In the News:
Trump Establishes Faith Office

Among the various Executive Orders (EOs) recently issued by USA President Donald Trump, two reinforce religious privilege in that country. The first alleges anti-Christian bias and establishes a “Task Force” to eradicate such bias. The second, issued the very next day, establishes a White House “Faith Office.”

EXECUTIVE ORDER: Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias, White House, USA, 2025-02-06.

The above EO accuses the previous administration of engaging in “an egregious pattern of targeting peaceful Christians, while ignoring violent, anti-Christian offenses.” The main intent of this EO appears to be to make it easier for anti-abortion groups, referred to as “peaceful Christians,” to block access to abortion clinics.

EXECUTIVE ORDER: Establishment of The White House Faith Office, White House, USA, 2025-02-07.

FACT SHEET: President Donald J. Trump Establishes White House Faith Office, White House, USA, 2025-02-07.

Faith-based entities, community organizations, and houses of worship have tremendous ability to serve individuals, families, and communities through means that are different from those of government and with capacity and effectiveness that often exceeds that of government. These organizations lift people up, keep families strong, and solve problems at the local level.

This EO establishing the Faith Office assumes that religious organizations have real expertise in providing useful services in many areas and that government coffers should be opened to pay such organizations generously for those services. The EO states that that expertise includes:

a broad range of areas in which faith-based entities, community organizations, and houses of worship operate, including protecting women and children; strengthening marriage and family; lifting up individuals through work and self-sufficiency, defending religious liberty; combatting anti-Semitic, anti-Christian, and additional forms of anti-religious bias; promoting foster care and adoption programs in partnership with faith-based entities; providing wholesome and effective education; preventing and reducing crime and facilitating prisoner reentry; promoting recovery from substance use disorder; and fostering flourishing minds;

Religions protect women and children and foster flourishing minds? This is a complacent, sugar-coated and dishonest presentation of religious activities. In reality, religions are very effective in promoting misogyny and discrimination, indoctrinating children and closing minds. No religious organization should receive any taxpayer funding for any activity during which proselytizing may occur. Such organizations already enjoy major tax exemptions. The Executive Order even promotes helping religious organizations obtain further fiscal privileges, stating that the Faith Office should:

(vii) support agencies in developing and implementing training and education regarding religious liberty exceptions, accommodations, or exemptions;

Taken together, these two Executive Orders constitute a major victory for political Christianity, as well as an alarming setback for secularism.