Category Archives: Religion

It’s the Sleeves

On Saturday, Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) doubled down on remarks she made at Friday’s town hall meeting in Parkersburg when questioned about cuts to Medicaid in the House-passed reconciliation bill. In response to an attendee interrupting her defense of the legislation, shouting “People will die,” Ernst told the audience, “We are all going to die.”  The following day, an Instagram post, which the Des Moines Register described as a “sarcastic apology,” included the following.

Hello everyone. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely apologize for a statement that I made yesterday at my town hall.  I made an incorrect assumption that everyone in the auditorium understood that yes, we are all going to perish from this Earth.  So I apologize. And I’m really, really glad that I did not have to bring up the subject of the tooth fairy as well.

But Ernst went one step further, closing her tone-deaf declaration of contrition by adding:

But for those that would like to see eternal and everlasting life, I encourage you to embrace my lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

Which is why an article by New York Times reporter Lauren Jackson seemed to be a counterpoint to Ernst’s diatribe.  What may be the best lede in the history of religious journalism, Jackson wrote:

Some Mormon women are obsessed with something illicit. They’re phoning friends, calling in favors and paying for international shipping to get it: a sacred tank top.

If you were not drawn to this story by the headline, “The Secret Garment That Has Mormon Women Buzzing,” Jackson’s opening had to solidify your curiosity.  To accommodate members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) who happen to live in warmer climates, the Church approved modifications to the Temple Garments, sometimes referred to as “magic underwear” which followers wear to remind themselves of their obligation to follow the teachings of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young.

As a self-described devout agnostic, I believe that everyone has the right to worship however they desire, even when the foundations and practices of their faith seem less than rational.  So you can imagine one of my favorite Broadway musicals is “The Book of Mormon.”  However, the above news reports made me reevaluate my perspective.

Let’s start with Senator Ernst.  She is only the latest example of the flaming hypocrisy exhibited by the MAGA-dominated evangelical Christian movement.  Despite her oath to “defend and protect” the U.S. Constitution and her membership in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA), she violates the essential tenets of both.  Despite claiming “religious freedom is a pillar of our nation, a value worth fighting for, and a right our constitution guarantees (March 28, 2023 press release),” she has no problem using her bully-pulpit as a U.S. Senator to promote Christianity as the only path to salvation.  Not to mention, her support of the Trump agenda is a direct infringement of ELCA’s stated “commitment to social justice issues, such as advocating for human rights, promoting peace, and caring for the poor and marginalized (my emphasis).”

Ernst is not alone when it comes to MAGA hypocrites wearing their religion on their sleeves or in the case of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, around her neck.  Somehow, Leavitt failed to appreciate the irony of violating the commandment, “Thou shalt not bear false witness,” when she told the American people the non-existent medical studies cited in the Make America Healthy Again report were “formatting errors.”  Of course, as she always does, Leavitt’s accessorizing included a gold cross necklace to remind us what a devout Christian she pretends to be.

But my favorite symbol of recent MAGA hypocrisy was final passage of Senate Bill 10 by the Texas Senate on May 24, 2025.  This legislation amends the state education code, requiring that “…a public elementary or secondary school shall display in a conspicuous place in each classroom of the school a durable poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments.”  Clearly, the 21 Republican senators who carried the day did not bother to read the text of the commandments, especially the fifth commandment as quoted in Senate Bill 10, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”  Otherwise, they might have chosen another day to come to work and vote on the legislation since May 24, 2025 was a SUNDAY!

Which brings me back to the LDS Church and the Times story about the availability of sleeveless tank tops for women.  Jackson used the occasion to educate her readers about the spiritual importance of Temple garments.

The garments are an integral part of the faith. They are worn by most faithful adult members as a reminder of covenants they make with God in the church’s temples. Many members also believe they provide spiritual protection.

