Who counts as a Christian?

During the campaign, Donald Trump told Christian supporters that if he became president, they would not have to vote anymore because “we fixed it well.” Now, he is trying to keep his promise by setting up a task force accused of “eliminating anti-Christian bias.” But Christians should not conclude that this new committee will inevitably defend their interests, let alone “good”. Eliminating anti-Christian bias will require the task force (and thus make the government) to constitute exactly the true Christian belief and practice, rather than the determination made directly, and should not be entrusted to the Trump administration.

The Executive Order to Create Task Force lists numerous examples of what the Trump administration considers as unacceptable discrimination against Christians, including the promulgation of (later withdrawn) FBI's FBI anniversary announcement as 20. Fierce Christian estimates of the domestic and its easter asty asty Interiativatit and Easter asty Interiativatit of Ater-terroriss and terrorism and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and terroriss and ter

Conservative Christians may generally agree with Trump’s characteristics of these plots. But determining a true Christian perspective on the problem is not always an easy task. Westborough Baptist Church is a Christian group who spent decades picketing the funerals of LGBTQ people and members of the armed forces, and does it make sense to step on the American flag and mourners in the name of Christ? At one point the Supreme Court ruled to support the organization, and even refused to accept the arguments of another. Or consider the case of an Anglican church in Sacramento, whose rainbow pride flag was stolen and burned: Does the contingent agree that the attack was an act of invasion against Christians? The pastor of the church certainly thinks so. What authority will the task force appeal to to prove otherwise? Tradition, Bible, faithful majority opinion? Even the most learned Christians disagree with how to gain religious authority, and I doubt this task force will eventually resolve the debate.

(From February 2025: God's army comes out of the shadow)

This is not a strict academic point. As part of the Executive Task Force mandate, Douglas Collins, secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, sent staff a memorandum asking them to report instances of anti-Christian discrimination, including adverse responses to requests for religious exemptions under previous vaccine mandates. "In this case, the state appears to have decided that Christians have legal reasons to demand exemption of vaccines.

But I'll think the vaccine no Excluded by true Christian ethics, these Christian opponents are mistaken for understanding faith. By allowing Christians to obtain exemptions from vaccine exemptions, the state has not only misunderstood Christianity, but has also done a lot of harm - for example, the Dohe Measles epidemic has caused three deaths this year and is still spreading. Vaccine requirements are crucial to preventing this situation, and Christians should be particularly willing to offer some small sacrifices for the benefit of others. This principle is at the heart of faith.

This government is not friendly to legitimate Christian beliefs and practices, and this has no politics. Earlier this year, Vice President JD Vance quarreled with the American Bishop to cut a lot of money to help organizations of immigrants and refugees and believed that their interest was to make money rather than faithfully practice Christianity. Pope Francis condemned Vance indirectly in a letter written a few weeks before the Pope's death, but it seems that Vance did not change his mind. One wonders about the Vice President’s arrest of the recently arrested Justice Hannah Dugan, who allegedly arrested an undocumented man evaded arrest by government agents and served as executive director of the Catholic charity branch. Could this be an example of anti-Christian bias for those who practice the kind of mercy consulted by the late Pope?

(Luis parrales: What went wrong with the Border Hawk Catholics)

But the task force is just one element of a broader project, that Christianity has lost its political and cultural foundation over the past few decades. A series of examples provided as reasons created by the contingent are often suitable for compromises with liberal frustration – in a classical sense, related to the founding of the country: freedom, equality, and freedom of conscience – Trump hints at Trump during the National Prayer Day celebration in the Rose Garden. “They say the separation between the church and the state,” he said. “I said, ‘Well, let’s forget once.’” added, “We brought religion back to our country, which is important.” Liberalism has produced religious tolerance in some way through domestication of religion, while a certain number of Christians long for Wilder, the expression of faith compared to the religious belief generally provided within the framework of freedom.

There was a time when Christianity and free nations in the United States were less frequent in conflict because Christianity was so overwhelmingly in society. But the recent decline in Christianity has changed that. In 1980, more than 90% of Americans identified themselves as Christians. Today, only 62% say they are followers of Christ. Although recent research suggests that the long-term reduction in Christian affiliation may have ceased, the story of American Christianity over the past half-century must be read through the lens of these gradual losses and their consequences. Faith no longer has the almost complete socio-cultural hegemony of American life that once loved. To a large extent, the days of regular prayer and Bible readings in public schools are over, school suspensions on Sundays, and anyone you happen to meet is almost certainly a widespread assumption that Christians are almost certainly.

The pain associated with the gradual shift in Christianity from a monopoly cultural power to a product on an extended religious menu – at least at least for now, remains outstanding dedication. So, it is no surprise that Christians unite around Trump in hopes of making American Christianity great again. If the fair task force’s mission is essentially an excuse to persecute the enemy of perceived faith, its real purpose is to restore past views on American Christian domination.

This is not to say that the task force will not address instances of true prejudice against Christians. Anti-Christian events are real: attacks and deliberate destruction against the Catholic Church, for example, appear to be at an all-time high; while authorities are sometimes reluctant to let prejudice be a factor, there are hundreds of incidents across the country. Understandably, these events are exacerbating Christians, so many may see this task force as a welcome intervention and in principle a fair question: if other groups have the right to systematically work to root themselves in their biases, then thinking will arise, so why should Christians not?

Perhaps this is the irony of this new task force: No one seems to see Christianity as another interest group, like Donald Trump, who is indifferent to religion until it is clear to him that Christians represent a group that takes over with the works of typical political pands and pand feet. However, Christians should often be skeptical of the over-informed version of faith in partisan politics, which always has something other than Jesus.