But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (Jesus in Matthew 5:44-45)

Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. (Jesus in Luke 13:4-5)

Last Saturday, a gunman opened fire at a Trump rally in western Pennsylvania. One attendee was killed, and a few others were injured, including former President Donald Trump, who was hit by a bullet in his right ear.

In the days since that horrific incident, I have observed various reactions, both private and public. Most importantly, we should all agree that (a) political violence has no place in the United States of America, and (b) it is a good thing that no one else was killed, aside from the one man who, tragically, died.

However, some widely divergent responses are evoking a response from within me. These responses come from people on opposite ends of the political spectrum: those who are strongly opposed to Donald Trump and those who are strongly supportive of him. Each response is troublesome in its own ways.

Response #1: What if?

First, this attempted assassination has caused many people to ask the “what if?” question. Probably all of us can ask it on some level: “What if the bullet had been just an inch or two to the right?” But for those who oppose Donald Trump, this can be a very dark question to ponder. It’s not a question that many are willing to ask out loud. We know that we should not wish harm on those whom we dislike, but there is a very real temptation to wonder what would have happened if the assassination attempt had been “successful.”

This is not a healthy thing to consider, of course. Yet it’s important to acknowledge when our baser instincts would have us wish harm upon others. That kind of darkness must be recognized and rooted out, so that we might live in the light of God rather than in the darkness of our worst impulses. Jesus said, “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness” (Luke 11:34-35).

Every person is created in the image of God and is deserving of God’s love and of our respect as fellow human beings. This goes for the neighbor across the street, the stranger at the store, the driver on the highway, the immigrant crossing the border, the person sitting on Death Row, and the politician of the “other” party. There is no room within Christian faith and practice for wishing another person to be harmed – especially by the wretched evil of public assassination.

Response #2: Thank God!

A second response to Saturday’s attempted assassination is equally troubling to me. This response tends to come from Christians (and pastors) who support Donald Trump. Many people see this event as an act of God’s grace, even an act of divine intervention. God spared Trump’s life. The Holy Spirit intervened and moved that bullet just far enough so that it did not seriously injure the former President.

There are problems with this kind of thinking, too. Let me ask a simple question: What if we changed the name “Donald Trump” to “Joe Biden” in the headline about the attempted assassination? Would the survival still be seen by the same people as an act of divine intervention? Would it feel the same? I rather doubt it.

This second response is an example of confirmation bias: we believe something to be true if it confirms or supports our preexisting beliefs. For those who support Donald Trump and view him in a very favorable light, it is easy to interpret his survival of this assassination attempt as an act of God. It’s a sign that God has chosen Trump and has big things in store for his future (and, consequently, for the nation’s future).

It is problematic when we use our religious beliefs to support and validate our political beliefs. God is not a Republican. God does not vote in our elections. God loves all people and does not want any of them to perish. It’s bad theology to say that Donald Trump is more important than other people who have not survived gun violence – such as the man who was killed at the rally last Saturday, or any of the thousands of people per year who have died due to gun violence (self-inflicted or otherwise).

Response #3: Fight, fight, fight!

This third response was, of course, spoken by Donald Trump himself just moments after the shooting took place. It has become something of a rallying cry in the past few days, and I understand why he said it in the moment. Yet the posture of fighting – and, perhaps, seeking revenge – is troublesome to me, too.

In my social media feeds, I came across these timely words from Wes Granberg-Michaelson, a minister and former General Secretary of the Reformed Church in America. I encourage you to read his thoughts as well: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/jn5vNitKHaxqG8Bv/

Response #4: Introspection and pursuit of peace

These two actions are how I think we should respond to an attempted assassination of a high-profile figure like Donald Trump.

Introspection. Let’s examine ourselves, our motives, our impulses, our desires. Let’s compare those to the way of Jesus. Let’s ask hard questions of ourselves. Let’s make sure we are not idolizing our political allegiances. Let’s not allow this tragedy to make us any more or less likely to vote in any particular way in November. Let’s root out any desire for violence or vengeance.

Pursuit of peace. Let’s be peacemakers, not just peace-wishers. Let’s respond to violence with compassion and empathy, not with retribution and more violence. Let’s pursue peace, because we know that peace is still some distance ahead of us and we haven’t reached it yet.

Most of all, for those of us who are Christians, let’s make sure our primary allegiance is to Jesus and his kingdom, not to a political party or presidential candidate and the nation to which they belong.