But it was the first sentence in the next paragraph that really caught my attention.  “The garments aren’t supposed to be seen in public.”  In other words, their sole purpose is to remind the wearer of his/her fealty to the teachings and traditions of the church.  There is no public message.  No “See what a devout Mormon I am.”  No “don’t you realize you will end up in ‘spirit prison’ (the Mormon alternative to hell for the disobedient) if you do not jump on the LDS bandwagon.”

How refreshing.  Instead of wearing one’s faith on their sleeves, Mormons have decided they do not even need a sleeve.  Of course, Mormon’s have other methods of populating their ranks.  Pairs of young missionaries on bicycles and the truly surreal practice of “proxy baptism,” a ritual by which a member of the church is baptized on behalf of a deceased non-Mormon.  This explains why the Mormon Church maintains the largest collection of family records in the world.

The level of bizarreness associated with proxy baptism increases with the caveat, according to Wikipedia, “The Church teaches that those who have died may choose to accept or reject the baptisms done on their behalf.”  Exactly how does that happen?  Is there an “OPT OUT” button at the gates of heaven?

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

The Good, the Bad, and the Holy

On June 29, 2024, the last weekend of Gay Pride Month, the First Baptist Church of Fernandina Beach, Florida and Citizens Defending Freedom sponsored a parade and festival to “celebrate the Christian Heritage of America.”  In order to participate in the parade, float sponsors were required to sign a “Statement of Convictions.”  Tara Dunlop, a local business owner, raised in the Southern Baptist Church, objected to the reading of a City Council proclamation which described the event as “important and meaningful to peoples of all faiths.”  (Source: Fernandina Observer)

I felt saddened and concerned when I read the required Statement of Faith. The very narrow definition of Christianity excluded me and my business from sponsorship.  I, as a divorced person (according to the statement), am not the correct type of Christian to participate in this event.

Public pushback began when the local chapter of the American Legion Auxiliary, which had considered being a parade sponsor, withdrew its support. (Source: Fernandina Observer)

At the time it was being called the American Heritage parade that sounded like a faith and freedom theme, which would be a wonderful event for us to be involved with.  But then it morphed into what it is now and became the Christian Heritage parade. It was not an all-inclusive parade and did not include people from all walks of life.

Members of the community viewed the event as one more example of the Christian nationalist movement promoted by a growing number of elected officials and their constituents.  This concern led to a group of local citizens, led by former pastor Linda Hart Green, organizing a community discussion of “Church and State.”  I was honored to be a panelist and shared the three precepts on which I believe theocracy is inconsistent with the American experience.

  • From a historical perspective on the establishment clause of the First Amendment, the story of the 17th century migration by Europeans to the “New World” is about escaping religious persecution.  These “religious refugees” included Mennonites, Jesuits, Catholics, Protestants and Jews.
  • A recap of theocratic societies throughout history demonstrates, by their very nature, they always become repressive and exclusive.
  • What if the shoe was on the other foot?  What if a Muslin candidate for president echoed the words of House Speaker Mike Johnson, saying, “If you want to know my world view, read the Quran.”

The forementioned Tara Dunlop was also on the panel.  And while I thought my somewhat academic presentation added context to the discussion, I found Tara’s comments to be more powerful, especially when she told the audience.  “I see the Bible and the Constitution as two beautiful documents.  And those who try to mix them together, corrupt both.”  It piqued my curiosity.  Were there other evangelical voices sharing this message?

It did not take long to find the answer.  On Tuesday, a group called “Evangelicals for Harris” released an ad which began with an excerpt of a Billy Graham television speech in which he says, “Have you gone to the cross?  Lord, I have sinned and I’m sorry for my sin.”  It then switches to Donald Trump being asked, “Have you ever asked God for forgiveness?”  His reply, “I’m not sure I have.”  Even I, an agnostic of Jewish heritage, know evangelicals view God’s grace, forgiving the sinner, as one of his greatest gifts.  The ad ends with a screen which reads, “Is there any greater denial of Christ…than to say ‘I do not need his forgiveness?'”

