As the 2024 election started to draw closer, the Republican Party decided to use the old division playbook of pitting white Americans versus immigrants. The usual targets are Hispanics but a Neo-Nazi group decided to start the absurdly ridiculous and racist trope that Haitians in Springfield Ohio were eating the pets of good old fashioned white Americans. Soon, a screenshot was posted to Elon Musk's propaganda platform of "X" and from there it traveled to mainstream social media such as Facebook in early September. From there, it was recently repeated by Donald Trump in a national debate with 67 million people watching. So, a small group of racists made up a horrifically stupid story that travelled through the social media atmosphere until it was regurgitated to 67 million people. From there, Christians who do not have time to actually check or discern anything, are spreading the disinformation like wildfire because truth no longer matters. One random lunatic goes on Fox News and swears the story is true and that is somehow on par with everyone else insisting it is absurd. Do we understand how this works? If this story were true, then the police would have discovered so when they investigated. There is no middle ground here. This situation is not murky. Racists started this horrible false witness bearing and politicians have now insisted that you repeat their lies because they think it helps their electoral chances.
The sad thing is the Christians seem more than willing to oblige. Let me be as clear as possible here. There are no Haitian immigrants eating pets in Ohio. I never thought I would ever have to write such an absurdly obvious statement. If you think there are, you need to seriously check how idolatrous your politics have become. We should not be caught near this story, let alone reposting it and adjacent stories. Let our love be genuine and remember that means love not only for those who are easy to love. When racists create fake stories, that is evil, which we are supposed to abhor. It is not holding fast to what is good to offer up lies about people we have never met, based upon stories that have already been debunked. It is not brotherly affection to debase an entire class of people because someone told us to hate them. Just because we were blessed to be born here does not make us special. We are supposed to outdo one another in honor not be the quickest to post whatever confirms our bias, or what we thinks helps the guy we want elected. In spirit we are supposed to serve the Lord, not any political party. We are supposed to show people hospitality, not accuse them of snacking on Fluffy.
Our unity is in Christ and His word, not the politics of man. The truly sad thing is we do not recognize when we are being used. When we are being manipulated into supporting the worst this world has to offer. Vomiting back lies designed only to hurt people, especially based on race, is not being salt and light to a lost and dying world. Maybe your guy gets elected. Maybe he doesn't. God knows and God will be in control regardless. But somewhere in a small Ohio town you will never see, resides a man who you will never meet. He has probably done nothing wrong other than being born in a dirt-poor country that suffered an unimaginable earthquake that destroyed his home. Thankfully, he was given an opportunity as a protected class, which means he was LEGALLY allowed to be in this country where he was given a new chance at life. That should be celebrated by Christians. That should cause an outcry of hallelujahs across this land. He was able to find a small town and find a job working at the local Amazon plant. He did not take anyone else's job; he just applied and was hired. He worked hard for several years and was able to have his family join him. He assimilated into the community. His kids went to school, he paid taxes and he joined his local church because Haiti is a predominantly Christian nation. Everything was fine until a racist neo-Nazi decided to lie that his people were sneaking around at night trying to eat the pets of their neighbors. He spread this lie because he hates people who are not his color and because he thought it might help elect his preferred political candidate. Someone then took it and tweeted it. Someone else then carried it over to Facebook. Now, this man, who did nothing wrong and is here legally, has to fear for his life and the people he had made a new life with, started looking at him sideways. When he goes onto social media, he sees this is no longer just a fringe whackadoodle theory spread by a handful of idiots. It now has been conveyed to 67 million people and what is most disheartening is the people he sees insisting this story might be true are people who claim to be Christians. After having his life devastated by natural disaster years ago, it is devastated all over again but this time by the church.
I genuinely do not care about your politics or how desperate you think this election is. We do not serve a weak God. We do not serve a God that is incapable of having His will be done, regardless of who is president. He raises all leaders up. He has not asked for our help. He does not need our help. There are fantastic verses in Job where he asks his supposed friends if they think they can lie on behalf of God. If they think they can fool God, as they do man. Then Job asks these fair-weather friends if the majesty of God terrifies them anymore. He reminds them finally that their defenses, are merely defenses of clay. I have heard all the tired excuses for why Christians are reposting this garbage and those are merely excuses of clay because they clearly no longer fear the majesty of the God they claim to serve. They believe they are lying on behalf of God. They believe they are somehow doing the Lord's will. Like they will stand before Christ and defend smearing an entire group of people Christ died for, by claiming it must be true because they saw a meme on Twitter, or an interview of one person on Fox news. Genuine love? Nah. Abhor what is evil? That's for suckers. Showing honor? Not when Machiavellian politics are at stake. Showing hospitality to the marginalized, poor and the orphan? Do you think at that point you can lie to God and fool Him as you think you fool man when you exclaim that the people you are bearing false witness against were having barbequed puppies for lunch? Will you be able to even keep a straight face when you try to explain that to God? Wake up please. Stop letting people who do not care about you, and do not even share your faith, use you. If not for the cause of the gospel than for your own sake.
Reverend Anthony Wade - September 14, 2025
