Toxic Eschatology & Sanctified War

~ Bruce Ray ~ 1 Comment

Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword away! All who use a sword will be killed by a sword.” Matthew 26:52 (God’s Word Translation)

Dozens of newsfeeds from across the political spectrum have reported that military commanders have been telling their troops that “President Trump has been anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth.” The Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a group that works to ensure that military personnel have religious freedom, has reportedly received over 200 complaints from personnel serving in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Space force.

One of the complaints from a non-commissioned officer (NCO) received by MRFF said, “This morning our commander opened up the combat readiness status briefing by urging us to not be ‘afraid’ as to what is happening with our combat operations in Iran right now. He urged us to tell our troops that this was ‘all part of God’s divine plan’ and he specifically referenced numerous citations out of the Book of Revelation referring to Armageddon and the imminent return of Jesus Christ.'”

You can read the full text of the complaint at Journalist Jonathan Larson”s Substack. (It was redacted to protect the identity of the NCO.) The Pentagon has not officially commented on the complaints, but referred journalists to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s Monday briefing on the bombings of Iran. In that briefing, Hegseth said that “crazy regimes like Iran, hell-bent on prophetic Islamist delusions, cannot have nuclear weapons,” leading many people to assume that the US is hell-bent on a holy war against Islam.

Because no one in authority is commenting on the record, it is impossible to know the veracity of the complaints or the claims in them. However, the story has gone viral. For many people, the story rings true–thanks to Christian Zionists like Franklin Graham, who posted, ““Pray for our military in the operation against Iran, for [President Trump], and that the people of Iran will be set free from the bondage of Islam.” On Sunday, March 1, Pastor John Hagee–another Christian Zionist–delivered a sermon entitled, ““God’s Coming “Operation Epic Fury” Against Iran,” before his 25,000 member congregation in San Antonio, TX. This sounds like a Holy War to me.

I grew up with “end-times” theology and the search for evidence that the prophecies from the book of Revelation were being fulfilled. The war with Iran is putting “end-times” speculation into overdrive. Some people are almost gleeful about what is happening when the bombs fall because they are convinced that the more the war escalates and the more nations are involved, the more likely Jesus will show up to takes us all out of here in the rapture and then usher in the final battle (Armageddon), the end of human history and the start of the 1000 year reign of Christ. (THE Millennium). According to this particular brand of eschatology (study of the end), to be opposed to this war is equivalent to opposing God. And opposing God puts the opposition on the side of evil, which God will destroy. Our only hope of salvation is to be on God’s side–the side of the state of Israel and the United States.

The theological sanctification of this war is dangerous because it will only promote escalation. It is destructive to human life. Christians should never gloat about lethality, ruthlessness or killing our enemies. And we should never celebrate acts that kill and maim children or accept the deaths of civilians as just “collateral damage.” Finally, it is damaging to the Christian faith because it promotes arrogance and hatred of those who are not like “us”–the exact opposite of the love ethic that Jesus embodies; and it distracts us from what Jesus actually calls us to do–announce good news of Jesus’s “already presence” in the world and invite the world to embrace God’s reign of peace.

The only sword we are instructed to carry is the sword of the spirit–the life-giving, love-affirming, grace-filled, liberating Word of God. Any other sword needs to be put away or be turned into a plowshare or a pruning hook.

Push the Rainbow

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I never met Rev. Jesse Jackson, but I was privileged to hear him speak several times at Rainbow Push headquarters over the past 4 decades. When I first moved to Chicago as pastor of Kimball Avenue Church, I was concerned primarily with my congregation and my local Northside neighborhood. Yet, he was always in the background, and. I was always aware of his impact on Chicago, the nation and the world–an impact that cannot be fully measured.. The death of this civil rights giant this week marks the end of an era, but his legacy will gone on…at least I hope it will.

