The Warnings of More

In Utopia, More writes that the priests in his fictional world are the most revered individuals around. They are virtuous beyond reproach. They must stay virtuous, not only to lead the people, but also because they are nearly impossible to prosecute for criminal actions and/or remove from their positions. More writes “because these [priests, leaders] are chosen with much caution, so that it must be a very unusual thing to find one who, merely out of regard to his virtue, and for his being esteemed a singularly good man, was raised up to so great a dignity, degenerate into corruption and vice…” But what happens when they degenerate into corruption and vice? As Thomas More did, we must stand against them.

The priests are to be the pinnacle of what we, the people, can and should be in terms of virtue, because they have to be. They are our leaders. The scholar David Bevington argues (in a collection of essays edited by William Nelson and features great conservative thinkers like C.S. Lewis, Gerhard Ritter, Ernst Cassirer, and J.H. Hexter) that More refers to Henry VIII with this: the king was, at one point at least, pretending to be virtuous, but readily and rapidly descended into debauchery and nothing of benefit for the greater good. As history rightly remembers him, he did not bring peace in his time, but rather illustrated how quickly humans can fall from grace. To this day, he is one of the most despised figures in English history, nearly 500 years after his death. Henry VIII is most certainly despised by most Catholics as well, given his obvious distain for the church and its teachings. Though More could do little to remove him from his position, he did stand up to him, and his beliefs, and the Truth as we Catholics know it. Today, we must stand up to the fearmongering of the right and the evidence-free, baseless idea that we, as Christians, are being persecuted. Do not fill out your ballot with a persecution or victim complex.

Contrast this with the July 1st United States Supreme Court decision offering a peculiar benefit for current and former presidents – essentially rendering them immune from prosecution. This makes the character of a candidate far more important than it ever has been before, and it was always incredibly important (remember that the presidents who routinely rank in the top tiers of the best presidents are those of unquestionable moral character: Abraham Lincoln, James Madison, George Washington, Calvin Coolidge, Ronald Reagan, etc.). Couple that with the Constitution’s (rightfully so) difficult mechanisms for removing a president from office, and well, maybe nothing good will come of it.

Enter Donald Trump, the former president. More often than not, MAGA Republicans, the party faithful, prefer to working to reelect Trump as “policy over personality” – pointing to the obvious flaws that the 45th president expresses in his words and actions. Before descending the golden escalator, Trump was well known as a womanizer, a failed businessman, misinformation peddler (think the “birther” movement regarding former president Obama) and as a scandal-plagued reality TV star. But as a reality TV star, no one cared. And why should they? He had no say over the zeitgeist of American culture, much less American politics.

Now, remember what he has done: womanized, obviously, essentially started his own church with the MAGA movement, and ostracized those who would disagree with him from his circles (Mitt Romney, Adam Kinzinger, Liz Cheney, Mark Milley, Paul Ryan, Charlie Sykes, and countless others who have served the nation in various capacities). Then remember that he has called for their execution via military tribunals. Remember Ephesians 5:1-2: “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” I don’t think anyone can reasonably argue Trump does not follow Christ’s example of love. If Trump is the Messiah he claims to be (“I alone can fix it” rings similar enough to “I am the way” [John 14:6]) would he not give himself up in service to our nation and face the consequences of his actions?

In no way is this article based in “TDS” otherwise known as Trump Derangement Syndrome (largely because it is a nonsense response from the former president’s supporters capable of engaging only on an emotional level, rather than an intellectual one). The former president did make some positive contributions to American society. For one, his China policy shed a light on the bipartisan interest in the country has led to harsher sanctions and a more critical lens being applied to the region. That is a net positive for the American people. The Abraham Accords were noteworthy, and he handled the COVID-19 pandemic probably as well as anyone could have. But the question history begs us to ask is how Trump will be remembered.

For the sake of argument, let us say he brought unbelievable peace and prosperity to the nation, “maybe the world” even. But, as history has taught us, Henry VIII wasn’t remembered for that. These two men will be remembered for the same thing: nothing good, as outlined above. As conservative pastor Pat Kahnke points out, most Trump supporters “know he’s a fraud, know he’s a liar, and they would never want their children to emulate him.” But when Trump calls on us to follow him, he makes us culpable, too. That’s not a state an eternal soul should be in. But we’re not followers of Trump; we are followers of Christ. Remember II John 1:10-11: “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work.”

As we look back at the last 500 years, one deep, vital contrast shines bright in a sea of similarities: in the 1530s, England did not have a choice in how it should be led; kings were chosen by virtue of being born. However, in 2024, in the United States of America, we have a choice. We can choose what happens to us next, like More did when he stood up for himself, his beliefs, and the Truth, when he held true to his convictions, and died for his cause, knowing what was right. Do we have an ounce of More’s courage?