Cyrus
Atheists such as myself have been asking for a few years now why evangelical Christians support the current (as of this writing) president. This question has more to do with pointing out the hypocrisy in their politics rather than any criticism of the president. Twice divorced, doesn’t attend any church service on a regular basis, doesn’t understand any of the religious basics, etc. Literally every other presidential candidate with the lone exception of Bernie Sanders, was a Christian, but they backed the worst of them all. For eight years they were claiming that the once married, church attending president was the anti-Christ or a secret Muslim. Bush, I understood their support, he was one of them, and if he was faking he did a real good job at it. However, this guy, whose comments and policies are very anti-Christian seems to have curried their favor to the point that the evangelical American Taliban base is his only reliable support right now.
A lot of them hem and haw about this discrepancy. They talk about second chances and ignoring the flaws to look for the greater benefit-answers that they have literally only applied to this one person. Others have been giving a different answer: that he is like Cyrus. To this I reply with my mouth agape as I listen to the explanation.
Cyrus, though not a chosen one, i.e. not a Jew or an Israelite, was still made righteous by Jehova. Thus Trump, who is religiously immoral is the anointed one therefore the savior of Christianity or something. Who knows, because this is so far off the mark that we could really predicate the sentence with anything and it would be just as true.
So, the question to justify my last comment is now: who the fuck is Cyrus and why is he so important? The answer: Cyrus is Jesus.
I mean, not literally, but he is the messiah.
I’m not qualifying that last sentence, Cyrus of Persia is the “anointed one” in Isaiah 45:1. It was he that was “prophesized” as being the liberator of Israel, the Isaiah-ic prophecies do not refer to some distant future “son of god” they refer to the one that would liberate the kingdom of Israel from the Babylonians. Isaiah, the book, is written by two authors according to the scholarship which studies the nuances and specifics of the Hebrew language which is not something I have the time to do myself. However these are the Rabbinical scholars so I do put my stock in what they have to say. The first half of the book talks about the oppression of the Jews under King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (and I nailed that spelling on the first try-I’m bragging) and how someone needed to come and save them. The second writer talks about the coming of that savior: Cyrus the Great leading the Persian (now Iranian-irony) to destroy Babylon. Which he does, and let’s be real clear there’s no divine prophecy here: the army of Persia was so powerful and so great that the Babylonians stood little chance of successfully stopping them. The best they could have hoped for was a protracted siege, which would only have delayed the inevitable. The power of Cyrus the Great was not only the size of the army but the deal he offered to everyone: bend the knee and keep your civilization, all I require is that you pay your tax and give me soldiers when asked. Cyrus was probably the first in history that could truly claim the mantle of “king of kings.”
Yet Cyrus is not a Jew. He can be likened to the noble Pagans of Dante’s Inferno, one who contributes so much to society but suffers because he was the wrong religion (more than likely a Zoroastrian). That’s how the evangelicals justify their devotion to a president who is so obviously a Christian in name only.
Cyrus, though, was a unique individual in that while allowing kingdoms to run themselves (through local governmental offices called “Satraps”) but he also didn’t care what religion they followed or what customs. Anyone could join the Persian empire, and despite what modern interpretations of Persian history like to claim (300) it wasn’t a bad deal. The famous Cyrus cylinder is pretty clear that rights of the people to practice whatever they wanted to was going to be granted…provided again, that they bend their knee to this King of Kings.
The difference between Cyrus and Trump is the difference between the evangelical right and the religion they pretend to practice. The only thing they have in common is that they both didn’t practice the morals of the religion they “saved.” Otherwise, there is nothing. Cyrus built an empire after inheriting a middling power that was a client state of the Median Kingdom. Through diplomacy and warfare it emerged as the most desired empire of its age, it actually outlasted the upstart Alexander after a period of decline following the death of Xerxes. Trump has done none of these things and has diplomatically isolated his charge which only still succeeds on the name built by his predecessors.
The most depressing difference is that Cyrus was brought down by Tomyris, Queen of the Messegatae-a people that occupied the Steppe regions of Eastern Asia. I suppose we might have blown that chance.
