1| Sarah Posner writes a recap of the Evangelical-Trump relationship in 2016: “How Donald Trump Divided and Conquered Evangelicals” |Rolling Stone
2| Trump promises change; Baptists remain divided |Baptist Press
Donald Trump told Americans he would solve their country’s problems in accepting the Republican Party’s nomination for president Thursday (July 21) but appeared unable to bridge the divide over his candidacy among Southern Baptists and other evangelical Christians.
“I am your voice,” Trump told viewers more than once. “I am with you. I will fight for you, and I will win for you.”Trump closed the GOP convention in Cleveland with a nearly 75-minute speech in which he promised to restore law and order to the United States and to repair the “rigged” political system. “Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it,” the New York businessman and reality TV star told Republican delegates and a national viewing audience.
Trump, however, failed to mention abortion, traditional marriage, freedom of conscience and additional moral, social issues important to Southern Baptists and other evangelicals.
Trump’s omissions came after Republicans adopted a comprehensively pro-life, strongly conservative platform regarding moral and religious freedom issues on the first day of their convention. His speech also came less than a week after he named a social conservative, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, as his running mate.
The split among some Southern Baptist leaders on Trump continued to manifest itself before and after his acceptance speech. Some Southern Baptists and other evangelicals have supported Trump in the primaries or plan to vote for him in the general election as an alternative to Clinton. …
3| Trump’s ‘Greatest Contribution to Christianity’: Pastors Preaching Politics |Christianity Today
[In his speech accepting the Republican party nomination for president, Donald Trump again called for a repeal of Lyndon B. Johnson’s ban on tax-exempt groups endorsing political candidates.
“At this moment, I would like to thank the evangelical community, who have been so good to me and so supportive,” Trump said. He went on:
They have so much to contribute to our politics, yet our laws prevent you from speaking your minds from your own pulpits. An amendment, pushed by Lyndon Johnson many years ago, threatens religious institutions with a loss of their tax-exempt status if they openly advocate their political views. I am going to work very hard to repeal that language and protect free speech for all Americans.
… Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Jr., one of Trump’s earliest evangelical supporters, called the repeal “almost as important for Christians as the appointment of Supreme Court justices.”
But until last week, the issue hasn’t seen much discussion. While 70 percent of white evangelical voters told the Pew Research Center last month that Supreme Court appointments were “very important” in deciding who to vote for, the Johnson Amendment wasn’t even on the list. (The issues white evangelicals are most concerned about: terrorism, the economy, and foreign policy/immigration.)
In fact, only about one-third of white evangelicals (37%) and about half of black Protestants (45%) believe that churches should endorse candidates during elections. Overall, Americans aren’t in favor of churches officially supporting one candidate, though the number has risen slightly over time.
Most evangelical leaders seem to agree. A 2015 National Association of Evangelicals survey found that 43 percent of its members don’t tell anyone whom they voted for. While most (57%) do tell, some said they just told family or close friends, or told only when asked.
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