One of his most enduring legacies is the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. The moniker, “Rainbow Coalition,” was first coined by Fred Hampton, leader of the Illinois Chapter Black Panther Party, who built an alliance between the Black Panthers, the Young Lords (a Puerto Rican organization) and the Young Patriots (a southern white organization) in 1968 and 1969. The three groups agreed to work together and support one another in the fight for justice, police accountability, community investment, jobs, better education and an end to racism, poverty and gentrification. Later, other groups advocating for social justice joined the coalition. They provided programs such as breakfasts for children, health clinics, daycare centers, and clothing give-aways in their various communities. Following the assassination of Hampton by Chicago police with the aid of the FBI on December 4, 1969, the coalition began to splinter and dissolved by 1971.

The idea of solidarity across lines of race, ethnicity and class, however, lived on. Rev, Jackson, in particular, organized his own National Rainbow Coalition in 1984 when he campaigned for the presidency. Sara Tenenbaum and  Marissa Perlman of CBS News Chicago, described Jackson’s Coalition as an organization that demanded new “social programs, affirmative action hiring practices and voting rights protections for groups that Jackson saw being left out of President Ronald Reagan’s economic policies.” Just like Fred Hampton, Jackson sought to unite people across the divisions of race, ethnicity and class to fight for economic justice. Forty plus years later, Jackson’s Rainbow PUSH Coalition still exists, advocating for civil rights and economic justice in Chicago and major cities throughout the U.S.

New “rainbow coalitions”, inspired by Fred Hampton and Jesse Jackson, continue to spring up in spaces like Rev. William Barber II’s Poor People’s Campaign and Rev. Liz Theoharis’s Kairos Center network. These networks and others like them continue to fight for equal rights, social justice, voter protection and economic parity throughout the country.

The times we live in, where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer; where the SAVE Act threatens voting rights; where communities of color are terrorized and families are torn apart by ICE; rainbow coalitions are more important than ever.

Rev. Jesse Jackson has died, but all of us–of every skin tone–cannot let his vision of social justice and civil rights die with him. Keep hope alive!

Ash Wednesday

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Ash Wednesday is a day of confession and contrition; a time when we humble ourselves, do an honest self-assessment, and admit that our hearts and hands are in need of a clean-up. Many of us will receive ashes in the sign of the cross on our foreheads, symbolizing our grief and our need for transformation individually and corporately.

For the next 40 days of the season of Lent, I will be ‘fasting’ from violence–both my own violence and my participation in and complicity with the violence done through militarism, materialism, racism, sexism, classism, and all the other “isms” that bring death and destruction to the world. I don’t want my season of Lent to be marked only by “giving up” something; I want to “practice” nonviolence, following Jesus into the fullness of life and God’s new creation.

Throughout this Lent, I will be following a daily devotional, “40 Days of Nonviolence.” produced by my church, Kimball Avenue United Church of Christ in Chicago. You’re welcome to follow along. (Subscribe to the page to get a daily email reminder.) Together, let’s walk a new path–the path that leads to transformation.

Peace.

A Change of Season

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I know we are all looking forward to the arrival of Spring. Today, we got a welcome taste of what is coming with temperatures around 50 degrees with full sunshine. Ahhh!

There’s another season quickly approaching–the season of Lent that begins on February 18, Ash Wednesday, and continues for 40 days (not counting Sundays) ending on Easter Sunday. Traditionally, it is the time of year to fast, and many people who observe the season give up chocolate or some other tempting edible or drinkable item. Our church has approached the season a bit differently since 2007 with a Lenten Compact–a communal fast that focuses us not only on our relationship to God, but also on our relationship to one another, our communities, our nation and our world. Using Isaiah 58:6-7, we pursue a “true” fast – one that is not just the act of denying oneself of something – but a fast that creates justice and reconciliation, by breaking the yokes that bind us and the yokes that bind our neighbors.

