There is an inside-the-business saying among conservative political circles. "Want to get the Christians riled up? Get ‘em going on the four Gs."
There is a lot of evidence these days that it works.
Used to, you could ask good church folks what g-starting words they’d use to describe their faith and you’d hear words like great and glorious and good and gracious - all worthy and accurate ways to describe a loving, caring Jesus.
But not anymore. Ask most of those same folks that question today and you’ll probably hear the four Gs of conservative politics - God, guns, gays, and gynecology.
I was a kid back in the late seventies when Jimmy Carter was president. I remember a lot of the talk on the news shows, and there were a pleasant few of them back then, about his claim to be a born-again Christian. Some newscasters and commentators didn’t even know what being born again even meant.
Despite the fact that President Carter was probably one of the most beautiful examples of what being a devoted Christian means, especially to ever work in the White House, the conservative political machine, started charming and distracting the fundamentalists and Evangelical Christians away from the authentically good Gs of Jesus to the intentionally distracting four Gs of conservative politics.
G #1 (God)
Before we knew it, the first G was put into action and God's good people were deceived into trading a man who lived out his devoutly Christian family values for the entire nation and world to see for a divorced and remarried Hollywood icon who abandoned his more moderate politics to accommodate the four Gs. Arguably, that's when political influence and secular power became the real M. O. of many conservative churches and church leaders.
G #2 (Guns)
We’ve all seen those folks who sincerely believe that owning a gun is a God-given right, and feel that God is most pleased when their arsenal is stocked with enough weapons and firepower to wipe out a whole school. The second G has been useful for a lot of politicians, and you’d think some in the church think that the Second Amendment is somewhere in the Bible.
Thanks to the exaggerated fear that has been stoked by the conservative powers that be, guns have found their way not only into our homes and pews but deep into the hearts of many honestly good Christians.
G #3 (Gays)
Today, there’s a renewed hatred for the LGBTQ community. They can say it’s not hate, but I hear from enough self-identified Christians who are sad that AIDS is not still fatal and just as sad that I’m not infected with it to know their concern is not motivated by love.
I know where a lot of that hate comes from. I also know that it’s really fear stoked by intentionally misleading information. And I also know that a lot of that religious resentment got its start in some political strategist’s office who discovered that "God hates fags" works well as a strategy, and the third G comes in handy to work up the conservative Christian base. “If you love God, your family, and your country,” they say, “you’ll defend them from the dirty, dangerous, disgusting gays.”
G #4 (Gynecology)
Up until this recent renewal of gay hate, there was no single issue that worked up conservative Christians as much as abortion. I honestly think some of the faithful would consider Satan a good Christian if he’d just come out against abortion.
When people draw lines and declare that voting for someone who is not anti-abortion is akin to supporting murder, you have a pretty good idea of how well the politicians and their strategists have commandeered the fourth G. They know how to manipulate God-fearing people.
For some, abortion is the only thing that matters, and for a good number of conservative Christians, it is the very thing that determines not only our/their politics but our's and their eternal destiny.
"A real Christian cannot be a Democrat." "My guy may be a hustler and an adulterer and a liar and untrustworthy, and he might've even grabbed a woman or two between the legs, but at least he's against abortion, so I know he’s a Christian."
I've watched anti-abortion protestors stand outside women's clinics screaming taunts and threats at already frightened and torn young women who don’t want to be in the excruciating position they're in. The last place they want to be is in that place, and the righteous shaming does nothing to change the situation OR bring them closer to Christ's love. Projecting holy guilt on those already distraught and emotional women does nothing to make them feel loved by you, the church, or God.
It's important for you to know that I’m pro-life.
I believe the best situation is when every child ever conceived has the opportunity to live a good life. That would be ideal. I wish there was never, ever a need for an abortion. I wish every pregnancy was perfect and every parent was present. I wish every child was healthy and every home was happy. I wish there was never a need to even have to consider the excruciating decision about whether or not to terminate a pregnancy. But, as much as the anti-abortion activists don't want you to believe it, sometimes the circumstances make the hard, painful decision ultimately necessary. And it's never happy.
Many of the politicians who advocate for choice have been called murderers even though they’re usually the ones who've done the most to save lives and reduce the number of abortions. They've done it by providing better access to women's healthcare for those who are most vulnerable and need it most. But you won't hear that from conservative politicians because knowing that doesn't help them win elections.
I'm not naive enough to believe that some of the folks who read this, and the folks who don't want to believe it, will take the time to look up the facts and statistics for themselves. They’ll throw out their usual blanket, "abortion is murder" without even considering there is a better and more effective way to actually achieve what they want that’s compassionate instead of punitive.
I probably should’ve started my list of Gs with something other than God. Mainly because God seems to be way down the list of Gs that most conservatives are concerned about. Guns seem to be way more important and much, much more sacred. And it’s hard to imagine, based on what I’ve seen lately, that they’re thinking of God nearly as much as they’re consumed with the gays.
The four Gs have come in handy for the folks who make a living out of scaring, courting, and manipulating devout Christians and conservatives. I know, because I used to use them myself, and I can’t express how sorry I am.