Nothing about his crimes, adultery, policies or, as reported this morning, making $300,000 from hawking Bibles.  Those are the things that make a non-evangelical wonder, “Why do so many Christians still support Trump when everything he does violates the Jesus’ teachings?”  This was different.  Not only does he defy Jesus’ words, he denies his divinity.  I wanted to hear more, and registered for Wednesday night’s “Evangelicals for Harris” Zoom call.

Which brings me to the title of today’s post.  Of the 20 speakers, three caught my attention.  First, the bad.  Pastor Dwight McKissic justified his decision to vote for Kamala Harris as follows.

I’m no longer naive enough to believe voting GOP will protect traditional marriage or life in the womb. For 40 years I’ve given my vote to Republicans behind this ruse.  Won’t be fooled this time.  I have concluded that the better person and best-qualified person in this election between the two major party nominees is by far Madame Vice President Kamala Harris.

He made this decision because the RNC had removed the planks calling for a national abortion ban and overturning Obergefell v. Hodges from the party’s 2024 platform.  In other words, he seemed to be saying, if the GOP/MAGA  written policy would deny women the right to control their reproductive health and oppose marriage equality, “I would vote for the lying, cheating, immoral guy who wants to be a dictator of Day One.”  Now, I’ve always preached we should never malign someone for doing the right thing for the wrong reason, so I welcome McKissic’s vote for Harris.  But he does not strike me as someone who, if he got everything HE wanted, would care about MY individual freedom.

The “good news” (pun intended) was anchored by Christian author Latasha Morrison.

I am a person who is pro-life. I am a person that believes in life from the cradle to the grave. But I’ve seen this weaponized. I’ve seen this criminalized. I’ve seen women who have died, and because of that, I can no longer be a one-issue voter.

She added that, if Harris wins the election, she would be in the new president’s face every day advocating for what I believe.  Isn’t that exactly how democracy is supposed to work?  Isn’t that the difference between persuasion and dictating?

And finally, the holy.  To no one’s surprise, Billy Graham’s son and Trump sycophant Franklin Graham claimed “Evangelicals for Harris” had misled people using his father’s image in the advertisement.  He blamed the organization of aligning with liberals who “are using anything and everything they can to promote candidate Harris.”  Fortunately, this was not a consensus in the Graham family.  Jerushah Duford, the daughter of Billy Graham’s oldest offspring Virginia Graham Tchividjian, told the 40,000+ participants on the Zoom call that the aversion to Christianity by many young people is a direct result of the faith’s support for Donald Trump.  She explained the evolution of the evangelical movement this way.

These things happen slowly over time. First, people professing the Lord made excuses for [Trump’s] lack of kindness, then for the name-calling. Soon it was making excuses for assault. Then it became making excuses for January 6, and now making excuses for convicted assault and 34 felonies.

She closed with the following reiterating it is not what Trump does, but how Christians respond to it.

Voting Kamala, for me, is so much greater than policies. It’s a vote against another four years of faith leaders justifying the actions of a man who destroys the message Jesus came to spread, and that is why I get involved in politics.

I have no idea how much, if any, difference it will make in November.  I am relatively sure Trump will still garner a sizable majority of the white evangelical vote.  But as I wrote last Sunday, it will make a difference on January 20th.  As you know, I do not share Latasha’s or Virginia’s belief in a divine source of grace, but grace is a universal concept and a path to reconciliation in what will hopefully be a new era in American politics.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

The Other Split Screen

Much is being made about the difference in Easter messaging from President Joe Biden and presumptive MAGA nominee* Donald Trump.  The official statement from the White House reads as follows.

Jill and I send our warmest wishes to Christians around the world celebrating Easter Sunday. Easter reminds us of the power of hope and the promise of Christ’s Resurrection.

As we gather with loved ones, we remember Jesus’ sacrifice. We pray for one another and cherish the blessing of the dawn of new possibilities. And with wars and conflict taking a toll on innocent lives around the world, we renew our commitment to work for peace, security, and dignity for all people.

From our family to yours, happy Easter and may God bless you.