Fifteen years ago, our Lenten Compact called us to “fast from violence” in its various forms. We are repeating that Compact this year, but our focus is a bit different. Fifteen years ago, we were concerned about street violence, domestic violence, the pervasive violence on TV, in movies and video games and even road rage. This year, we will once again “fast from violence,” but with violent crime in Chicago at a 60-year low, our focus will shift to the state-sponsored violence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol agents who have aggressively arrested migrants and asylum seekers (most without criminal convictions) without judicial warrants, detained individuals and families–including children, tear gassed our streets, shot and killed protesters, and terrorized communities in Chicago, Minneapolis and other US cities. We’ll also look at legislative violence that strips healthcare, food assistance, housing assistance and more from needy families and rescinds regulations that protect the environment and vulnerable communities. Finally, we’ll take up the issues of militarism, the Warrior Ethos, and the new colonialism.

Chicago has been warned that ICE is returning to the city to continue “Operation Midway Blitz.” We don’t know what that will look like or how it will impact our communities, but we need to be equipped with the spiritual tools to resist the violence and protect our communities in a manner consistent with Jesus’s call to nonviolence and peace-making. It will not be easy. Jesus recognized the inherent danger of resisting the powers that be and told his disciples that he was sending them out as sheep among wolves. He also advised them to be wise as snakes, yet harmless as doves. (Matthew 10:16)

So, this Lent is our training ground. The ways of “eye for an eye” and “fighting fire with fire” and violence are incompatible with Jesus’s call to love–love of our neighbors and love of our enemies. Nonviolence sounds like complete foolishness in a world that rewards cruelty and domination. Even the idea of nonviolence rubs against our old nature. But we ‘have stripped off the old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds and we have put on the new nature that is being renewed to become like our Creator. (Colossians 3:9-10) So, Let’s train together in the “foolishness” of nonviolence and pursue the likeness of Christ.

If you would like to know more about the Lenten Compact or want to follow the “40 Days of Nonviolence”, devotionals and resources will be posted at the Kimball Church blog.

Honest Abe & the Logic of Equality

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Thanks to historian Carter G. Woodson, we celebrate Black History in February to coincide with the birthday of President Abraham Lincoln, born today, February 12, and the birthday of abolitionist and freed slave, Fredrick Douglass, born on February 14.

While this administration is intent on erasing Black history, controlling content at African-American cultural museums, rejecting the values of diversity, equity and inclusion, and even promoting a narrative that slavery wasn’t so bad for slaves, historians (both black and white) are intent on telling the truth.

One historian that I follow is Heather Cox Richardson. Today, she wrote about Abraham Lincoln’s logic for opposing enslavement and enslavers like South Carolina SenatorJames Henry Hammond, who adamantly rejected the “ridiculously absurd…dogma of Mr. (Thomas) Jefferson that ‘all men are born equal.'”

In response to Hammond’s renunciation of equality, Lincoln made the following argument:

“If A. can prove, however conclusively, that he may, of right, enslave B.–why may not B. snatch the same argument and prove equally that he may enslave A? You say ,’A. is white and B. is black.’ It is color, then; the lighter, having the right to enslave the darker? Take care. By this rule, you are to be the slave to the first man you men with a fairer skin than your own., You do not mean color exactly? You mean the whites are intellectually the superiors of the blacks, and, therefore, have the right to enslave them? Take care again. By this rule, you are to be slave to the first man you meet with an intellect superior to your own. But, say you, ‘It is a question of interest; and if you can make it your interest, you have the right to enslave another.’ Very well. And if he can make it his interest, he has the right to enslave you.”

Richardson concludes, “Lincoln saw clearly that if we give up the principle of equality before the law, we have given up the whole game…. Once we have replaced the principle of equality with the idea that humans are unequal, we have granted approval to the idea of ruler and ruled. At that point, all any of us can do is to hope that no one in power decides that we belong in one of the lesser groups.”

At creation, God made human beings–both male and female–in God’s image (Genesis 1:27) You either believe that or you don’t. Either all humans are born equal or they are not. You can’t have it both ways.

