Christian, there’s a name for what you’re feeling

Moral injury in the Christian church

Mark Shrime, MD, PhD

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That carpenter in Palestine once said, “Depart from me, for I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink.” In January, lawmakers in South Dakota voted down free school lunches.

That carpenter in Palestine once told his church’s leaders that people they considered sexually impure would enter heaven before they ever did. A month ago, a Christian radio network dropped one of its biggest stars for even daring to suggest that Christians could attend same-sex weddings.

That carpenter in Palestine once told an audience that simply refraining from killing people wasn’t enough. Earlier this year, Donald Trump—a man who holds the support of the majority of American Evangelicals—committed to undoing gun control. A week later, Alabama executed a man by suffocating him with nitrogen gas.” Meanwhile, Christians today are among the most vocal defenders of the massively lethal Israeli assault on Gaza.

Credit: Mohamed Safa

That carpenter in Palestine once protected a woman who’d been caught in adultery from the punishment his own scriptures said was God’s will. Today, Christians want the government to be the sword of punishment coming out of Jesus’s mouth but not his hands outstretched toward the marginalized.

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Mark Shrime, MD, PhD
Mark Shrime, MD, PhD

Written by Mark Shrime, MD, PhD

Author, SOLVING FOR WHY | Global surgeon | Decision analyst | Climber | 3x American Ninja Warrior Competitor