Can we look at the actions, and not just the words of religious groups — especially conservative Christians — and discover less-evolved beliefs and practices that have made their way into the public square that are affecting Americans in a less than positive manner?

It is important to note that the details of someone’s religious belief is no one’s business but the believer’s unless it directly affects others. This is especially true for the beliefs of those we disagree with.

Let’s Take a Step Back

The United States was founded on principles of religious freedom, which continue to be a cornerstone of American life. We have the freedom to believe in any religion we want — or none at all.

Religion in the United States is vibrant and diverse. We enjoy a degree of religious freedom unparalleled anywhere in the world, in large part, because the First Amendment to the Constitution does not allow the government to impose religious beliefs on its citizens.

Yet, the wall that separates church and state has become weakened and porous over the last few decades and especially in recent years.

Mainly white, evangelical Christians have worked for decades to tear down the wall that separates church and state. They have now successfully built a controlling power bloc in the Republican Party and were instrumental in electing Donald Trump President.

Conservative Christians also control many Republican state legislatures and incredibly, after decades of working behind the scenes, have successfully created a conservative religious majority on the Supreme Court that is changing the social fabric of our nation before our very eyes. 

For the first time in their existence, conservative Christians have gained real and direct political power. This has given religious conservatives what they sought for decades: political legitimacy and a seat at the table where consequential and long-term decisions are made for the nation.

What are mainly white, evangelical leaders doing with this long-sought political power that they could have only dreamt of in previous years? 

First, let’s establish a context for what Christians should expect from our leaders. 

The Least of These

In Matthew 25, Jesus addressed the issue of who goes to heaven and who goes to hell. He simplified the issue by saying that those who help “the least of these” — the hungry, the sick, the poor, the stranger, and those in prison — are rewarded with eternal salvation in heaven.

But, Jesus warned, not helping “the least of these” is like turning your back on God, and according to Jesus’ own words, will send you straight to hell. Strong words and a powerful image that lets us know how important it was to Jesus that his followers help the less fortunate in society.

Jesus also introduced us to the Golden Rule: to treat others as we want to be treated. He told us the truth will set us free, and Jesus pushed back against social and religious norms of his day as he offered love and compassion that humanized those who were scapegoated by society and labeled outcasts.

Love, compassion, telling the truth, treating others as you want to be treated, and helping “the least of these” are a few of the moral guidelines Jesus admonished followers to live their lives by. For Christians of any denomination or religious belief, these are moral guideposts for living life.

How Did They Do?

So, how did conservative Christians wield their new-found political power, in both the Trump administration and later in minority status in both the house and senate, in state legislatures, and on the Supreme Court?

An equally important question is how will they use that power going forward?

Initially, the answer to the first question doesn’t look good. The GOP and conservative Christians ignored the poor while slashing taxes for the rich, the super-rich, and corporations. In truth, they didn’t exactly ignore the poor. Despite Jesus’ admonition to help “the least of these,” they tried to slash funds that help feed hungry children and families and in 2022 they successfully blocked tax benefits that just a few years previous had helped cut child poverty in half.

Many Americans don’t realize that twelve million children in America go to bed hungry every night and they comprise just a portion of the tens of millions of Americans who are so poor they are often forced to choose between buying food or medicine. We have known for years that trickle-down economics —  cutting taxes for the rich and corporations — doesn’t actually trickle down to help “the least of these.”

Most Americans do realize that being poor is not only undesirable but it’s detrimental to individuals and to society as a whole. When you are forced to cut back on medicine and healthcare in order to buy food it literally becomes a life-and-death issue.

Yet, conservative Christians tried over and over and over to take healthcare away from tens of millions of low-income Americans, putting their quality of life in jeopardy and putting their very lives at risk.

What about our elderly? Conservative Christians continue to try and slash — or eliminate entirely — Medicare and social security benefits for those 65 years of age and older. These are the very programs that keep millions of our elderly in their homes and out of poverty.