The world of Jesus was as stratified as our own, but Jesus continually crossed the lines of hierarchy, giving every social group equal access to the blessings of God. But even after walking with Jesus and listening to his teaching for 3 years, his followers struggled to live out the equality he modeled. Old patterns persisted and only changed when challenged through the movement of the Holy Spirit and the words of the prophets and apostles of the nascent church.

The apostle Peter struggled with racism until he was confronted through a vision (see Acts 10). He came away with a new understanding, entering the home of Gentile and announcing, ““I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism.” (Acts 10:34) 

The apostle Paul confronted the hierarchy he saw in the church at Galatia, declaring, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28) This was both a theological and a sociological statement of equality.

The apostle James rebuked those who discriminated between those who were rich and those who were poor, naming their classist favoritism “sin” that was antithetical to God’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself.” (James 2:8-9)

While we have abolished chattel slavery and made progress toward equality–even electing a Black president–we are watching that progress erode. The demon of social hierarchy is reasserting itself as human beings are divided into classes and hierarchies of value based on skin tone, national origin, gender, intellect, gender identity and orientation, documentation, wealth and other arbitrary characteristics. Sadly, the demon is taking up residence in the church as well.

We would do well to hear the word of the prophets and apostles and heed the warning embedded in Abraham Lincoln’s logic. Equality isn’t optional. It is essential to our faith and our freedom.

Good Bunny

~ Bruce Ray ~ 1 Comment

Yes, I watched the Super Bowl this year, primarily because of the hype (and hand-wringing) around the halftime performance by Bad Bunny. From the time the NFL announced that Bad Bunny would be the headliner, there was backlash. He wasn’t American enough (even though he is a US citizen); he didn’t sing in English; and his gender-bending identity and his LGBTQIA affirming stands were not compatible with the family-friendly Super Bowl; blah-blah-blah.

There was so much angst about what he might do on stage that Turning Point USA organized an alternative “All-American” halftime show that would focus on the correct American ideals–Faith, Family, and Freedom–featuring Kid Rock, who made the comment: “[Bad Bunny has] said he’s having a dance party, wearing a dress, and singing in Spanish? Cool. We plan to play great songs for folks who love America.”

Wow! That’s a set-up. So, If you love America and hate “woke” DEI, you’ll watch Kid Rock. And if you watch Bad Bunny, you must hate America and love open borders, open bathrooms and men playing women’s sports. I decided to watch Bad Bunny–and I’m so grateful I did.

His show was an amazing journey (literally) that celebrated the history and culture and resilience of Puerto Rico. It was also a not-so-subtle rebuke of white colonialism and the US government’s current efforts to erase brown, black, and LGBTQIA history and presence. It was a multi-generational, multi-cultural, multi-faceted, joyous dance. (I’m a sucker for salsa and merengue.) IMHO, it was the best halftime show ever!. It was so good, I’ve watched it several more times.

Each time I’ve watched it, I’ve thought of my step-mother. She was born in Caguas, PR in 1931. She passed away last May. I’m so sad she didn’t get to see Bad Bunny’s halftime celebration. I know she would have loved it. Even though she lived in the US for many years, she loved her “Isla del Encanto” and returned often. My family was blessed to travel to Puerto Rico with her to experience the island through her eyes and to meet her extended family and see all the places that were important to her as she grew up. Through her, I fell in love with the island, its people, its food, its language and its vibrant and joyful culture. So when I hear a comedian at a Trump rally call Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage” or when I watch the president dismissively throw paper products to residents who had just experienced a devastating hurricane or when I hear someone tell my Puerto Rican neighbor to “go back to their country,” I burn. Puerto Rico is beautiful, and Puerto Ricans are not second-class citizens.

