The folks who run the dominionist Oak Initiative must be getting a little panicky about the latest polling showing that Donald Trump’s odds of being elected president are evaporating. They are clearly upset about the division among evangelicals about Trump’s candidacy, a phenomenon that New York Times religion writer Laurie Goodstein wrote about on Monday morning. Her story included a quote from Johnnie Moore, a Christian publicist, who said, “I do not think there’s any way to get evangelical women in any force to show up for Donald Trump at this point.”
Well, the Oak Initiative is not giving up just yet. On Sunday, the Oak Initiative republished a Charisma column by Wanda Alger from earlier this month in which Alger appeals to “believers who are considering a vote for a third-party candidate (or not voting for a presidential candidate at all).” Alger is identified as “a five-fold prophetic minister with Dove Christian Fellowship International, a staff writer and editor for Intercessors for America, and a contributor to Spirit Fuel.”
Alger’s column identifies “the prime directive” for believers in this election season: “It is the time for the bride of Christ to rise up together and agree on His purposes.”
Alger repeats the Trump campaign’s latest global conspiracy theories:
There is a corrupt global agenda at work and election fraud is already in play. The plans of the elite establishment to rule the nation from their thrones of power has been at work for decades and is on a direct course for absolute take-over. The snowball is headed down the mountain and is gaining speed. The call to believers in this election cycle is to stop this momentum. Unless another major party defeats this ungodly agenda, they WILL win.
She argues that party platforms are more important than candidates (eye-roll) and that the Republican platform this year is “the most biblical” ever. “We are not fighting individuals, but corrupt systems,” she writes. “This must take precedence over and above any candidate.”
Like most Religious Right leaders rallying around Trump, Alger says that the addition of liberal Supreme Court justices would essentially mean the end of freedom in America:
With a Democratic win, it is absolutely guaranteed that Supreme Court justices will be appointed who are pro-choice and pro-homosexuality. More importantly, the current trend towards religious persecution of Christians will increase dramatically. Not only will we be forced to abide by laws that directly contradict our biblical values, but we will be steadily stripped of our freedoms in worship and speaking out against this anti-Christ agenda. The freedom we have right now—to even vote for a third party—will probably disappear.
Alger even argues that voters should ignore their conscience if it tells them they can’t vote for Trump:
The outcome of a Democratic win will affect everyone in profound ways. Will your conscience abide by the laws that will be enacted with a Democratic win? Will your conscience be at peace with the godless, anti-Christ systems that will be put in place through this party's policies? There are times when personal conscience must give way to a higher good. Just as Peter had to overcome his conscience about eating meat in order to reach the Gentiles (see Acts 10:9-29), so we must examine our current personal convictions to consider if they may be limiting a larger purpose. Can we "stomach" something we consider "unclean" if God is using it to expand our influence and His kingdom?
She concludes with a pitch for unity:
We are at a tipping point in history when our resolve to stand together is being tested. Many are being offended and falling prey to media manipulation tactics. We are not choosing sides against each other. We are taking a stand for righteousness, even if its [sic] packaged differently than what we might like. Our faith is being tested—not in our ability to make sense of the political process, but in our ability to see the real spiritual battle before us.
Rather than simply "voting your conscience," perhaps we should be consider [sic] just voting together. Our enemy is not a questionable candidate, but the anti-Christ spirit that has infiltrated the ranks. Let's not allow the smokescreen to blind us from doing what is right. Make your vote count for something and vote for life, covenant marriage, and the freedom needed to possess our spiritual inheritance in this land.
Alger has delivered similar messages on her personal blog and in other posts at Charisma, where, as Brian reported, she wrote earlier this month:
Trump is not “evil” as much as carnal. Hillary is not only carnal, but is backed, knowingly or unknowingly, by a demonic force set out to destroy our nation’s sovereignty and our religious freedoms. The only way to stop this momentum is for the Republican candidate to defeat her—even if he is flawed. God can work with a sinner (think Saul of Tarsus) but will utterly reject anyone who opposes Him (Ps. 2:10-12). Unless the Republican candidate, Donald Trump, defeats Hillary Clinton in this election, the demonic nature of the political process will unfold with lightning speed and with disastrous results. Not only will the issues at stake become very personal for every citizen, but demonically driven.