What their labelling Trump as “Cyrus” is really another of their mental gymnastics in order to justify the blatant nationalism, xenophobia, and outright cruelty that they represent while still trying to maintain their adherence to the Christian religion. I don’t understand why they continue to cling to this lie, it’s not like their followers are going to suddenly abandon them and their coffers…or maybe that’s a risk they aren’t willing to take.
A lot of them hem and haw about this discrepancy. They talk about second chances and ignoring the flaws to look for the greater benefit-answers that they have literally only applied to this one person. Others have been giving a different answer: that he is like Cyrus. To this I reply with my mouth agape as I listen to the explanation.
Cyrus, though not a chosen one, i.e. not a Jew or an Israelite, was still made righteous by Jehova. Thus Trump, who is religiously immoral is the anointed one therefore the savior of Christianity or something. Who knows, because this is so far off the mark that we could really predicate the sentence with anything and it would be just as true.
So, the question to justify my last comment is now: who the fuck is Cyrus and why is he so important? The answer: Cyrus is Jesus.
I mean, not literally, but he is the messiah.
I’m not qualifying that last sentence, Cyrus of Persia is the “anointed one” in Isaiah 45:1. It was he that was “prophesized” as being the liberator of Israel, the Isaiah-ic prophecies do not refer to some distant future “son of god” they refer to the one that would liberate the kingdom of Israel from the Babylonians. Isaiah, the book, is written by two authors according to the scholarship which studies the nuances and specifics of the Hebrew language which is not something I have the time to do myself. However these are the Rabbinical scholars so I do put my stock in what they have to say. The first half of the book talks about the oppression of the Jews under King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (and I nailed that spelling on the first try-I’m bragging) and how someone needed to come and save them. The second writer talks about the coming of that savior: Cyrus the Great leading the Persian (now Iranian-irony) to destroy Babylon. Which he does, and let’s be real clear there’s no divine prophecy here: the army of Persia was so powerful and so great that the Babylonians stood little chance of successfully stopping them. The best they could have hoped for was a protracted siege, which would only have delayed the inevitable. The power of Cyrus the Great was not only the size of the army but the deal he offered to everyone: bend the knee and keep your civilization, all I require is that you pay your tax and give me soldiers when asked. Cyrus was probably the first in history that could truly claim the mantle of “king of kings.”
Yet Cyrus is not a Jew. He can be likened to the noble Pagans of Dante’s Inferno, one who contributes so much to society but suffers because he was the wrong religion (more than likely a Zoroastrian). That’s how the evangelicals justify their devotion to a president who is so obviously a Christian in name only.
Cyrus, though, was a unique individual in that while allowing kingdoms to run themselves (through local governmental offices called “Satraps”) but he also didn’t care what religion they followed or what customs. Anyone could join the Persian empire, and despite what modern interpretations of Persian history like to claim (300) it wasn’t a bad deal. The famous Cyrus cylinder is pretty clear that rights of the people to practice whatever they wanted to was going to be granted…provided again, that they bend their knee to this King of Kings.
The difference between Cyrus and Trump is the difference between the evangelical right and the religion they pretend to practice. The only thing they have in common is that they both didn’t practice the morals of the religion they “saved.” Otherwise, there is nothing. Cyrus built an empire after inheriting a middling power that was a client state of the Median Kingdom. Through diplomacy and warfare it emerged as the most desired empire of its age, it actually outlasted the upstart Alexander after a period of decline following the death of Xerxes. Trump has done none of these things and has diplomatically isolated his charge which only still succeeds on the name built by his predecessors.
The most depressing difference is that Cyrus was brought down by Tomyris, Queen of the Messegatae-a people that occupied the Steppe regions of Eastern Asia. I suppose we might have blown that chance.
What their labelling Trump as “Cyrus” is really another of their mental gymnastics in order to justify the blatant nationalism, xenophobia, and outright cruelty that they represent while still trying to maintain their adherence to the Christian religion. I don’t understand why they continue to cling to this lie, it’s not like their followers are going to suddenly abandon them and their coffers…or maybe that’s a risk they aren’t willing to take.