For the record, I did take time to watch the hour+ long Turning Point USA advertisement…I mean, the “All-American Halftime Show.” I came away from it empty. Its definition of “All-American” was white (no performers were people of color) and blue collar (though one watcher posted that a performer was wearing Louis Vuitton) and country (the violin/cello piece was a weird addition). Bad Bunny showed us what “All-American” actually looks like with the flags of the Americas–including the flag of the United States–parading to the stadium exit.

Bad Bunny reminded us that America is–and always has been–a place of linguistic and cultural diversity. He reminded us that we are all richer because of Puerto Rico and every other nation of the Americas. And he reminded us clearly (via the message on the Jumbotron) that “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.” It’s the message Jesus announced and lived. It’s the Beloved Community of Martin Luther King, Jr.. It’s heaven’s diversity where every nation, every tribe, every race and every language wave their palm branches and sing God’s salvation song. Love wins.

And for the record, Bad Bunny did all that without putting on a dress.

The Names May Change, but the Cruelty Won’t

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When the news dropped that Gregory Bovino had been demoted and that some of his Border Patrol officers would be leaving Minneapolis, there was a huge sigh of relief. But before the celebration could start, Trump announced on “Truth Social” that Border Czar, Tom Homan, would be sent to Minneapolis. “Tom is tough but fair and will report to me,” Trump wrote. In a separate post, as reported by The HILL, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote that Homan would be managing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations on the ground “to continue arresting the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens.”

Chicago knows Tom Homan. Tom Homan is not Gregory Bovino, but he is cut from the same cloth. We should know. Chicago experienced Tom Homan exactly a year ago.

On December 9, 2024, Homan, Trump’s “Border Czar,” was in town announcing that mass deportation efforts would “start right here in Chicago, ” and that we should expect to “see an influx of federal immigrant agents after Trump is sworn in.” On January 19, 2025, the day before the inauguration, Block Club Chicago reported that the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times had received information from anonymous sources that “the incoming Trump administration [was] planning large-scale deportations in Chicago” starting Tuesday, January 21, 2025. “Operation Safeguard” was expected to last a week with an influx of 150 – 200 agents on the ground. To prepare, the citizens of Chicago armed themselves with “Know-Your-Rights” trainings and reviewed self-protection strategies like, “don’t open your door,” “ask if the agent has a warrant signed by a judge”, say, “I don’t have to speak to you.” And then Chicago waited for what was likely to come.

“Operation Safeguard” arrived on Sunday, January 26, 2025. ICE posted the following statement on X: “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, along with federal partners, including the FBI, ATF, DEA, CBP and the U.S. Marshals Service, began conducting enhanced targeted operations today in Chicago to enforce U.S. immigration law and preserve public safety and national security by keeping potentially dangerous criminal aliens out of our communities.” 

Tom Homan arrived in Chicago on that Sunday morning to oversee “Operation Safeguard.” He was joined by media personality Dr. Phil McGraw and his film crew who, in a promotional video, explained the targeted mission to find and arrest 270 known criminals, drug dealers, rapists, murderers and “bad actors.” McGraw promised that Homan’s ICE agents would not be “sweeping communities.” McGraw went on to post videos of the raids on the MeritTV app.

On that Sunday, there was a knock on ______’s door. His wife, a US citizen, was suspicious, but there were no indications that ICE agents were present. The person on the porch was wearing plain clothes. There were no ICE vans on the street. There was another knock. Before his wife could stop him, ______ opened the door and he was pulled onto the porch. Agents did not produce a warrant even though his wife requested it. He was taken away while his traumatized wife and children watched. His crime? He was convicted of a DUI many years before. Now, a year after being taken from his home, ______ is still incarcerated in a Kentucky detention center and deportation could occur at any time–despite the lack of a judicial warrant, despite having a clean record for years, despite the hardship his family has endured. Tom Homan stole a husband and father from his family. They may never see him again. *

At a recent Town Hall, our Congresswoman said that while removing Greg Bovino from his position was good news for Minneapolis and for Chicago (Bovino had vowed to return to Chicago this spring), it is not what we need to keep our communities safe. As an outspoken critic of Kristi Noem, our Congresswoman has called for her immediate resignation or impeachment. But she admits that even the removal of Kristi Noem will not keep our communities safe. Our Congresswoman voted against the appropriations bill that would add more funding for ICE. But even defunding ICE would not make our communities safer. We will only be safe when ICE is abolished and Congress passes a comprehensive immigration legislation.