Biden added a more personal statement on Twitter.

To all those gathering in churches and homes around the world today: Happy Easter.

May God bless and keep you.

Trump chose this occasion to post 77 screeds on his grossly overvalued Truth Social.  Rather than s message of renewal it focused on retribution.  He began with Wisconsin representative Mike Gallagher, who announced his retirement last month after being hounded by colleagues for not endorsing the impeachment of Homeland Security secretary  Alejandro Mayorkas, despite the lack of evidence either a high crime or misdemeanor.  Trump wrote, “Never forget our cowards and weaklings!  Such a disgrace.”

He then went after his laundry list of “enemies” including Jack Smith, Fani Willis and Alvin Bragg.

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL, INCLUDING CROOKED AND CORRUPT PROSECUTORS AND JUDGES THAT ARE DOING EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO INTERFERE WITH THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 2024, AND PUT ME IN PRISON, INCLUDING THOSE MANY PEOPLE THAT I COMPLETELY & TOTALLY DESPISE BECAUSE THEY WANT TO DESTROY AMERICA, A NOW FAILING NATION.

However, as Arlo Guthrie would say, “That not what I came here to talk about.”  The split screen I referred to in the title involves the difference in Easter messages from Joe Biden’s and that of my congressman Aaron Bean, who sent the following email to ALL his constituents.

As we enter this Easter season, families across the nation will soon gather in their homes, churches, and places of worship to remember the crucifixion and celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
 
From the very beginning, God so loved us that He planned and prepared a place for us to receive everything that we need for life now and eternally. We see God’s great love for us displayed on the Cross and His power demonstrated through an empty tomb.
 
In Isaiah 60:2, the prophet records, “For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.” As your voice in our nation’s capital, I look to the light of God to guide my steps. I trust Him for wisdom and strength and praise Him for the gift of His only begotten Son.
 
On behalf of the Bean family, we wish you and all Floridians a happy Easter.
 
Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!

First Joe Biden addresses his good wishes to “Christians  across the world,” those who have chosen to accept Jesus as the son of God and their savior.  But more important is the theme in the second paragraph.  Without reference to Jesus’ divinity, he instead talks of Jesus’ sacrifice for spreading a message of love and acceptance, something with which both Christians and non-Christians can identify.  Sacrifice is not the sole purview of the divine.  Ask Abraham Lincoln, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. or Nelson Mandela.

In stark contrast, Bean does not differentiate between his Christian and non-Christian constituents.  

As we enter this Easter season, families across the nation will soon gather in their homes, churches, and places of worship to remember the crucifixion and celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
 
From the very beginning, God so loved us that He planned and prepared a place for us to receive everything that we need for life now and eternally. We see God’s great love for us displayed on the Cross and His power demonstrated through an empty tomb.
 
In Isaiah 60:2, the prophet records, “For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.” As your voice in our nation’s capital, I look to the light of God to guide my steps. I trust Him for wisdom and strength and praise Him for the gift of His only begotten Son.
 
On behalf of the Bean family, we wish you and all Floridians a happy Easter.
 
Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!

He wishes “all Floridians” a happy Easter.  Nor does he mention the one thing on which non-Christians, many of whom, myself included, can agree.  Acknowledgement of Jesus as a sage prophet and teacher and his message of peace, compassion and acceptance of all.  Can you imagine if Ilhan Omar told her constituents?

As your voice in our nation’s capital, I look to the light of Allah to guide my steps. I trust Him for wisdom and strength and praise Him for the gift of Islam.

Cries of “Sharia Law” would echo across the MAGA universe.

Aaron, before you try to convince me to accept Jesus as my Lord and savior, I suggest you try just a little harder to live by his words and teachings.  When you vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act, remember Jesus said, “I did not some here to heal the healthy.  I came here to heal the sick.”  When you promote Christian nationalism, remember the parable of the Good Samaritan.  When the crowd asked, “Who is your neighbor,” he chose the “other,” not one of his own followers.  And when you endorse a man who hawks Bibles during Holy Week to make a quick buck, remember that the one you claim as “your light and guide” cast out all those who bought and sold in the temple and said, “My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.”

