For God and Country, by Ralph Reed

As a Christian Trump voter, I am continually frustrated by the maligning by liberals in the press (but I repeat myself), Democrats, Never Trumpers, left-wing Christians, and even some conservative Christians, all of whom attempt to call out Christians for supporting Trump.  Trump is an adulterer, womanizer, misogynist, liar, unprincipled businessman, a bully, and on and on, and any Christian who supports him must not be a real Christian.  

Ralph Reed articulates a response for Christians like me in his new book For God and Country: The Christian Case for Trump.  Reed honestly confronts Trump's well-known character issues, placing his presidency in proper historical and political context, and defends the idea that Trump was the best choice in 2016 and continues to promote ideas and policies that are important to Christians.  As Reed writes, Trump "has mad mistakes and has come up short in his life but now advances policies that protect life, defend the First Amendment right to freedom of religion, strengthen the family, and support Israel." 

Reed's perspective is unique in that he's the consummate political insider.  He has been deeply involved in Republican politics since the Christian Coalition days in the 1980s and 1990s.  Since then, as a Republican Party activist and now as a consultant with his firm Century Strategies, he's been intimately involved with political races, activism, and fund raising.  As an insider, he has had behind-the-scenes access to political rallies, conventions, and campaigns over the course of many years.  

Trump had talked about his presidential ambitions for many years, but no one never thought he was serious to go through with it.  He called Reed to his office to talk about running in 2012, but got a sweet deal from NBC to extend his successful TV show, so he decided not to run.  (Ironically, by giving him that lucrative contract, NBC put off Trump's running for president for 4 years.  Surely he would have lost to an incumbent Obama.  So arguably, Trump was elected in 2016 due, in part, to NBC's intervention 4-5 years earlier.)

After announcing his intent to run in 2016, Trump faced a huge field of candidates in the primaries.  Two-thirds of Evangelicals supported a variety of other candidates besides Trump, but as candidates dropped out, support coalesced behind Trump.  In the general election, the choice was clear.  When faced with a choice between Hillary and Trump, "they faced a binary choice between him and Hillary (who had her own ethical and character issues), the vacancy on the Supreme Court, and the broader policy implications of the election."  Plenty of Trump supporters had "concerns and reservations about Trump's character" but considered that "Hillary's character, dishonesty, and ethical lapses . . . were even greater." 

Even though there were plenty of reasons to question Trump's commitment to the policy priorities that caused Evangelicals to support him, it didn't take long for him to prove himself.  He was the first president to appear at the March for Life.  He has appointed not one but two pro-life Supreme Court justices, as well as dozens of judges for lower courts.  He moved the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.  He has been a consistent voice on issue that are important to conservative and pro-life voters.

Reed's front-row view of the 2016 election and at key events of Trump's presidency is the best reason to read this book.  But besides the historical perspective, Reed gives a reasonable defense of Trump from a Christian perspective.  If you are a Christian Trump supporter, Reed will fill in any gaps in your thinking about what that support means.  If you are a Christian Never Trumper, For God and Country will, at the very least, give you a bit more perspective on Trump supporters.  As the 2020 election nears, I hope that Christian Trump voters will come out in even greater numbers than 2016 and that Never Trumpers will evaluate Trump on his conservative governance and cast a vote for him.

(Reed closes the book with a 25 page appendix, "Promises Made, Promises Kept."  If you doubt Trump's record, at least peruse this list.)

I wanted to read this after seeing Reed interviewed by Eric Metaxas.  Check it out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cPB72BA9s0

Additional quotes:

"These self-appointed cultural elites point the finger at CHristians who support Trump, accusing them of bastardizing their faith and cheapening the Gospel by backing the Manhattan billionaire.  They assert that Christians have surrendered their moral authority as a result and are disqualified from ever speaking out on matters of public morality again.  In the simplest of terms, the media and the Left twist the Trump-Evangelical alliance into a weapon with which they hope to bludgeon people of faith into shame as silence." p. 8

"As Christians, effective citizenship requires that we work with individuals with whom we sometimes disagree and with whom we have theological and moral differences--some of them deep and abiding. . . . Given that the agenda offered by the Democratic nominees in 2016 (and again in 2020) is openly hostile to and completely antithetical to the principles of their biblical Christian faith, and most certainly to the right to life, Evangelicals and pro-life Roman Catholics are fully justified in supporting Trump for president." p. 19

"The marriage between Trump and the Evangelical movement would prove to be a shotgun wedding, with the real estate magnate in avid pursuit and most Evangelicals in love with someone else, at least initially.  That changed with the passage of time and a herculean effort by Trump--aided by the horrifying prospect of a Hillary Clinton presidency." p. 55