It doesn’t matter who is sitting in the broken chairs. It doesn’t matter how the broken chairs are rearranged. The chairs are the problem. They are broken, and it’s time to throw them out. Period.

* The story of ________ is true. His wife is an acquaintance of ours and shared her experience with us the day after he was detained by ICE. The past 12 months have been an unending nightmare.

Two Words for Kristi Noem

~ Bruce Ray ~ 1 Comment

To justify the murder of Alex Pretti, Kristi Noem made the following observation: “I don’t know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign.” I have two words for her:

“Kyle Rittenhouse”

Remember Kyle? He was the 17-year-old who roamed the streets of Kenosha, WI, brandishing an AR-style weapon during the protests following the murder of Jacob Blake by a Kenosha police officer in April 2020. He explained that he brought the gun to Kenosha to assist law enforcement with protecting businesses during the protests. In the course of events, he used the weapon to kill 2 of the protestors “in self-defense”. He was exonerated.

I guess it’s OK to bring a gun to a protest if you are bringing it to support law enforcement and kill protesters.

Unfortunately, we will never hear Alex Pretti’s explanation why he brought his handgun to the protest, even though he had every legal right to do so, and even though he never brandished the weapon, fired the weapon or killed anyone. But somehow, members of the Trump administration knew everything about his motives, his intentions and the outcomes had agents–some not much older than Kyle Rittenhouse–not shot him 10 times and killed him.

Alex Pretti was a domestic terrorist (Kristi Noem), an assassin (Stephen Miller) who intended to “massacre law enforcement” (Gregory Bovino) and who had “arrived on the scene stop a law enforcement operation and inflict maximum damage on individuals” (Kristi Noem). That’s the administration’s narrative, and they are sticking to it.

There’s just one problem. The narrative is false. It is a lie–and not just a lie. It is pre-meditated deceitful words told to discredit and defame Alex Pretti. This fabrication of “facts” is the pattern of this administration. We witnessed it when an ICE agent shot and wounded Marimar Martinez on October 6, 2025 for allegedly “assaulting federal officers with a deadly weapon” (her car). She was a “domestic terrorist.” We witnessed it after Renee Good’s execution by ICE because she supposedly attempted to run over an agent with her car. She also was a “domestic terrorist.” We have now witnessed the pattern again after the execution of “domestic terrorist” Alex Pretti. See the pattern? Aim and fire. Blame and defame the victim. Claim to be “the Real Victims.” Exonerate the agent(s). Repeat.

The Psalmist, David, who experienced false charges and character assassination, wrote his accusers: “Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, working deceit. You love evil instead of good, lying rather than speaking right. You love only devouring words—treacherous tongue!” Psalm 52:4-6. Sound familiar?

Alex Pretti wasn’t killed because he had a gun; he was killed because he had the audacity to expose the truth about ICE tactics and cruelty. I believe he was also killed to remind everyone who witnessed it that ICE has unregulated power and will use it however they want and against whomever they want–especially those who would dare to get in their way.

But we know the truth. So, I have five additional words for Kristi Noem (and the rest of the administration’s tools):

WE DO NOT BELIEVE YOU.

When Disruption is Necessary

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On Sunday, January 18, a group of about 30 people joined the worship service at Cities Church in St. Paul, MN. The church is a member congregation of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) with close ties to Christ Church DC, the congregation Pete Hegseth attends when in Washington.

