At this point of uncertainty and change for our country, our commitment to religious freedom and the separation of church and state remains the same.
I am sad for our country and worried about the impact last week’s election results will have on our neighbors. I came to lead BJC just two weeks before President Trump’s first inauguration. Having lived through four years of a Trump administration, we know the chaos and discriminatory policies that await us for the next four years.
But, as many have warned, we cannot fully grasp or imagine the impact the next four years will have because many of the prior constraints on his unquenchable thirst for power have been removed — by free and fair elections, by the repudiation and resignations of civil servants who served in the first administration, and by the U.S. Supreme Court, which granted wide-ranging immunity to Trump for almost any action he chooses to take.
American democracy itself is in peril.
Amanda Tyler
But while I am clear-eyed about the danger, I am not resigned to this dystopian result as an inevitable consequence of Nov. 5. Instead, I am resolved that this is the time for our movement to meet the moment.
I believe a majority of Americans reject the assaults on freedom that could await us in a second Trump administration, and I believe Christians must work to dismantle Christian nationalism as a form of idolatry that grossly distorts the teachings of Jesus.
Now is the time for a broad-based coalition of people of all faiths and none to oppose Christian nationalism and instead organize and advocate for a society and government that works for all of us. We must remember at all times — and especially in times like these — that the greatest commandment is love.
U.S. voters sent a resounding message last week that our government is not working for all of us. Regardless of ideology or party affiliation, we need to listen well to the needs that are not being met and respond accordingly. We must keep pushing our elected officials, no matter their political party, to be public servants for the good of the American people and the greater global community with which the U.S. interacts.
Over the past several years, BJC has been sounding the alarm about the single greatest threat to religious freedom for all in the U.S. today: Christian nationalism. We have raised awareness about the harm it is causing to American democracy and an authentic Christian witness through the leadership of the Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign. We have continued to develop resources for communities to take action, including the book How to End Christian Nationalism, published by Broadleaf Books last month. We are partnering with advocacy and organizing groups and houses of worship committed to civic engagement to build local coalitions to take action to build the Beloved Community.
We know you are looking for ways you can make a difference. In the coming days, we will share ideas on how you can join with others in your community to take action for faith freedom for all. Meeting this moment with and for our neighbors will require every person to recommit to being involved in direct democracy on a continual basis, not just around the presidential election. I am grateful to be in this struggle for freedom with you.
Amanda Tyler serves as executive director of BJC and leads the group Christians Against Christian Nationalism. She is the author of the new book How to End Christian Nationalism.
Related articles:
BNG webinar delves into how to end Christian nationalism
Trump pledges to bring back prayer in schools and offer ‘school choice’ everywhere
Progressive white Christian men, it’s time to get some skin in the game | Opinion by Susan Shaw