The warning evangelicals preached and then forgot

Trump and the modern Antichrist archetype

To start off, it’s important to briefly note the history of the Antichrist. While the term antichrist (Greek: ἀντίχριστος) exists in the New Testament, its original meaning was likely a false teacher who denies core claims about Christ. Religion for Breakfast has an excellent video on the biblical origins of the Antichrist.

After the Reformation, the Antichrist was commonly considered by Reformed Christians to be the Pope, viewed in their minds as the key heretic, and the Catholic Church as a false, greedy form of Christianity that led people away from what they saw as the truth of Christ.

However, the modern image of the Antichrist has been largely shaped by the 1990s book series (and later films) Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. The series imagines the Antichrist as Nicolae Carpathia, a fictional political leader. Its success crystallised the idea of the Antichrist as a totalitarian ruler who builds a following to rival and oppose believers in the Christian God, and who (during the final seven years before the return of Christ) would rule the Earth.

Since then, many US presidents, as well as other leaders, has been called the Antichrist in evangelical circles. In theory, this makes sense: an ambitious, power-driven politician can, at the very least, partially fulfil the archetype of an antichrist. Many Christian traditions emphasise the evil of the interest in earthly rule. One of the key themes of the New Testament is that, while the Jews are expecting the Messiah (the promised king of the Jewish nation), Jesus instead arrives to show the way to the true Kingdom of Heaven.

Thus, it’s no surprise that the title of the Antichrist has been applied to numerous world leaders. The political ideology of those leaders plays a significant role in how such labels are used in evangelical circles, especially in the US. With Christian beliefs strongly linked to Republican values, Democratic presidents have often received the short end of the stick. However, truly convinced end-times believers were happy to brand as the Antichrist any leader who they believed attempted to oppose the Church.

Curiously, no other US president fits the Antichrist archetype better than Donald Trump. The coincidences are not solely limited to the modern archetype either; he can be read as fulfilling some of the more historical traits of the character. One of the most worrying signs is the cult-like following Trump has managed to garner among his MAGA supporters. The reality-bending “facts” the base repeats ad nauseam serve as a kind of false gospel. The performative Christianity that Trump displays could be considered as false Christianity from the Johannine verses. Furthermore, with the base largely comprised of evangelical Christians, the imagined course of action of the Antichrist (leading believers astray towards a false worldly focus) appears, to some, to be playing out.

This is not to mention Trump’s personal character. While he can be extremely petty towards his political and personal opponents, he has risen partly because of his charisma. First as a reality TV star and later as what could be considered the first influencer president. Trump has succeeded through a populist approach, leveraging his experience in the limelight. While his character is divisive, there is no question that he has stumbled into some extremely effective “political” tactics to achieve personal electoral success.

One key element of the Antichrist is the desire for power: the character’s goal is to consolidate worldly power and oppose Jesus before the Second Coming. Trump does not lack this trait either. Realising during his first term that the US political system requires difficult collaboration, he and his administration devised a plan to staff government with loyalists to ensure greater consolidation of power in his hands.

While belief in the Antichrist figure or the end times varies widely across different Christian denominations and communities, a key consideration is why these stories developed in the first place. One possible explanation is that the Antichrist archetype developed as a warning against overly power-hungry figures. As our ancestors watched political leaders throughout the ages, they may have observed toxic traits. Traits that tempt people into belief and devotion, but where that belief, in turn, brings ruin.

Thus, even for non-Christians, there may be a warning hidden in the Antichrist archetype that is as relevant now as it was millennia ago: a warning about figures who are overly worldly, overly power-hungry, and overly arrogant, while also being intensely charismatic.