Clap When Jesus Would: Gordon College and the Presidential Debate 

Our God is a God of justice, mercy, and love. We will never find those qualities in fullness anywhere but in the character of God. In other words, we cannot expect them from our government. That is a pretty dismal idea until we remember: there is a God who is not only bigger than our government but is sovereign over the rise and fall of every leader. God is in control and has His eyes on us. We can rest in that.  

On the most fundamental level, our faith does not depend on political outcomes. We are to pray for whoever ends up in charge, no matter what. We are to continue living in and sharing Christ’s love with those around us. Our values should not change, and neither should our allegiance to God. 

Yet, watching the presidential debate among my peers on campus last month left me severely perturbed. Beyond the egregious question, avoiding, and malicious talk of human beings, what impacted me most heavily were the reactions of my peers to those things. I heard a lot of clapping, but it seemed to me that every applause was poorly timed. 

It was not speeches against racism or plans for building up the economy that elicited the crowd’s support but rather moments of derision and disrespect. There was roaring laughter whenever Donald Trump would direct an essential “shut up” to Kamala Harris or some degrading comment about her, the current president, or the villainized “them” — whatever community Trump chose to target in that moment. 

While Trump was not the only less-than-admirable candidate we witnessed, he stood out as particularly antagonistic and hateful in the way he spoke of individuals and people groups. During parts of the debate, it felt like all you could do was laugh because the event was so different from what I thought a presidential debate was supposed to be. When I paused to think, I concluded that I should not laugh when someone is behaving in a way that deeply opposes the Christian values I profess. Unfortunately, it seemed to me that most of the students present did not come to the same conclusion. The room roared with laughter, relishing every snarky comment. 

Should we, as Christians, find pleasure in the belittling of a human being? Should we support (albeit with applause the recipient does not hear) candidates as they actively degrade one another? I do not think so.  

To emulate Christ properly, we must die to ourselves. That means not finding pleasure or thrill in things that Jesus would not enjoy. I admit, it is easy (and fun) to laugh at quick responses or interjections, but it is not in the heart of Christ to treat people like that.  

In St. Augustine’s book The City of God, he introduces two cities: one established by the love of self and the other by the love of God. The latter city — the city of God to which Christians belong — follows “no human wisdom, but only godliness,” doing justice to God through proper worship (477). Being a citizen of that city means that Christians are only travelers in that earthly city in which people seek to dominate one another.  

Augustine acknowledges that while on the journey to the celestial city, it is impossible for sojourners to be perfectly virtuous or good and yet there is an expectation for those sojourners to be striving after such things. There is a “final felicity” of eternal peace that Christians must aim towards while living lives that are guaranteed misery; misery in failed friendships, in temptation, in inadequate virtue, and in death (686). That eternal peace—the “peace of the universe”—can only be administered by our God (689).  

So, as Christians, where should we put our trust? Our trust should be in our Almighty God who alone is the administrator of perfect peace and is the only perfect ruler. We should still care about what happens in our country, though. We can learn and have opinions and even be directly involved in political processes, but we must remember that our ultimate allegiance is to God. No matter who is leading our country, we are called to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God. We may not be citizens of this earthly city, but while we are traveling through, we are commanded to make an impact for the perfect peace of God that we look forward to.