"Despite the media's fixation on Trump's checkered past and occasionally awkward phrases, Evangelicals were driven far less by identity politics than they were by the issues.  They also extended far more grace to Trump than the media ever did.  Evangelicals accepted Trump for who and where he was spiritually, believing that by loving him and showing him kindness and mercy thay might have a sublime influence on him. . . . The chattering class misunderstood the Trump-Evangelical connection as purely transactional or the product of rank hypocrisy.  In truth, it was based on shared values and his enthusiasm for championing them and the issues that animated Evangelicals.  This resonated at the grassroots level, where many believed the GOP establishment had long promised to advance their issues, only to then pay lip service once in office." p. 72

"I had an accidental (or divinely ordered, depending on one's perspective) advantage over some of these leaders, having gotten to know Trump years before.  He and I had many frank and candid conversations about his views on the issues, including those dear to Evangelicals." p. 84

"For Trump in 2016, the Scalia vacancy meant that for the first time in 156 years the presidency and control of the Supreme Court hung in the balance while a critical seat sat vacant.  This would play a significant role in encouraging Evangelicals and other conservative Christians to put aside their reservations about Trump and strongly support him in the general election." p. 90

For Tony Perkins, of the Family Research Council, "it boiled down to a binary choice.  'We have a choice.  Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump,' he said.  Taking a veiled shot at Evangelical Never Trumpers, he called it 'irresponsible' to complain from the sidelines without taking sides.  Perkins said, 'I want him to be successful, because if he's successful, America survives.  That's the bottom line.'" p. 124

"Liberal reporters rushed to find other faith leaders to renounce Trump in what I believed was a calculated and systematic campaign to suppress Evangelical turnout." p. 133

"Soon the media would realize that voters of faith--led by a record turnout of Evangelicals--had provided the margin of victory on an historic night when Trump and down-the-ballot Republican Senate and House candidates won all over the country." p. 147

"Evangelicals and pro-life Roman Catholics were the largest and most vibrant single constituency in the electorate.  From the day Donald Trump entered the presidential race, he appealed to them with a single-minded focus while Hillary and the Democratic Party ignored and insulted them at their own peril." p. 148

"What these critics really resented is that Evangelicals continued to support Trump because they faced a binary choice between him and Hillary (who had her own ethical and character issues), the vacancy on the Supreme Court, and the broader policy implications of the election." p. 150

"Evangelicals have never asserted that someone who fails to live up to Christ's teachings in their personal life can never make a positive contribution to their community and nation.  That is a false and misleading caricature of the Christian faith drawn by those who mean it no good." p. 155

"Two-thirds of [Evangelicals] supported someone other than Donald Trump in the early Republican primaries.  In the general election, they held deep reservations about both candidates.  But in the final analysis, they viewed the protection of life from conception to natural death as both a biblical and moral issue, considered abortion-on-demand to be the most profound evil of their time, and saw Roe v. Wade as a black stain on the history of our country." p. 158

"People of faith, confronted with a less-than-perfect choice between two flawed candidates, chose to do all they could to protect innocent life." p. 159

"Without the Scalia vacancy and other pending Supreme Court appointments as a campaign issue, Trump might well have not been elected." p. 162

Night of the Assassins, by Howard Blum

So many crucial stories in history turn on tiny events, the "what ifs" that could have changed the fate of the world.  In Howard Blum's Night of the Assassins: The Untold Story of Hitler's Plot to Kill FDR, Churchill, and Stalin, Blum recounts plenty of those types of events.  With World War 2 rolling along toward a seemingly inevitable loss, Hitler's only hope might be to assassinate the Allied leaders.  If he can get them all at once, what a statement that would make!

Blum tells the story chiefly from the perspectives of Mike Reilly, the son of Irish immigrants, who, against expectations, came to be the head of FDR's secret service security detail, and Walter Schellenberg, a German intelligence officer.  Schellenberger devises Operation Long Jump and starts the task of trying to discover when and where the rumored meeting will take place.

This book is a great example of taking a personal view of crucial historical events.  Schellenberger, Reilly, and the other players' challenges and frustrations are palpable.  It's hard enough to protect the President, but a president who uses a wheelchair, during wartime--Reilly had his work cut out for him.  Schellenberger had the challenge of planning a mission with an undetermined date or place.  He got some decent intelligence and made some good guesses, and realistically came close to pulling it off.  (Spoiler alert: the mission failed. :) )

Blum gathers tons of first-hand accounts to bring the events alive.  Much of this reads like a spy novel.  Some of the action sequences are summer blockbuster worthy.  A Churchill doppelgänger was successfully taken out (along with a plane load of innocent people) by German fighters.  I had never heard the story of Mussolini's being freed from a mountaintop prison by German soldiers who arrived by gliders to take over the prison.  During FDR's trip across the Atlantic, his battleship was nearly hit by a friendly fire torpedo! 

