The Patriot Post® · Who's Funding David French & Russell Moore?
David French and Russell Moore are two voices in the evangelical community that have been calling for a disarmament of sorts of the Christian Right. So much so that they, along with Duke Divinity consulting professor Curtis Chang, have written a new Bible study entitled “The After Party.”
The stated purpose of this study is to “radically recenter on Jesus.” It is a how-to guide for Christians about engaging in politics. It seeks to answer two questions: How do we approach politics in a manner that is not divisive? And how do we heal the polarization that is evident both in the political and evangelical spheres?
These are all good questions, but French and Moore do not have much credibility with the conservative Christian wing anymore.
They have been particularly aggrieved by the political sway former president Donald Trump has had with Christian conservatives dating back to 2016 and in some ways, for good reason. For opposing Trump, French was attacked with online threats, many directed toward his adoptive family, and Moore was criticized for his position as president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission for the Southern Baptist Convention.
When Moore, French, and Chang began creating this Bible study, they couldn’t get evangelicals to fund it. This is probably because of their public stance on figures such as Trump or other issues in which they have wavered from the conservative viewpoint (though Chang can’t be accused of wavering because he is a pro-life Democrat). So they turned to the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors for funding.
First Things and Daily Wire reporter Megan Basham made this discovery.
This seems fairly problematic because of the various other causes Rockefeller supports. It has given funding to LGBTQ+ leadership in rural communities, climate activists, and a gender and reproductive equality group (read: abortion and gender mutilation advocates).
Why would Rockefeller support a Christian Bible study? Perhaps because it wants to continue to divide the church from within? Or perhaps because it wishes to influence the political views of Christian evangelicals?
Far-left cultural issues like those Rockefeller supports are antithetical to Christian doctrine and teachings. At best, Moore and French taking money for a Bible study from this camp seems like an ill-advised act. As Basham put it:
Creating a Bible study curriculum to teach churches how to engage politics is by nature a political act. That’s even truer if you’ve turned for financial support to unbelievers committed to advancing left-wing policies. If these critics of conservative evangelicals are correct that their Trump-voting brothers and sisters are sick with political obsession, then they have the same disease. One would be hard-pressed to identify evangelical voices who’ve done more to bring a divisive focus on politics into the pews — all under the pretense of de-escalation and bipartisanship.
When you combine this latest move with French and Moore’s earlier participation in a soon-to-be-released documentary by atheist and leftist filmmaker Rob Reiner entitled “God and Country,” it should give one pause. Are French and Moore trying to unify Christians under Christ and the Gospel, or are they trying to shame Christian conservatives into silence by giving them a “Christian Nationalist” label if they stand firm in their beliefs?
In one sense, Moore and French’s hearts are in the right place. The polarization and vitriol in the political sphere can be intense, particularly since 2016 with Trump’s presidential victory. Put together, however, their participation in Reiner’s documentary and accepting funding from a far-left foundation don’t seem like the veritable olive branch of unification.
Sadly, it reads more like a wolf among sheep, particularly in light of their participation in the Reiner documentary, which seems to employ the same strategy that is being used from the political pulpits: label conservatives deplorable or extremists and then watch as the nation further implodes.