Remember how Jesus pushed back against social and religious norms of his day by offering love and compassion to those who were scapegoated by society and labeled outcasts? He touched lepers, healed people on the Sabbath, had meals with those described as sinners, and spoke to “sinful” women in public. Religious leaders of his day were not happy with how Jesus broke their religious and moral rules.

It All Goes Back to Jesus

Knowing how Jesus lived his life, I have never understood how conservative Christians so openly scapegoat whole groups of vulnerable people. For example, why are they on a mission to enact intolerant and mean-spirited legislation that discriminates against abused and bullied LGBTQ kids? These vulnerable children are the very definition of “the least of these” who Jesus commanded followers to help and protect.

Jesus taught us by example that you didn’t have to agree with a person’s lifestyle in order to show love and compassion.

What about conservative Christians who take an anti-science stance and are working to stop mitigating the effects of climate change? Our changing climate is approaching one tipping point after another. If you thought the extreme weather we’ve experienced over the last year or two was bad, hang onto your hat. Tens of millions of lives in the poorest societies around the planet are in jeopardy and time is short to do anything about it.

The GOP and conservative Christians have acted out anti-democratic and authoritarian tendencies in recent years that limit voting rights for Americans of color, the young, and the elderly. This has significant social and economic impacts. Limiting voting rights effectively steals a person’s American and God-given right to better themselves and their families, which in this country, translates into living longer with a higher quality of life for this generation and those to follow. Stealing someone’s right to vote is outright theft and morally wrong.

I haven’t even broached the subject of Christian nationalism movements that are active around the country. They want their version of Christianity to set social, legal, and moral rules for all of us. And did you notice the huge Christian contingent on January 6th that was trying to violently block the peaceful transfer of power in Washington, D.C.? There are more than a few Christian groups willing to use violence to impose their version of biblical inerrancy.

In sum, conservative Christians have gone out of their way to make life worse for countless vulnerable Americans and the poorest societies around the world, the very people Jesus admonished followers to help and protect.

What to Do?

There is enough libertarian, free-market blood flowing through my veins (both my Mom and Dad were raised on small farms in western Missouri and passed along a “live and let live” approach to life) that the last thing I want is to dissect and criticize another person’s religious belief.

However, as we look at the actions and not the words of conservative Christians, and see the damage being done to the less fortunate among us, we are forced by circumstances to take a closer look at religious and political beliefs that are hurting, not helping, those that Jesus called, “the least of these.”

What about the bigger picture?

When someone brings their personal faith into the public square with the idea of imposing that belief onto other Americans — no matter how well-intentioned — it opens the door for all of us to take a critical look at the details of a belief system that in normal circumstances is a private matter?

Yet, it can be difficult for Americans to talk about religion in the public square, especially when negative consequences of the Christian faith are taken into account.

The Jesus Principle

American Christians are used to pulling out their Bibles when trying to determine the correct moral path to follow. However, years ago I carefully watched how friends and family who had devoted their lives to Jesus lived their lives. I saw how they read their Bibles every day, they prayed daily, they went to church on Sunday and Bible study throughout the week. Yet, I also saw that by following the belief and practice of their religious faith, they acted in ways that caused real damage to people around them, especially to the most vulnerable.

I soon realized it didn’t matter if someone said they were a biblical Christian or how much they loved Jesus.  It also didn’t matter how well-meaning their motives were.

What mattered was their actions and more specifically, if those actions moved them towards or away from Jesus’ teachings and how we believe Jesus would live his life if he were among us today.

What we need — what America needs — is a new perspective to view Christian belief and practice from. It’s not enough that someone says they are a Christian. It’s not enough that many conservative Christians say that they speak for God and Jesus. It’s not enough that a gathering of people all agree that they alone have the truth and everyone else is blinded to what God wants.

What matters is a person’s actions and how they align with how we believe Jesus would live his life if he were here in person today. 

The new paradigm that arose for me was a simple and concise principle that I could apply in almost every situation.

The Jesus Principle

How Christian beliefs and practices

lead us towards or away from Jesus.

Learn more about “The Jesus Principle” in my groundbreaking and soon-to-be-released book, The Jesus Principle, and in the articles and videos below.