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Trumpist Leaders Attacking Christian Charities
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Brian Kaylor in Word&Way Wrote:The first week of the new Trump administration was filled with attacks on the religious liberty rights of Episcopalians after Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde asked the new president during an inauguration prayer service to “have mercy” on LGBTQ children and migrant workers. The second week featured Vice President J.D. Vance attacking the Catholic Church for assisting immigrants and refugees as he made inaccurate claims to suggest they care more about money than people.

Over the weekend, another Christian group found itself in the crosshairs of Trumpian figures: the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. […] On Saturday evening (Feb. 1), disgraced former Lt. General Michael Flynn went to war against the ELCA, accusing them, without evidence, of illegally taking taxpayer money. It’s not just that Flynn disagrees with their efforts to help immigrants, refugees, and others. Flynn also used scare quotes in his social media post to question the religiosity of Lutherans. Some of the groups he targeted for criticism are jointly affiliated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, which is a smaller, more conservative, and evangelical branch of the Lutheran tradition.

“Now it’s the ‘Lutheran’ faith (this use of ‘religion’ as a money laundering operation must end),” Flynn wrote on X, the social media platform owned by Trumpian oligarch Elon Musk. “Lutheran Family Services and affiliated organizations receive massive amounts of taxpayer dollars, and the numbers speak for themselves. These funds, total BILLIONS of American taxpayer dollars. … It’s time to hold these organizations accountable. American taxpayers deserve transparency. Enough is enough!”

Alongside his rant, Flynn posted a screenshot of grants received by Lutheran organizations from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Although the focus of his attack seemed to be on immigrant and refugee assistance — things now targeted by the Trump administration — the nonprofits he attacked also assist with foster care, adoption, head start, food pantries, elder care, resources for victims of domestic abuse, and more. A few days earlier, Flynn had joined Vance in leveling similar attacks against the Catholic Church. As for the Lutheran groups, he pledged to “examine them all and shut them down,” and he labeled one ELCA-affiliated group a “snake oil organization.” […]

Flynn’s broadside over the weekend received lots of affirmation from his supporters. And it quickly grew in reach after Musk, who recently sparked headlines for twice making a Nazi salute, amplified Flynn’s post and added in the wee hours on Sunday, “The DOGE team is rapidly shutting down these illegal payments.” He offered no evidence to suggest any payments were actually illegal. […]

At various RAT stops [ReAwaken America Tour stops in recent years], Flynn offered a vision of authoritarian control over religion as he called for there to be “one nation under God and one religion under God,” urged pastors to preach more about the U.S. Constitution than the Bible, and claimed that those who disagree with him “don’t believe in God” and “have no soul.” Flynn’s also led QAnon-themed conferences at churches across the country.

Lutherans Hammer Against Misinformation by Michael Flynn and Elon Musk (Brian Kaylor, Word&Way, February 3, 2025)
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