A Dallas Police Mounted Unit stand outside of the old First Dallas Baptist church as Trump supporters and members wait in line for Sunday morning service with former President Donald Trump. Credit - Ben.
It would have been understandable if those in attendance at the First Baptist Dallas had trouble remembering the reason for the season. Yes, Jesus was celebrated. The entire Christmas service was built around Trump, with lines wrapped around the building 3 hours before the event, security screening for everyone in the main sanctuary, and Trump smiling on every program. The former President was introduced or acknowledged four times, each time receiving thunderous applause.
Robert Jeffress, a frequent Fox News guest and Trump advocate, gushed with praise for his good friend, a friendship he proudly counted as one of the greatest privileges of his life. He twice called President Trump the most pro-life, pro- religious liberty, pro-Israel President in the history of our great country. Trump found his way into Jeffress sermon as an analogy for God. When Jeffress wanted to show what it meant for God to pardon sin through Christ, he recalled Trump pardoning Alice Johnson in the Oval Office.
The climax of the service was Trump's "Christmas greeting" that turned into a MAGA rally. The delivery and content were classic Trump, alternating between off-the-cuff musings about the nation's dystopic situation and remarks about Christmas that he confessed were written for him. He ended his speech with a sign that said "Make America Great Again". USA!
The title is courtesy Samuel Perry.
The What If There Were No Chrismas? event was held on December 19, 2011.
I appreciated how central Trump is to white evangelicalism when I attended the event in person. Not just for Robert Jeffress. The First Baptist Dallas church wrote and performed a song for Trump called "Make America Great Again". It would be a mistake for readers to dismiss an event like this as wacky orfringe. What I observed in person Sunday morning, as well as what we can see from national survey data, make clear how Trump has conformed white evangelicalism to his own image, and why so many evangelicals await his second advent.
I chatted with a group of elderly women who all came together 2.5 hours before the event. None of the people were members of First Baptist. They came to see Trump. They were going to get tickets for the event with Bill O'Reilly at the American Airlines Center later that afternoon, where Trump would also be speaking.
Bill was a repairman who took public transportation to get to First Baptist. He was a huge fan of Trump and wanted to see him in person. He is unvaccinated because he didn't trust the science, heard the vaccines caused blood clot, and read somewhere the Omicron variant wasn't that bad. He said he would vote for Trump again in the year 2041.
Carlos was there. Carlos was visiting First Baptist with a friend. Carlos was certain that the election had been stolen from Trump. Carlos didn't think Americans should wait for the election. Carlos told his friend that Trump should be made President for life. He should live.
The First Baptist faithful is not the only group that Trump appeals to Sunday morning. People from around the city came to cheer for the President. They thought he had been treated unfairly. They wanted to see him in office.
This is not a fringe view among white evangelicals according to national data. Over two-thirds of white evangelicals felt that the 2020 election had been stolen from Trump, according to survey data collected in August 2021. The liberal media overstated the threat of COVID-19 to damage Trump's chances at re- election. White evangelicals don't blame Trump for the attempted insurrection at the Capitol Building. 70% of people disagree that Trump is responsible for the event.
The majority of white evangelicals in the U.S. still consider Trump their warrior. He made the same promises when he was a candidate in 2016 that he would fight for Christians like them.
On Sunday, December 19th, Donald Trump rode in the back of a secret service armored SUV for church services at First Baptist Dallas.
Jeffress said that he was attracted to Trump because he promised to make it politically correct to say Merry Christmas again. The narrative of a politically correct war on Christmas is a farcical right-wing trope that goes back decades, but Trump was able to leverage it to present himself as a candidate who would fight for Christian culture.
He presented himself that way on Sunday. Trump said that Jeffress first described him to others, but he loves God, he loves Jesus, and he is going to lead us.
What did he mean by saving Christianity? He is talking about the cultural and political influence of white conservative Christians. The belief that America has been and should always be for Christians like us is what makes Trump appeal to white evangelicals. Trump reassured people that Christianity is a central part of America's story.
It is impossible to think of the life of our country without the influence of Jesus and his teachings. The United States is becoming a truly great nation because of our amazing founding, overcoming civil war, abolishing slavery, reaching boundless heights of science, and discovering so many incredible things. We are not going to let it go.
That is the promise of the president. The majority of white evangelicals elevate Trump because of his potential return as President.
Trump began a chant as he walked off the stage. The First Baptist audience responded with USA! The small group of people next to me in the back of the sanctuary changed the chant into, "We love you!" We love you! We love you! They were not chanting to Jesus. They were chanting for their salvation.
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