In other words Aaron, during this season of renewal, you might try being a better role model rather than a hypocrite. 

*Beginning with today’s post I will no longer refer to those on the other side of the aisle as the Republican Party.  It is an insult to the party’s founders and pre-MAGA members who understood politicians are elected to serve the voters not vice versa.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

Let My People Be

Welcome to Part II of National Governors Association Week at Deprogramming101.  In Part I, I shared my respect for the GOP governors and their staffs with whom I worked during my tenure at the association.  There were, of course, exceptions.  I share the following personal experience to provide context for today’s post.

In the mid-1990s, I attended an off-camera working session on proposed national education goals chaired by then NGA chair Carroll Campbell, the Republican governor of South Carolina.  Campbell made this topic the primary focus of his year as leader of the bi-partisan organization.  During the discussion, Republican Mississippi governor Kirk Fordice said he hoped the final version would be consistent with Christian values.  Campbell asked his colleague if a more inclusive approach would be to refer to traditional Judeo-Christian values.  Fordice replied, “If that’s what I meant, that is what I would have said.”  I was reminded of this episode watching an excerpt from Donald Trump’s infomercial for “God Bless America” Bibles.  Having been excluded from this Fordice-inspired grift, I decided it was time for my tribe to get a piece of the action.

The following are excerpts from an infomercial for the “God Save Democracy (GSD)” Haggadah, available at most temple gift stores and on-line booksellers for 60 shekels ($16.32 USD).

Do you wish your Passover seder was more relevant to the issues of the day yet still contained many of the traditional symbols and familiar passages associated with the exodus from Egypt?  Now you can have both.  This year, conduct your Passover celebration using the new “God Save Democracy” Haggadah.  Draw parallels between the Israelites’ deliverance from Pharaoh and our efforts to loosen the grip of an equally enraged, cruel tyrant who opposes all who do not pledge fealty to his every whim, without jettisoning the joy of reading prayers, singing songs and retelling of the story of Moses and the flight from Egypt. 

How does the GSD Haggadah do that?  By meshing the ancient with the modern.  Here are three examples. 

First, the seder plate where each item depicts an aspect of the exodus in years past and the challenges of present day.

  • Celery/Symbolizes how Donald Trump “stalks” women.
  • HORSEradish/Trump’s recommended treatment for Covid if ivermectin is unavailable.
  • Charoset/A reminder of the mishmash that comes out of Trump’s mouth.
  • Egg/In remembrance of days not so long ago when no one called this a human being.
  • Salt Water/Crocodile tears shed by “poor, victim me.”
  • Shankbone/Commemorating Trump’s golf strokes that landed in a penalty zone and miraculously appeared in the middle of a fairway.

Then, of course, there are the Four Questions.

Why is this candidate different from all other candidates?

    • All other candidates accept the outcome of elections.  Why does this candidate accept only elections he wins?
    • All other candidates salute the American flag to demonstrate their allegiance to America?  Why does this candidate salute convicted felons who stormed the U.S. Capitol and beat up policemen?
    • All other candidates promise to protect and defend the U.S. Constitution.  Why does this candidate promise to suspend it when it serves his interests?
    • All other candidates understand global alliances are essential to national security.  Why does this candidate prefer alliances with our adversaries instead of our friends?

And finally, even in celebration of the end of the Israelites’ enslavement, we acknowledge the suffering of everyday Egyptians in imposed on them by the actions of an arrogant and stubborn Pharaoh.  So too must we acknowledge the suffering of all Americans under Trump’s policies and practices.  That is why we spill a drop of wine for each of 10 plagues every American faced during his reign.