Midway through the service, the group, led by Nekima Levy Armstrong, an ordained minister and community activist, interrupted the service with chants of “Justice for Renee Good” and “ICE Out.” In an interview with the Washington Post, Levy Armstrong said that the disruption was aimed at David Easterwood, who is listed on the church’s website as a Pastor of the church. Easterwood is also the acting director of the local field office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In a court filing submitted on January 5, he wrote that federal agents were experiencing increased threats and aggression and crowd control devices like flashbang grenades were important to protect against violent attacks. He also defended ICE’s tactics in Minnesota such as swapping license plates and spraying protesters with chemical irritants. (source)

In an interview with Democracy Now, Levy Armstrong stated: “I believe that if someone professes to represent the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to preach it, that they should not be allowing ICE agents to drag people out of their homes, cut women out of seat belts in their cars and drag them out, bust down doors, bust out car windows, bring people out half-naked in the freezing cold to detain them, taking trophy pictures with Black men and others that they’ve apprehended in their homes, scaring children, tear-gassing children and families, almost killing a 6-month-old through the use of high-powered, military-grade weapons such as flashbang grenades and very strong tear gas…. It’s delusional to pretend that there [isn’t] a significant problem with David Easterwood serving as a pastor and as the overseer of ICE and defending their conduct….”

The response to the incident has been swift and loud–and overwhelmingly supportive of the Cities Church and its lead pastor, Jonathan Parnell.

The Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention, of which Cities Church is a member, issued a statement calling the disruption ”an unacceptable trauma,”

Kevin Ezell, president of the SBC’s North American Mission Board, wrote: “No cause — political or otherwise — justifies the desecration of a sacred space or the intimidation and trauma inflicted on families gathered peacefully in the house of God, What occurred was not protest; it was lawless harassment.”

Albert Mohler, the president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, weighed in on his podcast. “For Christians, the precedent of invading a congregation at worship should be unthinkable,” He also cited Romans 13 to defend ICE, saying the agents should “be recognized for their authority and for the legitimacy of their mission.”

The US Government also took action in defense of the church. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt tweeted: “President Trump will not tolerate the intimidation and harassment of Christians in their sacred places of worship.” Then, on Thursday, FBI Director Kash Patel announced that Levy Armstrong and two other protesters had been arrested, jailed and charged with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which prohibits interference or intimidation of “any person by force, threat of force, or physical obstruction exercising or seeking to exercise the First Amendment right of religious freedom at a place of religious worship. (Note: on Friday, all three people were released from jail by order of a federal judge.)

When Vice-president JD Vance visited Minneapolis on that same day, he delivered a stern warning to the people of Minnesota:“Respect people’s rights, respect people’s rights to worship, respect people’s rights to do their job without being assaulted. If you follow that basic principle, the Trump administration is going to do everything that we can to protect your rights. But if you go after somebody, if you assault somebody, if you make a 9-year-old girl cry because you walked into her church and harassed her, we’re going to go after you with every single tool that we have.” .While he said that mistakes may have been made by individual officers, he offered no apologies and said nothing about ICE agents shooting protesters, harassing schools, using chemical irritants on young people or traumatizing a 5-year-old boy.

And that’s my issue. Why haven’t church leaders demanded accountability for ICE brutality? Where were the church leaders when the government announced in January 2025 that federal immigration agencies could make arrests in churches, schools and hospitals–locations that had always been considered protected? Where was the outrage when ICE agents detained Tampa, FL, pastor Maurilio Ambrocio in April 2025 when he appeared for a routine check-in with ICE or when pastor’s wife Maria Isidro was deported to Mexico on June 11, 2025. And where will church leaders be today following the fatal shooting of a second US citizen in Minneapolis by ICE agents under the direction of Pastor David Easterwood. Silence is complicity. Outright support of ICE’s indiscriminate cruelty is morally and theologically indefensible.

Disruption becomes necessary when the Church colludes with cruelty and lawlessness while sanctimoniously claiming that it is being persecuted for righteousness and is in need of legal protection. Disruption is necessary when the church perpetuates injustice. As historian (and a person of Christian faith) Jamar Tisby pointed out on his Footnotes podcast, there is a long history of church disruptors..

