The first time I observed American Christians creating idols of their ideologies was during the presidency of George W. Bush; I saw people put enormous faith in a president and his policies because—through their post-9/11 prisms—they came to regard his election as God-ordained. Especially within the online political forums I frequented from 2001-2003, Bush seemed nothing less than an agent of the Lord meant to avenge America’s dead, and in so doing either bring peace to the nations or usher in the messianic age.
I admit, being a religious person, and having cast my first vote rightward for Bush, I was not entirely immune from some of that apocalyptic speculation, but my concerns about indulging in idolatry tended to tamp down my fervor. That became easier, of course, by the fall of 2005, when George W. Bush was no longer anyone’s strange god.
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