Tolkkinen: Politicians try to rile up the Christians again

Goodness gracious, our illustrious statesmen do like to get the Christians worked up!

U.S. Representatives Tom Emmer and Pete Stauber and retired state Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka all voiced horror this week that the Minnesota Satanists erected a holiday display at the State Capitol.

Stauber called it a “disgrace.” Gazelka called it “a huge insult to Christians.” Emmer felt that it insulted all Minnesotans.

Well, gents, as a Christian, I’ve gotta tell you something. I’m not insulted. What I am is saddened — by you. You want me to feel insulted. You want me to be angry. You want me to forsake my Christian values that call me to turn the other cheek, to radically love others. Jesus said that if someone takes my shirt, to give them my coat also. Jesus said that if someone forces me to walk with them one mile, that I should walk with them for two. You tell me the opposite, that I should practice the politics of umbrage, to bridle at an imagined insult, that I should react in outrage instead of compassion and understanding.

Never mind that the Minnesota Satanists don’t even believe in Satan. Never mind that the primary display is of a phoenix rising from the ashes, a symbol of renewal found in ancient cultures around the world. It even resonated with at least one early Christian leader. In a letter to the Corinthians, Clement, sometimes called Clement of Rome or Pope Clement I, referred to the phoenix as building a nest of frankincense and myrrh (sound familiar?) and other spices as it prepared to die and be reborn.

With the new year around the corner, it’s a timely symbol. It’s not the only religious display there. There’s also a Christmas tree and a manger scene, with a menorah on its way.

The Satanists are actually trying to do something commendable. At a time when Christian nationalism has some people mistakenly believing that we are a Christian nation, the Satanists are reminding us that we are a secular nation that protects the right of all of us to worship as we see fit, as long as we don’t harm anyone else.

It is true that for generations, Christian identity prevailed in the United States. As late as the 1990s, about 90% of the population considered themselves Christian, according to the Pew Research Center. But just because most people belong to one religion doesn’t mean that the government itself is religious. In America, the government has no religious role to play; a good thing, if we want to avoid the bloody sectarian power struggles of the past. Sects and denominations can come and go and the government keeps chugging along, paving roads, funding schools, protecting the nation.

Now, only 63% of Americans identify as Christians, Pew says. That won’t surprise anyone who has followed the trends in recent decades but it is, still, a shockingly fast decline.

There are multiple reasons for that shift. Pew’s research found that the biggest reason that people walked away from their childhood religion was they simply didn’t believe it anymore. The second biggest reason was that they disliked organized religion, including its politicization. Christianity is supposed to be about caring for the poor, loving your neighbors, and doing right. There are people who call themselves Jesus followers now because the phrase Christian has become so tarnished by politics. People are so sick of politicians using the church to further their political ambitions that they’re walking away. Sadly, people such as Emmer, Stauber and Gazelka are helping to drive people away from Christianity.

And these three greater Minnesota politicians make no effort to hide their political agendas. In the same breath that they condemn the Satanist display, they also condemn Gov. Tim Walz and the Democrats.

“This is a huge insult to Christians,” huffed Gazelka on X. “There are a lot of ‘firsts’ under Walz…1st police precinct to burn down etc. But to prominently allow a satanic shrine at the Capitol takes the cake.”

“Is there anything Tim Walz won’t do to insult Minnesotans?” Emmer posted.

“When you get a DFL trifecta, you get a Satanic display at our State Capitol,” Stauber opined. “During the holidays... what a disgrace. Only in Walz’s Minnesota.”

Hopefully not only in Walz’s Minnesota, but in a Minnesota governed by any party, under any governor. Because our government, and our public spaces, are not sacred. They’re not houses of worship. They belong not to my religious group, or to yours, but to all of us, all year long.

At this moment when Christians prepare to celebrate the birth of a child, let’s remember what that birth truly stands for. Not as a symbol of power or wealth or exclusivity, not as a reason to fight or feel insulted, but as a sign of divine love, reconciliation and forgiveness for the entire world.