  • Charlottesville
  • Obstruction of Justice in the Russia Investigation
  • Justices Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Barrett
  • Emoluments Clause Violations
  • Covid Response
  • Voter Suppression
  • Eight Trillion Dollars Added to the National Debt
  • January 6 Insurrection
  • Mishandling Classified Documents
  • The Dobbs Decision

Want an updated holiday experience that brings the hardship and agony under tyrants in days of old and new into your home yet is optimistic  about an eventual victory by the resistance?  Don’t wait.  Order your “God Save Democracy” Haggadah today.

חג שמח
Happy Holiday!

Disclaimer:  All proceeds from the sale of each and every “God Save Democracy” Haggadah go to the Making Attempts at Theocracy Zero Opportunity (MATZO)   PAC.  Think of each contribution as “unleavened dough,” financing the fight to educate those who cannot read or do not understand the establishment clause of the First Amendment.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP

 

Top of the Pyramid

Friends and readers of this blog often ask me, “Why, first thing every morning, do you watch Joe Scarborough?”  The answer is quite simple.  Joe reminds me of the relationship I used to have with Republican governors and their staffs during my time at the National Governors Association (NGA), some with whom I remained friends long after I left the confines of the D.C. political scene.  Those relationships evolved while working on policy issues on which we often held what sometimes appeared to be diametrically opposed positions.  The interaction, however, made me a better analyst and advocate for two reasons.  First, there was a legitimate conservative viewpoint on most topics, and since any official NGA position required the support of two-thirds of the chief executives of the nation’s states and territories, that conservative bent needed accommodation.  Second, and perhaps more importantly, any disagreement in direction forced me to develop a compelling argument that a more liberal approach did not necessarily violate core conservative principles.  And in the end, though this may sound trite, I would realize we had more in common than we had differences.

This morning I found myself metaphorically back in my NGA office in the Hall of the States when Scarborough explained the difference between his world view and that of the MAGA dominated Republican party.  He compared his personal value system to a pyramid in which his priorities began at the top.  He ticked them off.  God.  Country.  The Constitution. Politics and Party.  He then suggested the current iteration of the GOP was a totally inverted pyramid with Donald Trump at the top and God at the bottom. 

It reminded me of the 1964 song “Barry’s Boys” by the original Chad Mitchell Trio which began, “We’re the bright young men who wanna go back to 1910, we’re Barry’s boys,” referring to GOP presidential nominee Barry Goldwater.  It was the closing which captured the tenor of that era and ours today.  Chad Mitchell would mimic a Goldwater supporter, “I’m an American first and a politician second.”  Mike Kobluk’s bass voice would respond, “Spoken like a true American politician.”  But I digress.

Scarborough’s primary allegiance to a divine presence is no surprise.  He is an unapologetic evangelical Southern Baptist.  Which raised the question, “What would a devout agnostic, like me, put at the top of my pyramid?”  The second segment of “Morning Joe” provided the answer.  The topic was the terrorist attack at a Moscow concert hall in which 137 (to date) audience members were killed and more than 120 others wounded.  Marc Polymeropolous, former senior intelligence analyst at the CIA, described how the CIA had alerted Russia to that very possibility two weeks before the attack and had issued a warning to U.S. personnel stationed there.  Scarborough jumped in.  He reminded viewers the U.S. had done the same thing before an ISIS terrorist attack in Iran on January 4, 2024.

He then went into a typical Joe Scarborough rant.  These are people who shout, “Death to America” or commit war crimes against civilians in Ukraine.  Yet we still shared intelligence about an imminent terrorist attack.  Why?  Because it was the right thing to do.  It was what Americans do.  It was then I realized where Joe’s and my world view came together.  His moral compass gravitates toward God, Jesus Christ and the words of the Gospel.  I attribute mine simply to the fact that I am a member of the human race.  How we got there makes no difference.  I could now draw my pyramid.  Therefore, at the top of my pyramid is “humanity” followed by country, the Constitution and last, like Joe, party.

Listening to Joe Scarborough did not change my world view.  It did, however, help me clarify it.  And made me realize I share the road on which I travel with many kindred spirits.  The only difference being our choice of vehicles and the north star which guides our journey.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP