An outfit calling itself the Christian Employers Alliance says its study of legislation across the U.S. shows that Tennessee lawmakers lead the nation in their support of measures that align “with principles rooted in Scripture.”
“The study found that 100 of the 132 members of the Tennessee General Assembly voted with the biblically based position at least 80% of the time,” the group said in a press release announcing its findings.
A chart with the results actually showed only 99 legislators at that level. Still, an incredible coincidence: Every one of those 99 is a Republican. Two Republicans who didn’t make the cut – Rep. John Gillespie and Sen. Richard Briggs – didn’t miss by much: 78.95% and 78.08%. (One, Rep. Tom Stinnett, apparently missed too many votes to be included.)
The highest-ranking Democrat, Rep. Johnny Shaw, clocked in at 39.24%. At the bottom was Rep. Bob Freeman, at 1.47%. (A vote to allow “dry needling” – whatever that is – by athletic trainers apparently earned him a few God points.)
Does this mean, then, that God is a Republican who keeps score by the same measure? That Jesus wears a MAGA hat?
And what, you may wonder, is the “biblically based position” on, say, school vouchers? Internet voting? Gun carry permits? The Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum?
Fortunately, the alliance’s analysis gives the answer to each of those questions and more, complete with chapter-and-verse citations from the Good Book to bolster the position.
• School vouchers? You bet. “[E]xpanding access to quality educational options respects the role of parents as primary decision-makers in their children’s upbringing.”
Supporting Bible verse: 1 Peter 2:16 – “Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.”
• Internet voting? No. “Protecting the integrity of the voting process promotes trust, fairness, and respect for the rule of law entrusted to civil authorities.”
Supporting Bible verse: Acts 4:19-20 – “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to Him? As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
• Gun carry permits? Lower the age from 21 to 18. “[G]overnment should uphold justice and protect the right of individuals to defend themselves while maintaining order.”
Supporting Bible verse: Luke 22:36 – “He said to them, ‘But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.’
• Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum? No. “Using tax dollars to fund a museum prioritizes government favoritism over personal responsibility and free enterprise.”
Supporting Bible verse: Proverbs 21:5 – “The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.”
And so on. I’ve seen that “sword” verse, in which Jesus advises his disciples what to take along for their coming ministries, used before to suggest that the Messiah was pro-gun, despite firearms not being among the weaponry available at the time. But that take seems out of character for a guy who also said to love your neighbor as yourself.
Some of the other citations, as you can see, are just baffling.
I recognize that the Bible is not without some internal contradictions or discrepancies, from competing stories of the creation in Genesis to differing versions of Judas’s death in the New Testament, with various others in between. Pick a topic, so the thinking goes, and there’s a Bible passage to attack or defend it.
But it seems odd to argue, as the alliance does, that a Davidson County tax on hotel rooms to support tourism is anti-Bible because Deuteronomy 17:14-20 states “The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself… He must not take many wives... He must not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites.”
I’d have less issue with these findings if the group behind them bore a more accurate name. Say, the Right-Wing Christian Employers Alliance. Though we could then argue to what extent “Right Wing” and “Christian” are mutually exclusive.
I could ask, for example, where the Sermon on the Mount factors into the Republican agenda. You know, the “Blessed are the meek,” “Turn the other cheek,” “Love your enemies” kind of thing. But compassion is not a MAGA quality, as we’ve seen time and again in the past few years of name-calling, bigotry and budgets that favor firearms over food stamps.
As it is, I suspect that should the Tennessee legislature’s actions come to heavenly attention, a different biblical passage than any of the ones cited by the alliance would apply. It’s from the Gospel According to John, Chapter 11, Verse 35: “Jesus wept.”
Joe Rogers is a former writer for The Tennessean and editor for The New York Times. He is retired and living in Nashville.