Evangelicals

While I haven't had much face to face experience with evangelicals, seeing as they're not especially common in the places I've lived, I'm well aware of what many of them are about, and what's become of the movement. I don't see anything intrinsically wrong with feeling the desire to spread the teachings of your faith if you truly believe that by doing so, you're saving souls from eternal fire, but it's gotten to the point where I've got to ask if that's what's really still going on with evangelicals. Are they trying to convert people to the faith, or are they simply just another political bloc now? Evangelicalism has been a concept prevalent throughout the anglosphere for centuries now, but on the modern American landscape they seem to be nothing more than a loyal conservative faction. I'm far from the first person to point out the hypocrisy with them, and that hypocrisy has become especially highlighted with the advent of the Trump era. The question has been asked time and time again; how can you willingly support a man who has displayed ample evidence that he is morally bankrupt? How can you support a man who embodies greed, lust, gluttony, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride? How can anyone be comfortable associating with someone who seems less like Jesus Christ, and more like King Herod? I think I understand how. The reason behind this is that politics has become so intrinsically intertwined with the evangelical movement that they've gotten to the point where they're willing to overlook the absence of morality as long as it advances certain other aspects of their philosophy. This is the epitome of selling out. This is the essence of moral bankruptcy and it's nothing short of heart breaking. For me, Christianity has always been a mixed bag. I've seen it as a source of so much good in the world, but also as the crux of many problems. There are so many fantastic teachings in the bible, but I also see it as something that's become a popular guise people use to loosely cover up and or justify their own misguided or just downright selfish actions. Unfortunately, whether you approve of what the movement has become or not, evangelicals are firmly rooted in American culture. Every time an election cycle comes around, or some hot button issue comes to the surface, you always hear about what evangelicals think and have to say. I don't see that changing anytime soon, but there is a silver lining and that is that I believe that the direction evangelicals take isn't set in stone. I believe that there are individuals within the demographic that seek to hold on to the morals they espouse, and are just as heartbroken as everyone else by what some evangelicals have become. It's up to those individuals to salvage things, to bring the focus back from blindly following socially conservative doctrine, to following the teachings of the bible. Religion is a tricky thing. While we as a society like to treat adherents of any faith as a monolith, that's simply not the case. As with any group there is a spectrum of opinions and views which make it a concept that isn't ever going to be consistent. While the current position of many evangelicals is disheartening, I take solace in the fact that it doesn't have to stay this way. I firmly believe that if the right people take the helm, the direction can change, and I sincerely hope that comes to fruition.