A Latinized version of the ancient Sanskrit maxim on statecraft reads, “Amicus meus, inimicus inimici mei,” but in English we say, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
In seeming contradiction to that maxim are the biblical admonitions not to be “unequally yoked” with unbelievers (2 Corinthians 6:14) or to rely on the human “arm of flesh” in fighting battles (Jeremiah 17:5). But in answer to both is the example set by Abraham in the rescue of Lot and his fellow captives of the Elamites in Genesis 14.
Importantly, there are no actual contradictions in the Bible, only challenges to believers to correctly reconcile apparent contradictions – and to grow spiritually in the process. “Come let us reason together,” invites God (Isaiah 1:18).
Due to Abraham’s treaty with Mamre the Amorite (Genesis 14:13), he did not hesitate to act on behalf of all the captives of the four kingdoms, and his subsequent heroic military victory was honored by no less an authority than Melchizedek, Priest of the Most High God (Genesis 14:17-20). Expressly included in the honor role by Abraham were the pagans Aner, Eshcol and Mamre who fought alongside him in that campaign (Genesis 14:24).
The lesson for Christians is that we may cooperate with non-believers in the pursuit of righteous goals so long as we lead the effort or at least our own part of the effort (per the duty of Christian stewardship) and keep our reliance on God (not human allies) for the outcome, so that He gets the glory for whatever success is achieved.
Let’s apply that principle to America’s culture war and the question of whether conservative Christians should ally with conservative secular populists and even liberal populists against the common enemy of the 1-percent globalist puppet-masters now working to enslave the world in neo-feudalistic serfdom.
Most of us don’t seem to have a problem in allying with secular conservatives, as evidenced by the MAGA movement which is about 50/50 Christian and secular conservative, although there are some Christians who shun the MAGA coalition out of concern for violating God’s “unequally yoked” statute. Perhaps some of these holdouts will benefit from the legal analysis I have offered above if they can agree that today’s secularists are the spiritual equivalent of Aner, Eshcol and Mamre under biblical law.
But the thornier question is whether we can and should ally with liberal populists who deviate much further from our worldview than secular conservatives do, but share the common enemy of the 1-percenters. This might seem to be a “bridge too far” for many MAGA enthusiasts but shouldn’t be.
First, let’s recognize that the potential for a powerful natural alliance does exist with these “enemies of our enemy” and has been ripe for development since the side-by-side rise of the “Tea Party” and “Occupy Wall Street” in 2009. These two polar opposites, representing the entire span of populist thinking, both had a focus on the elites as the true enemy, yet never sat down to discuss our shared goals and interests. I have long opined that these same elites have always been behind our national polarization, specifically to prevent us from uniting against them on the 80% of the issues we populists agree upon.
I have also long opined that our bridge to common ground with the left is environmentalism (aka creationism) because it assumes that a natural order exists among living things and should be conserved and protected from destructive human interference. I have explained this perspective at length in my article “A Natural Bridge to Common Ground with ‘Progressives.'”
My hypothesis is strongly bolstered by the case of Robert Kennedy Jr., adeptly summarized here in the article “How RFK Jr. went from ‘a good guy’ to an ‘anti-vaxxer.'” No one on earth could have higher “progressive” credentials than a scion of the Massachusetts Kennedy clan, the son of RFK and nephew of JFK. However, 20 years ago RFK Jr., while waging an environmentalist campaign exposing high mercury levels in fish, discovered a link between mercury in vaccines and autism. He became a crusader against Big Pharma when his fellow elites he confronted with his research defended the cover-up and instead attacked him. He now runs perhaps the best anti-COVID vax site on the internet and is a natural ally despite what are likely very liberal views on key social issues.
I’ll let my linked articles above cover the various practical questions and concerns raised by this column, and finish by addressing the major theological objection I anticipate Christian readers will have: cooperating with people who endorse the various abominations so central to the leftist worldview.
In Genesis 14, God has illuminated the path through this minefield by distinguishing the pagans Aner, Eshcol and Mamre from King Bera of Sodom (whose name means King of Evil). Bera was not only not included in the coalition, he was specifically rebuked by Abraham. Abraham rescued the kidnapped citizens of Sodom along with the rest despite their cultural affiliation with evil, but he would not in any way allow himself to be affiliated with King Bera, the symbol of Sodom, even in the division of plunder from the victory.
The clear implication of Genesis 14 is that the enemy of my enemy can always be my friend in practical and political matters of common interest, but can never be my friend in any situation where evil itself will be condoned or endorsed.
We Christians can cooperate with both conservative and liberal secularists in the preservation of such things as constitutional rights, the environment, and fighting COVID tyranny – in which we all have an essentially equal vested interest as human beings – but only in ways that don’t advance corrupt special-interest agendas at the same time.
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