Donald Trump’s spiritual advisor, Florida megachurch preacher Paula White, has been talking about immigration on CBN.
Last week, Mrs. White told the Christian broadcaster that Jesus, who spent three of his formative years as a refugee with his family while they fled persecution from the Massacre of the Innocents, would have been “sinful” had Mary and Joseph broken Egypt’s immigration code at the moment. Therefore, said Mrs. White, Jesus “would not have been our Messiah.”
Let’s walk through that again: If God sent Jesus as the Messiah (as we Christians believe), and there had been a law against immigration for refugees, that would have prevented Jesus from becoming Messiah. Thus the will of Herod, in Mrs. White’s view, would have superseded the will of God.
Wow.
To support this notion, White leans on a misinterpretation of Romans 13—one that was publicly, soundly rejected by biblical scholars and top clergy when US Attorney General Jeff Sessions and White House Spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders tried the same argument last month.
What White, Sessions, Sanders (and thus Mr. Trump) are ignoring is that the thrust of Apostle Paul’s writing was how the will of God, namely the Golden Rule, superseded the law of the land.
Still not convinced?
Let’s extend this further and look at other of Christ’s actions. Barnstorming the temple and turning out the money-changers, for instance, was a breach of existing religious law. Jesus also repeatedly, materially defied the authority of Pilate in favor of that of God. This, by Mrs. White’s definition, should have prevented Jesus from being Messiah … and thus preventing what we call Christianity from coming into existence.
Food for thought.
