Bonnie Kristian, Trump Hates Enemies; Dog Bites Man:
Ross Douthat’s interview with President Donald Trump … has been widely praised for his able cat-herding and in particular for this closing exchange on forgiveness. Also widespread were questions about how Christians, especially evangelicals, would react. Christian Paz at Vox already published a smart, fair survey of those reactions. …
Paz’s reporting suggests that quite a few evangelicals and other theologically and/or politically conservative Christians—including prominent, longstanding Trump supporters—promptly said Trump got it wrong. …
With all due respect to Boss Ross, whom I believe pursued that question as much for the sake of Trump’s soul as for making good TV, that Trump hates his enemies and has a sub-Christian view of forgiveness is not news. …
Douthat’s questioning still had value: It confirmed a lack of change in Trump, contra “baby Christian” claims. … Trump’s basic sentiments here were familiar. This is not a man bites dog story. It’s dog bites man. It’s a really gnarly bite this time, granted. But 11 years into this, we all know the dog is vicious. I suspect many people, including many evangelicals, have concluded that this only bears saying so many times.
Wall Street Journal Op-Ed: Trump Isn’t the Only One Who Won’t Forgive, by Madeline Fry Schultz:
That Mr. Trump would risk his salvation rather than show love to his enemies is truly striking. But he’s no outlier. He’s simply more honest than the rest of us. …
The poet Alexander Pope once wrote that to err is human and to forgive divine. Today, we believe that to forgive is foolish. …
Readers of the Bible may recall that Jesus put no limit on his command to forgive others. … [There is] a sobering reality in current politics and culture, one that feeds cancel culture and makes everyday interactions more toxic. We may pay lip service to compassion, but we can’t stand forgiveness. …
C.S. Lewis wrote that “every one says forgiveness is a lovely idea, until they have something to forgive . . . it is not that people think this too high and difficult a virtue: it is that they think it hateful and contemptible.”
Lewis was right. It seems we all, like Mr. Trump, believe our enemies are too toxic, too evil and too antagonistic toward us to deserve our forgiveness. Of course, not all offenders are sorry for their actions. But forgiveness isn’t about them. It’s about us, our attitude toward this life and possibly our entrance into the next.
Wall Street Journal, Notable & Quotable: Trump on Forgiveness
John Stonestreet, Why It’s So Hard to Forgive Our Enemies, but We Must
More on faith and forgiveness:
- How to Forgive Someone Who Isn’t Sorry (Aug. 23, 2026)
- How to Forgive When You’re Deeply Offended (Nov. 9, 2025)
- Three Perspectives on Forgiveness: Christian, Jewish & Pagan (Nov. 2, 2025)
- Things Worth Remembering: Why Forgiveness Matters (June 30, 2024)
- WSJ Op-Ed: We Can All Learn About Forgiveness From Colorado Football Player Travis Hunter (Oct. 8, 2023)
- Inazu: The Incomprehensible Witness Of Forgiveness (Nov. 13, 2022)
- Inazu: Pandemic Forgiveness (Nov. 6, 2022)
- Faith, Forgiveness, And Little League Baseball (April 14, 2022)
- Tim Keller: The Fading Of Forgiveness — Tracing The Disappearance Of The Thing We Need Most (April 25, 2021)
- Cancel Culture, Forgiveness, And Hamilton (July 26, 2020)
- July 4th, Hamilton, And The Power Of Forgiveness (June 25, 2020)
- Forgiveness And Mercy: Our Most God-Like Power (Dec. 26, 2019)
- Forgiveness: Law, Faith, Christmas, And Hamilton (Nov. 25, 2019)
Editor’s Note: If you would like to receive a weekly email each Sunday with links to faith posts on TaxProf Blog, email me here.
