Listening to President Joe Biden’s speech at Independence Hall in Philadelphia brought to mind the Church Lady, Dana Carvey’s old bit from Saturday Night Live. When speaking about what motivates what he calls “MAGA Republicans,” I almost expected Biden to blurt out, “Could it be … Satan?”

But Biden is the Church Lady who is blind in one eye. He only sees the violence of January 6 and what he desperately tries to convince us all is the violence committed by white supremacists and the “semi-fascist” MAGA Republicans. He mentions the attack on the Capitol Building by Trump supporters, and Charlottesville, too. He even warns us of the threats of riots from Trump supporters if elections don’t go their way. What he fails to mention are the months of riots, destruction of property, statue-tumbling, and dozens of murders instigated by the murder of George Floyd, supported by BLM and Antifa, and subtly and not-so-subtly encouraged by Democratic politicians, who said they understood the frustration of those rioting and destroying property. Kamala Harris even contributed to a fund established to bail out rioters, few of whom have been brought to justice. Biden was essentially silent in the face of that violence, though now he warns of the threat of violence from MAGA Republicans. He shouts that political violence has no place in America, but he and his Justice Department ignore the violence committed against Catholic churches and pro-life crisis pregnancy centers as well as the demonstrations in front of Supreme Court Justices’ homes and the assassination threat against Justice Kavanaugh.

Biden condemns those who refuse to accept that Trump lost the 2020 election, warning America of the threat they pose of stealing elections and how they are a threat to democracy. He says nothing about the refusal of Democrats to accept the results of the 2016 election, their creation of a Russian hoax that consumed the nation for three years, the impeachment of Trump on the shakiest grounds possible — all done because Trump had the audacity to win the presidency in 2016. He also repeats the lie that Republicans are passing laws that take away peoples’ right to vote. He bemoans the supposed dictatorial tendencies of Trump, hoping Americans will forget the dozens of Executive Orders he signed, putting his policies in place by presidential decree.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m well aware that if Trump were president and had given a stump speech in anticipation of an election he was concerned about losing, he would have been just as one-sided and blind in his approach. That’s part of the problem. There is no reflection by our politicians of the mood they are helping to create in this country of divisiveness and anger, of an all-or-nothing attitude among the populace and political hacks. “Either we win or the country will be destroyed!” Only a few days ago, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold warned that, if Republicans win the mid-terms, Americans could lose their right to vote in three months. Trump himself wrote on his personal social media platform that, given the suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story by the media and social media, he should be declared the winner of the 2020 election, or another election should be held immediately.

The rhetoric is too heated. When a politician insists that either he or she wins or the country will be no more, then when they lose, they feel pressured by their own rhetoric to demonstrate how their prediction is coming true. So, the rhetoric gets even more heated. When Biden was running for president, he said the only way he could lose was if some “chicanery” took place, implying that if he lost it meant the election was not fair and objective, but rigged. Biden won, and then Trump couldn’t let go. For the first time in our nation, our Capitol was attacked by American citizens and the country was put through the hell of Trump’s deranged attempt to overthrow the election results. For the first time in our nation, a losing president refused to attend the inauguration of the winning candidate. First, the Dems would not accept that Trump won in 2016 and put the country through hell. Now, Trump won’t accept that he lost in 2020, so he puts the country through hell. Biden demands that Americans vote for Democrats or lose our democracy. What will he do if the Dems lose the mid-terms after promising to defend our democracy at all costs?

This needs to stop. This talk about democracy being threatened if the other guy wins. This threat of violence if we don’t get our way. This refusal to accept the results of free and fair elections. Our country is badly divided. A recent poll by YouGov found that 43% of Americans believe a civil war is likely within the next ten years. Why? Because our two parties have determined that they are the only ones to hold the true faith, the only ones to cherish and preserve the American idea. The other side is evil, deplorable, bent on violent overthrow, and a threat to our way of life. It isn’t simply a choice between one direction or another, between one set of policies and another. It’s a choice between good and evil. And if you think you’re the one defending the good and the other guy is genuinely evil, it becomes possible to justify almost anything in the pursuit of protecting the good.

Biden’s speech was unhelpful and a curse to our country. It contributed to the widening divide in our society. Winning an election is not worth tearing the country apart. We need leaders who possess the conviction that this nation must overcome its divisions if we’re going to not only make progress but continue to exist as one nation under God. By God’s grace, those leaders will arise before it’s too late. The current generation doesn’t look promising. I pray for my country.

Be Christ for all. Bring Christ to all. See Christ in all.