Belarus and the Evangelical Trap

https://evangelicalfocus.com/europe/7536/belarussian-christians-let-others-know-about-what-is-happening-here

Sadly we've seen this sort of thing all too often – Evangelicals going to the West (and specifically the United States) and functionally allying their Christianity and ecclesiastical activities with US geopolitical power.

While their country is in the throes of social upheaval, these Belarusian Evangelicals are effectively engaged in political activism, lobbying a hostile power to exercise influence and even exert force within their country. Undoubtedly the current regime and many of their countrymen will view such actions as treasonous.

It's difficult enough that as Christians we are of another Kingdom and thus always to some degree we will be alienated from the world system, the political powers and their aspirations. But Evangelicalism teaches the Church to work hand in hand with these powers to construct a Kingdom that in the end is a counterfeit. Deluded and deceived by the hope of influence and power these Evangelicals ultimately labour to become the reigning social and political power and to transform their society – this of course assumes the Kingdom of God is built through legislation and politics.

Failing to understand the New Testament teaching regarding the Spiritual nature of the Kingdom and ignoring the New Testament directives with regard to how its constructed – they instead turn to worldly power – which is always wed to the sword and the coin.

And thus they compromise the Church's witness, destroy its distinct identity and eliminate any moral standing it would have or ability to prophetically proclaim the Word of God. The cross is eschewed and the world and its counterfeit glory is embraced.

In addition to politicising the Church and the nature of the Gospel – which are in direct contrast to Christ's words to Pilate in John 18.36, they foolishly and erroneously put their hopes in democracy and Classical Liberalism.

These Enlightenment notions, along with their corollary concepts of rights, social contract and usually capitalism further dilute and pollute the Church's message as the resulting doctrine is not derived from the New Testament but instead is an amalgamation of human philosophy and selective concepts derived from rather dubious exegesis of the Scriptures. It is therefore in the most classic sense – a heresy.

And sadly these fools who would bring Belarus into the Western Atlanticist fold would turn their country into a frontline state in the new Cold War with Russia. The lessons of history have not been learned. While the Soviet Union lost a staggering 27 million people in World War II, of the Soviet Republics the nation that proportionately lost the most population was Belarus – a staggering one-quarter of its population died during the conflagration.

As mentioned elsewhere, the history of Belarus in the post-Soviet era was very much affected by and informed by its experience in the war. For many people in the world, security is far more important than liberty. The Americans who scoff at this have never lived through war. You cannot even discuss the rise and support for Lukashenko apart from this reality as the generation that endured those horrors was still (for the most part) alive in the 1990's.

But a new generation has arisen that has forgotten the history and in embracing a progressive and forward looking mindset – they have chosen to ignore the history which (like it or not) always rears its head.

Lukashenko is not a good president and the Belarusian system is hardly liberal or free but the Church has been able to function. Change is certainly desirable but these folks had better be careful what they wish for. It's likely as not that the end result will be something other than what they hoped for. It's not hard to imagine the 'change' turning into a veritable nightmare.

Maybe Lukashenko will fall and a new pro-Western regime will be installed in Minsk. Maybe. Or maybe the nation will fall into civil war which would quickly become indistinguishable from being a proxy war. Regardless the Evangelical Church will be compromised and viewed by many as a Fifth Column. The struggles they face will not be due to the offense of the gospel but for the political machinations and schemes of their leaders.

And there's the additional tragedy in that they don't realise their American 'brethren' are in many cases but fair-weather friends, happy to use them for their own political programmes and aspirations. They don't care about them. They are simply tools being used by those American Christians who have sold out and in some cases sold their souls for a place in the big game.