This is the kind of history that is fun to read, a real page-turner giving a glimpse into a little-known vignette of WW2  history.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Alive to the Purpose, by Ronald A. Horton

Author Ronald Horton wants you to read the Bible.  But the way you have been reading the Bible might not be what he's talking about.  In Alive to the Purpose: The Readerly Reading of Scripture, Horton points out that "the Bible is more often studied and searched and scrutinized and analyzed and theologized and memorized and dipped into and skimmed and scanned--all worthy and important actions--than it is read, that is really read."

Dr. Horton, who taught in the English and philosophy departments of Bob Jones University for more than 50 years, demonstrates his passion for the Bible, especially for the Bible as a great work of literature.  He wants readers to learn not only to approach the Bible for scholarly or devotional purposes, but as readers.  "A readerly approach to Scripture can produce fresh insights, bringing a long stretch of narrative to life."  The bulk of the book consists of Horton telling by showing, providing narrative commentary of several passages of scripture.

Many Christians, myself included, can benefit from this reminder to slow down, paying close attention to the details and setting of the stories of scripture, and to read for full context, not taking little snippets alone.  He certainly has a gift for fleshing out the stories of scripture.  I don't know how helpful this is for the average lay reader who does not have the knowledge of the linguistic and cultural background for these stories, but by paying attention to details in the text, the reader can get at least part way to where Horton leads.

Horton has a storyteller's voice and a deep love for the Bible.  We can all learn to appreciate the Bible more by learning from him.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

For All Who Hunger, by Emily M. D. Scott

Emily M. D. Scott, a Lutheran pastor fresh out of Yale Divinity School who planted an unusual church in Brooklyn, has written a memoir of those years, For All Who Hunger: Searching for Communion in a Shattered World.  Some of it, I liked.  Some, not so much.  First, the positive.

Scott's church, St. Lydia's Dinner Church, featured some elements of traditional worship, but centered around a full meal.  From the start it was a welcoming place, affirming homosexuals and welcoming people who have been rejected from other churches.  I love the sense of community the church built.  Anyone who has been to church knows how easily one can slip in and out without ever having a conversation or anyone knowing you were there.  But around a dinner table, you can't hide.  Scott has since left the church and is on a mission, in part, to present this model to others.  Besides the dinner/worship model, Scott was deliberate about forming relationships in her economically and racially diverse neighborhood.  I was reminded of the line, If your church disappeared from your neighborhood, would anyone notice?  It doesn't sound like her church ever got very large, but they were active in the neighborhood and committed to reaching beyond the church walls to work for positive change.  The section regarding the travails the neighborhood experiences after Hurricane Sandy are gripping, as she viscerally calls out for justice and relief for her neighbors.  Her work in building community and working for the community is admirable and can provide a model for church planters of all theological stripes.  

Speaking of theological stripes, as you might guess from a Yale educated, gay-affirming, female pastor, Scott is out on the liberal end of the evangelical spectrum.  Her focus seemed to be less on the Holy Trinity and more on the liberal trinity: race, sexuality, and social justice.  In this short book there is not room to develop a whole theology, but the signs are clear on that note.  In terms of her personal ethics, she does us a service by revealing with refreshing honesty her rejection of traditional biblical norms.  She says she likes to "get drunk and make out at parties and on street corners," and then after a fling with a man she met while she was on vacation, she wrote, "Though two thousand years of church teachings imply that what we've done is wrong, I know in the deepest hollow of my gut, the place from which God so often speaks to me, that it is good."  As the song says, "If loving you is wrong, I don't want to be right."  Given the choice between our guts and two thousand years of church teaching and a clear biblical message, most Christians would agree that going with the gut is a mistake. . . .

Now, I know there are plenty of social justice, urban ministry, racial reconciliation pastors and leaders who push the traditional church to slough off teachings that have led to injustice and corrupt the gospel, but who are solidly orthodox in their theology and ethics, both social and personal.  I have met them, have read their books, have been in their churches.  Scott is not one of those people.  She revels in her rejection of tradition, embraces the ethics of sexual liberation, and seems to place hope in social justice above hope in Christ.  She writes in the long tradition of social gospel preachers and demonstrates the tendency many in that tradition have of moving away from biblical Christianity toward a social, humanistic vision, neglecting the heart of the Gospel, the work of Christ on the cross.  In spite of her liberalism, I am encouraged and inspired by her work to draw people into community with each other, and hope that they, in turn, are drawn into fellowship with the living Christ.

 

 Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Devolution, by Max Brooks

Max Brooks, who wrote about humans being overrun by zombies in World War Z, turns his attention to humans being attacked by Bigfoot in Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre.  In the form of a journal and interviews, Brooks tells the story of a remote community that is attacked by a band of Sasquatches. 