Imagine the prophet Isaiah standing at the temple gates and saying, “Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me. New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—I cannot bear your worthless assemblies. Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals I hate with all my being. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood!” (Isaiah 1:13-15 [NIV])

Imagine the reaction when the Prophet Amos stood up and said, “I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!“

We know the reaction of the temple leaders when Jesus disrupted “religious business as usual,” turning over tables of the money changers and driving out the vendors of sacrificial animals.”

Tisby also recounts the church disruptions known as “Kneel-ins” used by civil rights activists from 1960 – 1965. One of the most significant “kneel-ins” occurred on Palm Sunday 1964, when an integrated group of students entered the Sunday worship service at Second Presbyterian Church in Memphis to protest the church’s policy of segregation. They didn’t chant; they didn’t rant; but they did disrupt just by entering the church. The group returned for 8 Sundays, forcing the church to reconsider its policy and allow the integration of its service. This led to a church- split in 1965 over the issue with those wanting to maintain segregation forming the Independent Presbyterian Church, but change ultimately happened. Forty-five years later, a new generation of church leaders at Independent Presbyterian Church, made the decision to address its past and entered a time of reckoning through prayer and corporate repentance. You can read more about the history of the”Kneel-ins” HERE.

Disruption is uncomfortable–even traumatic–because it challenges the status quo.. But as we have learned from history, church disruption can result in either steadfast resistance against change or humble reflection and reformation. Sadly, what we’ve seen in the initial reactions to the disruption in St. Paul, MN, is resistance. While we may disagree with the tactics used to challenge church complicity with ICE and participation in the harm done to families and communities throughout Minnesota though one of its leaders, we should not–WE MUST NOT–vilify those who have been bold enough to raise the issue. And we must not conflate disruption with violence or lawlessness.

“The question isn’t whether disruption belongs in church. The question is whether the Church still belongs to a God who overturns tables. The church more offended by disruption than suffering has already chosen its God.” –Jemar Tisby.

Dangerous ICE-y Conditions

~ Bruce Ray ~ Leave a comment

And I’m not talking about the frigid temperatures and storm predictions.

What is happening in Minnesota is beyond inhumane. It is insane. Someone may accuse me of being biased and subjective, but we now have learned that the video-taped action of ICE agents breaking down the door of the home of ChongLy “Scott” Thao, a US citizen, and removing him from the home in nothing but his underwear and crocs (and handcuffs)–all without a judicial warrant, was not the act of a few rogue ICE officers. It was the implementation of prescribed tactics and training authorized by ICE and DHS leadership.

Yesterday, the Associated Press obtained a copy of an internal 24-page ICE memo. The memo, signed by Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons on May 21, 2025, authorizes its agents to use force to enter a residence based on an “administrative warrant” (one signed not by a judge but by an ICE administrator) to arrest someone with a final order of removal.

As a citizen of the United States, Mr. Thao should have had the protection of the 4th Amendment of the US Constitution, which states: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probably cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be search and the persons or things to be seized.”

The probable cause claimed by ICE that permitted agents to break down Mr. Thao’s door was a suspicion that two men with criminal convictions were residing in the house. The only people in the house witnessing ICE agents break into the house with guns drawn were Thao’s daughter-in-law and his 4-year-old grandson.

Whether you live in Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Annapolis, or any other polis (Greek word meaning ‘city’), this incident and ICE’s extrajudicial memo should send chills down your spine. Citizenship is no longer a protection. The rights outlined in the US Constitution are no longer guaranteed. The guardrails of rules-based law enforcement no longer apply to federal agents who can act illegally with impunity.

Unless we demand that our elected leaders step up to demand accountability and place tough restrictions on ICE leadership, you can be sure that your state and your city will experience the same trauma as Minnesota or worse. Your door may be next.