Trump's Evangelical Rally

[Dave Roberts]

I watched just a bit of the Trump Evangelical Rally in Miami last night. What disturbed me more than anything else was the offering of prayers that were only a political speech aimed at the audience and the cameras. Is prayer nothing more than a counting of justices, embassy moves, and executive orders limiting climate change? I've heard some Democratic prayers in the past, but this seemed to flagrantly flaunt telling God what he should do rather than seeking to submit to God's will. Am I the only one bothered by the corruptions of our faith in the political season?

[Haruo]

My guess is you're not alone in this. On the other hand, some of the prayers in the Bible (even some of those in the Psalms) look an awful lot like the genre you're objecting to, don't they?

[William Thornton]

Never have liked this stuff but it’s been standard fare for A-A churches for generations.

[KeithE]

[Sandy]

[William Thornton]

Stating the obvious. I said that I didn’t like the civil religion, political ecclesiastical approach.

[Tim Bonney]

If you are talking to your audience in prayer rather than God, you aren't really praying.

I am also not fond of the prayers that are really part of the speech/sermon.

[Sandy]

I am opposed to anything being brought into the life of the church that is not directly related to its mission and purpose. I endured several weeks of shrieking and lip flapping when I was the interim at the last SBC church I served in Houston for refusing to allow Eagle Forum to use our fellowship hall without paying the rental fee we required for all outside, non-church related groups. A couple of our ladies were part of the local chapter and they assumed ideological compatibility meant "church related." I said no, it didn't and they would need to fork over the rental money and also agree to our catering rules for their lunch preparation prior to the meeting being put on the schedule.

I would be in disagreement with the practices of many African American churches when it comes to bringing candidates into services and allowing them time to speak to the congregation. Were I a member of a church that did that, I'd object and I feel strongly enough about it that if my objection wasn't at least taken seriously, I'd leave the church and since I see it as an issue of being faithful to the church's mission and Biblical function, I'd most likely leave if the practice wasn't discontinued. Most African American churches I've observed who do this, however, always extend an invitation to all candidates, not just the one they like. In that, they're different than this Evangelical pep rally was. Frankly, the way they went about it was, as far as I am concerned, a declaration of their apostasy.