggest question must loom is America’s Christian leaders.

Christianity is still dominant in the United States, despite the rapid and continuing growth of the “nones.” Over 70% of Americans identify as some form of Christian. And Christian denominations, through their leaders, are heavily involved in American politics. In this election, despite IRS regulations strictly forbidding such activity on pain of losing tax exempt status, many churches vociferously backed Donald Trump. And this morning those leaders, in particular those in the Evangelical movement, were smiling cheek to cheek at their success.

For the Evangelicals, last night was indeed a stunning success. Abortion will be further restricted, quite possibly to the point of outright criminalization. The Johnson Amendment, that aforementioned IRS regulation which forbids endorsement of candidates, will likely be repealed. Religious schools will likely see fewer barriers to state funding, and, with the appointment of new Supreme Court justices, the country could see dramatically reduced protection against majoritarian religion controlling the public sphere.