Evangelicals See Donald Trump as Man of Conviction, if Not Faith

Strong support among conservative Christians could help Mr. Trump regain his lead in Iowa, where Mr. Cruz has pulled ahead in the polls. And Mr. Trump is making an effort to convert them. On Sunday, he assured CNN that he had “a great relationship with God.”

“I try and do nothing that’s bad,” he said. “I live a very different life than probably a lot of people would think.”

And on Monday, Mr. Trump spoke at Liberty University, the Lynchburg, Va., institution founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell. Mr. Trump has been wooing Jerry Falwell Jr., and Mr. Falwell lavished praise on him, comparing Mr. Trump to Jesus and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., for voicing unpopular thoughts.

Larry Ryman, a 74-year-old street preacher who lives near Findlay, Ohio, said he did not know whether Mr. Trump was a man of God. “I’ll tell you what,” said Mr. Ryman, a staunch supporter of Mr. Trump. “If he isn’t, he’s talking like it.”

Holy cow. . .

I’ve been wondering lately if the Lord is finally bringing some hot judgment down on us for the decades many of us in the American evangelical culture  spent foolishly looking to political power and the pseudo-saviors of our political class to fix what ails us. I’m not sure what else can explain the Trump phenomenon. This is like a bad dream.

I began having second thoughts several years ago about the efficacy of trusting in the political process. Now I’m in full-on repentance-mode. Never again. I think it’s good to vote and take part in the civic process, but trusting in chariots and horses is dumb.

Regarding Trump: there’s no way I’m voting for him if he somehow wins the nomination. I may not vote for his opponent either but I’ll probably be silently rooting for whoever that is.

We need to step back from the cliff here.