Nearly a year after President Donald Trump’s electoral victory over Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, there’s still festering debate in evangelical — and Christian circles more broadly — surrounding Trump’s rhetoric and tone.
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Meanwhile, many Christians are still going back-and-forth over how much they should support or push back against the businessman-turned-commander-in-chief. Evidence of the ongoing divide is the fierce reaction that “Mary Mary” star Tina Campbell has received after revealing that Trump’s views on Christianity led her to vote for him.
In a recent interview with The Root, Campbell broke down her reasoning for choosing Trump over Clinton, explaining that she didn’t approve of either candidate, but felt that she needed to find a “commonality with one of them.”
“Since I don’t prefer either of them, what can I find that would make me vote?” she rhetorically asked. “And some of Donald Trump’s views on Christianity, honestly, is what caused me to vote for him.”
Good morning everyone :). I have a perspective regarding our new president, Mr. Donald Trump, that i'd like to share…
Posted by Tina Campbell on Wednesday, January 25, 2017
The singer and star of reality show “Mary Mary” on WE TV said that she has since disagreed with many of Trump’s decisions as president, but that she believes that, as a Christian, she should be praying for him. Beyond that, Campbell said she doesn’t think she should be using her public platforms “to try to destroy this man,” adding that he represents the U.S.
“So if I’m going to use my platform, my power, my voice, I ought to use it to pray for him,” she continued. “To pray that he would make wise decisions, that he would be true to the oath that he took, and to not incite fear by talking about everything that’s wrong, especially with people that’s my color.”
Campbell also spoke out about the fear she said she observed among African Americans in churches across the U.S., saying that she felt as though some were acting like Trump is a “god” of sorts.
“I was like, ‘Man, we’re making a god out of this fellow. We think that our life is going to go to hell in a handbasket if he don’t get it right,” she told The Root. “And is he our god or is God our god? Are we going to pray for him or are we going to continue to bash him, which don’t help nothing?”
Back in January, Campbell also wrote an open letter encouraging people to pray for Trump.
Today on #TheRealS4, Tina Campbell from Mary Mary sets the record straight on why she voted for Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/8tmxyQNosl
— The Real (@TheRealDaytime) October 5, 2017
People have since pushed back on Campbell’s reasoning for choosing Trump, but she hasn’t backed down. On Thursday, she appeared on “The Real,” where she discussed disagreeing with Trump, but still choosing him based on her faith.
“What I said is, if during your campaign what you said appealed to me and it appealed to my Christian values, more than the other candidate, then when it comes down to it, I chose based on my faith,” she said.
In the end, though, she said she doesn’t plan to pay any more mind to critics of her voting choices.
“I ain’t out campaigning for nobody but Jesus,” Campbell said.