All Rev'd Up: The Problem With 'Patriotic Churches'

Evangelical Trump — A bronze statue of Jesus Christ sits on display outside of the Prestonwood Baptist Church Sunday, Oct. 11, 2020, in Plano, Texas. Evangelical churches and their suburban members are a key to President Donald Trump's voter support in Texas.

Hannah Uebele is a producer for Under the Radar with Callie Crossley and previously worked as associate producer for Boston Public Radio. She graduated from Tufts University with a B.S. in English and Environmental Studies. She's a proud Delawarean but has found herself saying "wicked" more and more often, so the Bostonian metamorphosis is well underway.Contact: hannah_uebele@wgbh.org

November 02, 2020

Updated August 07, 2023

Reverend Jack Graham, one of President Donald Trump's evangelical advisors, told a congregation in Plano, Texas last month to " vote [on] Biblical principles." Reverends Irene Monroe and Emmett G. Price III spoke to Boston Public Radio on Monday about how Trump has emboldened the rise of "Patriotic Churches."

"There is an absolute heinous, illogical, irresponsible and unbiblical notion that is happening in our "Patriotic Churches," where they're preaching more Trump religious Republicanism than they are preaching Jesus Christ and the gospel," Price said.

"One of the problems here is that ministers are front in center of this debate, whether we're talking about political candidates or not," Monroe said. The issue here at hand in this election is 'We the people' - and 'We the people' are people of various faith and people of no faith."

Monroe is a syndicated religion columnist and the Boston voice for Detour’s African American Heritage Trail and a visiting researcher in the Religion and Conflict Transformation Program at Boston University School of Theology.

Price is professor of worship, church & culture and founding executive director of the Institute for the Study of the Black Christian Experience at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

Together they host the All Rev’d Up podcast, produced by GBH.