Back in the day, prophets wore animal skins, ate locusts and honey, stood by rivers, cried, “Repent!” These days, Donald Trump calls us to repentance. After all, hasn’t he risen out of the sea of our culture like the beast in Revelation?
The fact we elected Trump as president points to our flaws as a culture. He’s a narcissist, convinced only he can solve our nation’s problems. But don’t we shrug off help, certain we can do it ourselves? And haven’t we made selfishness a virtue, calling it self-care or following our dreams, while our loved ones cry for our attention?
To him, women are sexual objects. But don’t our music, dance, movies, commercials objectify men and women? He has not kept his marital promises. But do we see people keeping those promises in popular culture? Do we? He is blunt and bullying, crude. But aren’t we just as rude? Consider road rage. And how mean late night TV and Twitter have become.
Trump stirs up trouble. But doesn’t the twenty-four hour news cycle work trouble like a loose tooth? How many of us seek drama instead of peace? Or gather people who aren’t good for us?
How are we guilty of supporting those same things? Maybe we should consider our behavior. I think of Martin Luther King admonishing us to examine ourselves before we protest. Maybe we should look at our discomfort with regards to Trump’s behavior, see how he is reflecting us back on ourselves, and change our ways.
I’m Katie Andraski and that’s my perspective.