I've said it before, but mainstream Christianity would ride the governmental wave to a fault due to a perhaps misguided over-adherence to passages like Romans 13. To be fair, Paul wrote Romans 13 in reference to the Roman Empire which wasn't exactly kind to Christians; the ideal Christian life shouldn't involve regular violence and so on—part of why many Christians out there would rather die as martyrs in countries like China and Nigeria than fight back and possibly send unwitting souls to Hell along the way.
Still, sooner or later, "We obey God rather than men" has to kick in. If the fighting Americans over-adhered or misinterpreted Romans 13 and decided to endure whatever the British were throwing at them back in the 1770s, there'd be no American Revolution and the world wouldn't have had the USA. The Civil Rights Movement of the 60s had Christian backing as well and they were certainly going against the southern-state governments.
I have some discussions with my religious neighbor on this subject. She says she wants to be a "good witness" by following the law. My view is that one is under no obligation to be a "good witness" to an authority openly hostile to one's faith. At this point it is clear to me my state has adopted "BLM progressivism" as its official religion, and at that point "we obey God rather than men" must kick in for that faith to mean anything.
Christians need to (and I think are starting to) accept the reality that this is no longer a nation where their political leadership may belong to a different denomination but still worship the same god. Their leaders adhere to a completely different religion and worship an incompatible god that is openly hostile to theirs. This new reality requires a different strategy and tactics.
A fine line must be had though. As important politics and the culture wars may be, Christians are supposed to hold God higher than everything else. Giving love to someone who doesn't love back would be to do what Jesus did, and not violently retaliating with fighting words against BLM protestors (if they're not going full-on riot mode, so take advantage of the times they aren't a riot) would be one step up against a movement that preaches vengeance and reparations instead of the Judeo-Christian values of loving your enemies and praying for those who persecute you.
Ultimately, I think this should be done on a case-by-case basis. Christians aren't supposed to be looking for a fight with the government (note that there's been rarely if ever a Christian-specific revolution in the Roman Empire), but if the government starts specifically decrying Judeo-Christian values, then they must take a stand.
I say nothing about fighting or violent resistance. Though I'm no longer religious, my background is a pacifist sect; so I'm well-aware that violence (whether perceived to be justified or not) is a complicated subject among Christians.
But I do think Christians are under no obligation to follow "orders" that prevent them from congregating. Especially while "services" for the official religion of "BLM progressivism" are allowed to take place in the street.
I've said it before, but mainstream Christianity would ride the governmental wave to a fault due to a perhaps misguided over-adherence to passages like Romans 13. To be fair, Paul wrote Romans 13 in reference to the Roman Empire which wasn't exactly kind to Christians; the ideal Christian life shouldn't involve regular violence and so on—part of why many Christians out there would rather die as martyrs in countries like China and Nigeria than fight back and possibly send unwitting souls to Hell along the way.
Still, sooner or later, "We obey God rather than men" has to kick in. If the fighting Americans over-adhered or misinterpreted Romans 13 and decided to endure whatever the British were throwing at them back in the 1770s, there'd be no American Revolution and the world wouldn't have had the USA. The Civil Rights Movement of the 60s had Christian backing as well and they were certainly going against the southern-state governments.
I have some discussions with my religious neighbor on this subject. She says she wants to be a "good witness" by following the law. My view is that one is under no obligation to be a "good witness" to an authority openly hostile to one's faith. At this point it is clear to me my state has adopted "BLM progressivism" as its official religion, and at that point "we obey God rather than men" must kick in for that faith to mean anything.
Christians need to (and I think are starting to) accept the reality that this is no longer a nation where their political leadership may belong to a different denomination but still worship the same god. Their leaders adhere to a completely different religion and worship an incompatible god that is openly hostile to theirs. This new reality requires a different strategy and tactics.
A fine line must be had though. As important politics and the culture wars may be, Christians are supposed to hold God higher than everything else. Giving love to someone who doesn't love back would be to do what Jesus did, and not violently retaliating with fighting words against BLM protestors (if they're not going full-on riot mode, so take advantage of the times they aren't a riot) would be one step up against a movement that preaches vengeance and reparations instead of the Judeo-Christian values of loving your enemies and praying for those who persecute you.
Ultimately, I think this should be done on a case-by-case basis. Christians aren't supposed to be looking for a fight with the government (note that there's been rarely if ever a Christian-specific revolution in the Roman Empire), but if the government starts specifically decrying Judeo-Christian values, then they must take a stand.
I say nothing about fighting or violent resistance. Though I'm no longer religious, my background is a pacifist sect; so I'm well-aware that violence (whether perceived to be justified or not) is a complicated subject among Christians.
But I do think Christians are under no obligation to follow "orders" that prevent them from congregating. Especially while "services" for the official religion of "BLM progressivism" are allowed to take place in the street.