Greenloop is tiny community isolated in the mountains a short drive from Seattle.  Remote, yet equipped with lots of high-tech features, residents are able to work remotely, stay in touch with the outside world, and receive deliveries by drone of groceries and other needs.  That is, until Mount Rainier erupts and the lava flow cuts off the roads and communication lines.  As Greenloop residents hope for someone from the outside to come after them, some start making plans for the potential that they might be stuck there for months.  They notice that the eruption and resulting fires are driving displaced wildlife through their area.  But soon they realize the wildlife has another pursuer, another species migrating and looking for food.  A band of Sasquatches discovers Greenloop and decides to stick around for the good eating.

Playing out like a horror movie, the residents of Greenloop get picked off, become dinner one by one.  As the humans fight back, they learn more about their foes, who are smarter and more dangerous than they would have guessed.  Brooks's storytelling style keeps you guessing, even though you sort of know how things are going to turn out.  This is a fun romp in the same way that a good horror movie is.  Yeah, it's a little formulaic, a standard trope of people trapped in the woods with a mysterious killer lurking.  But Brooks keeps it fun and worth reading.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Twelve Mighty Orphans, by Jim Dent

At the height of the Depression, some of the most popular and admired sports figures were not big-time pros.  Capturing the hearts of the nation was a football team at a little orphanage in Fort Worth, Texas, the Mighty Mites of the Fort Worth Masonic Home.  When Rusty Russell came to the Masonic Home to coach and teach, most people thought he was crazy.  When he tried to start up a football program, he began to think so, too.  He had a practice field covered with rocks and cacti.  He had no equipment.  He had a flour can covered in a sock for a football.  But from that humble start, he built a football program that dominated a football crazy state for a decade.

Jim Dent tells the stories of the orphans, the Masonic Home, the against-all-odds coach, and these remarkable teams in Twelve Mighty Orphans: The Inspiring True Story of the Mighty Mites Who Ruled Texas Football.  It really is hard to believe that these kids competed and won against bigger, better equipped schools with established football traditions.  Dent captures the era and the Home, placing it in the context of Fort Worth in the 1920s and 1930s.  I live a short drive from this site, but there is much about Fort Worth history and the Home that I had never heard.  Football is the focus, but Dent digs into the biographies of the kids who lived in this little piece of east Fort Worth with a sensitive heart for the pains of life that brought them all there and a wink and a nod for all the good times they had in spite of themselves.

The football, though, really tells the story.  Russell knew his little teams, outweighed by their opponents and outnumbered by their opponents' much larger rosters, had to be creative in this physical game.  He developed the spread offense, spreading out the field and passing much more than other teams were used to.  He was a pioneer in this style of play, which is now run-of-the-mill.  Back then, teams had a difficult time defending the unusual offense and frequently went home humiliated by these little orphans.  Besides their style of play, they also became known as being exceptionally tough, even mean, on the playing field.  They were scrappy and rough and took great pride in drawing blood and knocking heads.  

Like many great sports books, Twelve Mighty Orphans is an underdog story full of dramatic comebacks and happy endings, along with lots of bumps along the way.  A movie based on the book is coming out later this year; there is no shortage of cinematic moments and subplots for this to be a great film.  For the love of football, for the love of Fort Worth, and for the love of a bunch of kids who had a chance to be a part of something big, this is a wonderful book.

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Prayer Revolution, John Smed

There are plenty of books on church growth, urban ministry, and revival, and I don't think John Smed would dismiss their usefulness and insights. But in his book Prayer Revolution: Rebuilding Church and City Through Prayer, he calls on Christians and the church at large not to neglect the central role of prayer in their work and outreach.  He writes, "Only God's almighty power is sufficient to revive the church and rebuild the city.  All our preaching, teaching, programs, and outreaches are half-hearted until ignited by prayer."

Smed, a former pastor who heads Prayer Current, an organization that promotes discipleship and evangelism through prayer, saturates the book with examples from scripture.  Prayer was central to every move of God among his people.  For example, in the book of Acts, he points out that "every advance began with prayer, bold witness followed, and the fellowship grew in numbers and strength."  And looking at prayer in Paul's writings, "we need no further proof that prayer is at the heart of every effective endeavor to expand Christ's church." 

If we want to see revival in our homes, churches, communities, nation, it must begin with a revival of prayer in our hearts.  Further, our prayers should look outward, beyond our "private and personal concerns" to the safety and protection and spiritual health of our cities.  Most of the book is inspiration to embrace Smed's biblical vision for prayer.  He saves the more practical "how to" for an appendix, "How to Implement Kingdom Prayer for Church and City."  His is a welcome, crucial message for Christians and churches everywhere.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!