This is a Coup
Information and data are power in today’s economy and culture. What we are experiencing right now is a coup. A small group of greedy, racist…[insert every other “...ist”]…billionaires are illegally taking over the lawful, democratic government of the United States of America. Their access to and control over money and sensitive data related to private citizens, government employees, and government payments gives them the power to illegally implement their personal agenda without controls or democratic process. Their dismissal and pushout of broad swaths of government career professionals (non-political appointed positions) is regime change. People's lives are at stake.
This is a coup; it’s not over yet.
Look in the mirror and meet the resistance. It’s time to be bold. Be loud. Be prophetic.
Together, we need to resist the urge to normalize what is happening. We need to resist the fear that we can do nothing. We need to resist the feelings of overwhelm and choose a next step.
Together we must Identify the actions we can take, and make that first step happen today.
We all have a pulpit, a place(s) where we have a voice and people listen, even if we don’t think we’re heard. Speak up with clarity and courage. Do not mince words. Do not pander.
Be bold. Be loud. Be prophetic.
Read the news and understand what is at stake. Talk to your neighbors, friends, family, acquaintances, and colleagues about what is happening.
This is the time to get curious with Trump supporters. Is this what they wanted? Is this what they voted for? Does this “make us great again”? Talk about the impact of what’s going underreported in the stories coming out everyday. The news we read only scratches the surface.
I’ve been called blunt before, I consider it a compliment.
Speaking hard truths can be hard work. While I don’t expect everyone to share this same gift, we can all do something.
For those finding their footing amidst the intentional chaos, here are some ways to be bold, be loud, and be prophetic:
Demand Action: Show up at your representatives offices and call them, whatever is in your power to do, communicate that you expect them to be loud and to take action to stop this coup today. An easy way to call your representatives is to download the 5 Calls app. Once you are in the app you can select your issue like “Fight Elon Musk’s Government Takeover,” put in your zip code, the app will automatically find your representative Click on the provided script and your representative’s phone number will appear, and just tap the phone number to call.
Don’t Comply: The way to stop a coup is to not comply. Resist in any ways you can, get creative, build alternate systems, work in ways that surprise you, partner with those you never thought possible to partner with. We are all in this together and more doors will open than you’d ever imagine. Knock on all the doors! Are you singing Matthew 7:7 in your head right now? Good. “Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.”
Offer Gratitude & Encouragement: Reach out to your elected officials, those who work in the government, those directly affected by frozen grants and aid, those who participated in Monday’s “Day without Immigrants,” those whose gender affirming care has been cancelled, those whose legal passports and documentation are being revoked, those who are preaching, writing, ringing the alarm. Take care of one another, show kindness, love, and encourage each other to keep going, to live another day, to take action together. Make sure people know they are beloved by God, through being loved by one another.
Get Organized: Identify people you trust and decide what actions you will take together. Don’t go it alone, don’t isolate, don’t wait for someone else to fix this. Figure out what you can do with each other. Identify where you have the ability to act and take action, then do it again. Keep taking action. Eat, sleep, exercise, take care of yourself, but do not check out, check-in. If you are a part of an institution, organize within that institution and across institutions. Institutions isolate too, this is not a time for isolation, it is a time for relationships and collaboration. Partner across lines you’ve never crossed before, or that you thought wouldn’t be interested, or may not “get you/your institution,” and bring all our resources together. Organizing relationships and movement work is for the long haul. If we can’t move the way we need to within our current institutions, we build new ones.
Find Your Joy: Keep doing things that bring you joy. Love your people well, celebrate the important things, have sex, enjoy a good meal, watch the sun rise, let the moon radiate into your bones, go sledding, make art, marker up a coloring book, read a good novel... If you’re not sure what brings you joy, do things that lighten the load, that give you a moment of peace, that connect you back to your Creator, to nature, to yourself, to one another. It can be small, it can be huge, it can be just an attempt. Joy can be quiet and it can be raucous. Laugh or smile on the inside. You don’t always have to be bursting with joy to experience joy, just don’t lose that spark that reminds you what life can be like amidst all that is scary right now.
Read Scripture: This is a good season to explore scripture passages on gifts and talents. Remember that God has bestowed upon you many gifts and many talents—some you may not even know about yet. In the resistance, you may have the opportunity to do something you’ve never done before, and I hope you will say yes. Yes I can with the help of God, and yes I can with the help of others. 1 Corinthians 2:10-13, 1 Corinthians 12, 1 Corinthians 14:1-12, Romans 12:1-21. It is also a good season to read Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount or The Beatitudes, and Mary’s Magnificat or Song of Praise to reground ourselves in God’s commitments and our values as followers of Jesus: Matthew 5-7 and Luke 1:46-55.
Pray: See points 1-6 above on how to pray.
Everyone has a role to play. Every role is different and important.
I can imagine some of you rolling your eyes, wondering what’s the point, or chalking this up to an overreaction. That’s your prerogative.
However, the things we’re asking you to consider are things we should be doing anyway. Mending a torn social fabric. Cocreating alliances to build a world more aligned with our values. Caring for one another. Learning to trust again. Holding each other accountable and taking responsibility for our actions. Getting clear about what really matters and what doesn’t. We’re asking you to consider these things as representative of the kin-dom of God. Doing that means that we sometimes put it all on the line to live into our relationships and live out our faith. None of that is wasted time.
This is what a coup looks like. Let’s show what resistance looks like.
You won’t see everything that is happening all at once.
Remember that some of the resistance isn’t public yet, and may never be.
Have faith that even when all seems lost, we are not lost to one another.
Be bold. Be loud. Be prophetic.
In Partnership,
Rev. Dr. Jenny Whitcher
Minister of Prophetic Formation
