The right wants to hijack Christianity, but the left already has.
Hijack by the right
Nigel Farage invokes Christian values; wooden crosses decorate Tommy Robinson rallies; Trump is hailed as a ‘Christian leader’. Christianity is suddenly at the forefront of right-wing politics.
Time for a reality check. Farage, Robinson and Trump are not Christians. Their language, lifestyles and values do not show genuine Christian commitment, and I’m not sure any of them would disagree. That’s not to say that they are bad people or wrong about everything, it’s just that they don’t profess Christian faith.
So why are non-Christians so keen to wave the Christian flag? Christianity is increasingly seen as a proxy for national identity, and as a foil to Islam. By “Christian country”, they mean a land without too many Muslims, not a land populated by disciples of Jesus. They don’t see the irony in demanding Christian values in expletive-laden rants, but our Christian culture is a tree that cannot survive without its roots in living faith.
It is distressing to see Christianity associated with extreme and aggressive views, but this is a small minority. Millions with a mosaic of fairly reasonable right-wing views see faith as an element in their identity and cause. These political Christians – if I can coin the term – are surely more open to genuine faith.
Imagine someone claiming undying devotion to Falkirk Football Club, wearing the garb and arguing passionately with opposing fans, but with no interest in football. They never watch it, don’t know who’s in the team and don’t understand the rules. The obvious response? Come to a game! Why not?
The resurgence of interest in Christian moral truth should be welcomed. But it needs to actually be Christian moral truth. “We need to get back to Christian principles and it’s OK to continue free access to abortion” should be rebuffed directly. Sadly, many Christians seem more enthusiastic about Christian terminology than about Christian morality, loving a mention more than they love the most vulnerable.
In party politics, Christianity itself should not be used as a rallying call. It’s too easy. Anyone can slap a Christian label on their party as a hook for political Christians and to dupe genuine Christians. Policies in line with God’s truth should appeal to true Christians. No amount of Christian veneer can make up for policies that are abhorrent in the eyes of God.
A real hunger
There’s another factor driving interest in Christianity: the values vacuum at the heart of our culture. All around we can see the consequences of the “you’ve got the right to do as you please” ethos. People want principles to live by, not just slogans to chant at the government. Christian truth resonates with God-given consciences, providing an antidote to the devaluing of life, confused transgender ideology, empty consumerism and rampant family and relationship dysfunction.
This quest for moral clarity is drawing many towards genuine faith, especially younger men. They crave solid and challenging moral teaching. The desire to live a better life is a gateway to Christian faith. It is not Christian faith but can lead to Christian faith in the right context.
The upsurge in right-wing/conservative cultural and political Christianity is leading people to church. What will they find when they get there?
The church is in an abusive relationship
I’m generalising, obviously, but the overall picture is troubling. The church is locked in an abusive relationship with the political left. While churches rush to espouse left-wing causes, the left is increasingly hostile to Christian moral teaching. Hostile to the point of persecution. And the church tries ever harder to placate and pander.
Many left-leaning themes do indeed reflect Christian principle: care for the poor, needy and sick, racial equality, creation care and the like. Most church leaders are more than happy to preach on such topics. They assume that alignment with left-leaning ideas is a great selling point for the faith.
Some aspects of Christian teaching – life, marriage, sexuality, gender and personal responsibility – align more with the right. Preachers tiptoe around these “sensitive” “controversial” “divisive” issues as if agreement with the right is repellent. Worse, they often subordinate Biblical truth to a higher allegiance: the respectability of left-wing orthodoxy.
Churches pondered earnestly how to react when a black man in America died, probably from excessive force by a Police Officer speculated to have a racist motivation. Meanwhile, the thousands of lives taken in the womb down the road from the church don’t get a mention. There are exceptions, of course, but they are exceptions.
How does a church mired in left-wing syncretism respond to the swell of right-wing political Christianity? Shock. How dare the right co-opt Christianity? In their (subconscious?) mind, they think, “We all know that left = good and right = evil, so this is an outrage.” May God forgive us if we condemn and drive away the very people who are journeying towards faith.
Fierce hostility towards Christian values has not stopped the church from reaching out to the political left. Fickle and chaotic enthusiasm for Biblical values from the political right should not prevent outreach to them as well. And when they arrive in church, they should hear the whole counsel of God. Currently many churches are embarrassed by the very ideals that are attracting people to them.
What a mess – and the way forward!
This is a total muddle: non-Christian right-wing politicians are espousing Christian values that they don’t understand, while the church is too closely aligned with the political left. People are journeying to faith through Christian moral truth and finding a church that is ashamed to speak these very truths.
The way forward? Right wing politicians confronted with Christian truth. A church seeing beyond the left-right divide to God’s overarching vision. A hand of welcome extended to cultural and political Christians. A church preaching the gospel of grace and the demands of discipleship.
And when it comes to moral standards, let’s be clear and bold, confident that the God of truth has got it right. We do good by sharing His wisdom. We fail when we shy away and compromise.
Masses of people are wanting to be Christian. They might not know what that means, so our job as the church is to invite, welcome, explain, challenge, preach and nurture.
My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favouritism. Suppose a left-wing woman comes into your meeting wearing a Black Lives Matter tee shirt, and a right-wing man draped in a Union Jack also comes in. If you show special attention to the woman and say, “Hey, we’re on your team,” but say to the man, “You’re probably a racist” or “Could you leave that flag outside?” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
Richard Lucas
