Let’s talk about this tweet.
First, the tweet begins with a lie. We have not defeated Iran.
But now the president has called half of the country “the greatest enemy” to our nation. This is in the same sentence that he mentions a country he is actively bombing. His message is clear: These people are enemies that need to be destroyed.
This kind of rhetoric is the stuff Hitler said about a group that ultimately led to the Holocaust. This kind of rhetoric leads to civil wars. This kind of rhetoric is the antithesis of the teachings of Jesus, whom many of his supporters claim to serve.
And to those who are unbothered even still, by all of those truths. This is also the rhetoric of a weak man.
You do not follow a strong man if you support him while he cancels comedy shows that bruise his ego. You do not follow a strong man if you support him when he arrests journalists for reporting news that paints him unfavorably. You do not follow a strong man if you support him when he sends masked agents to terrorize US citizens that look or think differently than he does. His tweets and speeches that boast about his “accomplishments” might as well be a giant neon sign proclaiming: “I need you to look at me and give me praise!” These are the reactions of an insecure person.
Trump is weak in character and self-confidence. Although he may boast, a confident man does not feel the need to brag and tear down others. The most powerful leader in the world was Jesus, and he said to love your neighbor as yourself, turn the other cheek, and love those who persecute you.
Loving someone does not mean you have to like them. Emotions are not easy to control. We control our actions. Love is not usually used in the Bible as a word for emotion. It’s a verb. Something we are commanded to do, not to feel. We are commanded to treat others with love and kindness. We are not commanded to feel emotions. However, a miraculous result of doing this is that action drives emotion. So the more you act with love and kindness, the more naturally inclined you will be toward feeling the emotions associated with it. This is why you may meet a coworker you initially dislike, but find the more you are forced to work together, and treat them with respect, you start to actually kind of like them. When you pour your love into others, it eventually spills back over into you.
It’s very difficult for democrats to love Donald Trump. Especially when he makes comments such as these, and decisions that have led to harm for so many people. Trump is not strong, but he is still dangerous.
So what are we to do? How can we love someone who is actively destroying not only our country, but the world. His ego has assisted in multiple deaths both here and abroad, and will cause economic disaster for decades to come on a world scale.
Sometimes the best way to love someone is to tell them no. When a child tries to touch the stove we don’t let them do it just because it’s what they want to do. We stop them from hurting themselves. The more loving response is to say no.
Many of us feel powerless to what’s happening in the country. I do not know Donald Trump, and most likely neither do you. But I bet you know someone who supports him.
Political conversations are uncomfortable, and in today’s MAGA America, they’re even dangerous. I don’t make my posts lightly. I am aware that the government is checking social media at airports and harassing people who are critical of this administration. It feels scary to speak out, especially as a flight attendant who goes through airport security nearly every day.
But I was commanded to love my neighbors.
It may be uncomfortable and even dangerous, but it is imperative that we have these conversations. We cannot let the president get away with proclaiming half of America as an enemy. If we want to actually be followers of Christ, or simply decent human beings, we must sit with our political opponents, pour our love into them, and change their hearts.
The internet is a wild place. It lacks the intimacy we were meant to have in our connections. It’s easier to cast aspersions from the other side of a screen than it is when you’re face to face with another person. We cannot let the world divide us and drop our connections with those who think differently than we do.
Whatever your political affiliation or religion may or may not be, I challenge you to follow the direction of Jesus to love your enemies, and to condemn the president for hateful actions and rhetoric.
The holocaust began with divisive rhetoric. Not concentration camps and gas chambers. It began with words that wormed their way into human hearts and poisoned them. So why shouldn’t words of love be capable of healing them?
We must speak out against injustice. We must persuade more people to see this is wrong. It feels pointless, but one connection can make a difference that leads to another, that leads to another. Slavery was not abolished by people who stayed silent. The Nazi’s didn’t lose power because we stayed neutral. They lost power because we said no.
-Courtney