Hate Never Wins!
The year was 1995. I was 22 years old, and it was a regular Wednesday morning. Nothing was out of the ordinary. The skies were clear with a soft, cool April breeze. The typical rush hour traffic had subsided, and people had successfully shuffled themselves nicely into their cubicle workstations for the day.
Tick tock it is 9:00 AM.
Tick tock, it is 9:01 AM.
Tick tock…BOOM!
It is 9:02 AM and a Ryder truck filled with a deadly cocktail of fertilizer and other chemicals exploded at the Oklahoma City Murrah Building taking 168 souls including 19 children. More than 300 buildings were destroyed or sustained damage. Ten miles away, the windows in my childhood home inhaled and exhaled from the power of the blast, causing neighbors to run outside in a fit of confusion. This became the deadliest terror attack on U.S. soil at the time.
Driven by perceived righteousness, 27-year-old, former Army soldier Timothy McVeigh believed it was time to go “on the offensive – to put a check on the [U.S.] government’s abuse of power where others had failed in stopping the federal juggernaut run amok.”[1] Following his arrest, McVeigh repeatedly denied affiliation with any religious or separatist groups; however, FBI reports show strong connections to the Christian Identity movement, whose overarching ideology is an antisemitic, racist theology that believes “White people, not Jewish people, are the true Israelites favored by God in the Bible.”[2]
Because of the labels we place upon people, it might be easy to think that McVeigh lacked education or was raised in a low-income household rooted in some form of faulty Christianity along with a deeply racist ideology.
But what if our assumptions are wrong?
It is no secret that equality in America has never achieved the theology of universalism, which was designed to embrace a collective identity that focused more on the things that unified us than divided us. As poet Maya Angelou describes, “We are more alike, my friends, than unalike.”[3]
In his book, The Identity Trap, author Yascha Mounk addresses the explosion of modern-day identity politics, which asserts an intersectional view that the world is divided by the “Oppressed and the oppressor.”[4] Years of persistent injustices have fueled anger, causing people to band together for comfort through ideological agreement, unity, and perhaps even personal safety.[5]
However, the unintended consequences of remaining siloed in distinct groups are enormous. Doing so means we become stagnant and self-reliant rather than relying on God, who wants us to be uncomfortable so we can grow spiritually. James 1:2-3 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” Otherwise, we surround ourselves with people who share our opinions, and we fall into the effects of an echo chamber, missing the richness of communal life together and building trust for one another. We become isolationists; driven by fear of the need to protect our identities and material belongings.
People have a natural bias toward their own identity group while treating other groups with different standards. We tend to place a higher value on those who look, act, and think like us because we don’t understand or connect with those who do not. The result is the creation of an “us” versus “them” mentality.
Timothy McVeigh was a skilled soldier with a promising career. But following his service in the Gulf War, he grew disillusioned by some of the more violent behavioral aspects of military culture.”[6] His criticism of the government increased, unraveling extremist views adopted from the Christian Identity movement.
McVeigh eventually became so blinded by hate, self-righteousness, and anger, that he was unable to recognize the humanity of the individuals who perished on the morning of April 19, 1995. He consulted his feelings and cultural standards to define his identity and direction, when all along, he needed to look to Christ.
Our identities should never be about our shifting moods or family of origin. It should be about who God is and what God can do.[7] May He continue to use this experience to teach us to love one another, because hate never wins.
[1] McVeigh, Tracy. “The McVeigh Letters: Why I Bombed Oklahoma.” The Guardian, 6 May 2001, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/may/06/mcveigh.usa.
[2] “Christian Identity.” Southern Poverty Law Center, https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/ideology/christian-identity. Accessed 3 Mar. 2024.
[3] Family, Human. Human Family by Maya Angelou. https://allpoetry.com/Human-Family. Accessed 3 Mar. 2024.
[4] Baucham, Voddie T. Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism’s Looming Catastrophe. First trade paperback edition., Salem Books, 2022.
[5] Mounk, Yascha. The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time. Penguin Press, 2023.
[6] Terror on Trial: Who Was Timothy McVeigh? – CNN.Com. https://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/law/12/17/court.archive.mcveigh2/index.html. Accessed 3 Mar. 2024.
[7] Who Am I? https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/42282-who-am-i. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.
About the Author
Jennifer Eckert
Fundraising director, people connector, believer in second chances, fights poverty, supports justice reform, lives a life integrated with Matthew 25.12 responses to “Hate Never Wins!”
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Jennifer,
I appreciate that you are checking our assumptions. I remember the bombing well, but certainly without the first hand experience. What do we say to those now who still hold to those extreme beliefs? How do you think we warn them about the identity trap they have fallen into? Do they even know they are in a trap? If they know it, do they even want a way out?
Hi Adam,
You have very relevant and timely questions. I don’t believe people who are involved in fringe groups recognize it because it is easy to gravitate toward people who validate our own feelings. Or if they do recognize it, they don’t acknowledge it out of a need to protect something.
In the case of Tim McVeigh, I believe that when he went to work as a soldier, he was “all in,” but the deeper into it (the higher he climbed) the more he saw things that caused him to rethink his opinion of his employer. I have had a job like that in the past. I felt duped and exhausted. This is the intersection of vulnerability that I believe he leaned into fringe groups that validated his thoughts.
I wish I knew how to warn people or prevent this type of ideology risk. But as with many things, they need open hearts and a willingness to hear it. Otherwise, they will just discount anything said.
People are bull-headed. Jesus knew that. He was an innocent man who went to prison and ultimately received capital punishment. Of all the people who could have stopped that journey, none were successful. The “go along to get along” mentality is something that can only be resolved when the Lord takes over. I would love to hear your thoughts or other people’s thoughts to your questions.
Jennifer,
In our post-modern world with truth being deemed unreliable it really is hard. I would argue we just need to continue to point towards truth but not everyone wants to accept it or believe it. I recently met with a Muslim Sheik. He told me the only way to support their community was to stand up for them at council meetings, in public, etc. Essentially, he only wanted me to make a loud noise endorsing the identity synthesis. I argued that the best thing to do was intentionally develop relationships to learn from each other.
An additional comment – I just arrived in Waco for work, and coming into town, there were about 25 or 30 Bandido motorcycle gang members riding next to me on the highway. I thought about the Identity Trap with gang members. Generally speaking, gangs trap others by bringing them into “the family”. I began wondering how much different the Bandidos were from the groups that McVeigh shared values.
I think everyone finds themselves at intersections of change at one time or another, but it is how you manage it that keeps you from falling into the trap. It is horrible what McVeigh did in Oklahoma, and even right now, the Oklahoma Bandidos are on a warpath. There have been several rough incidents of violence lately.
None of it is reflective of the love or nature of Jesus.
I concur with your reply to build relationships. Dissolve the us vs. them mentality by building bridges.
Thanks for your post Jennifer! How did your firsthand experience of that bombing shape you as a child?
Hi Ryan,
Thank you for your question. It made me aware of my own identity. As a result, I spend most of my life in circles of people that may not look or act like me, but are equally as broken and in need of salvation.
Thanks Jennifer. That’s a powerful powerful story. I really do believe that Christians can lead the way in this but I have read that Sunday morning is the most segregated time in America (and probably Canada too). How might Christian leaders and churches practically create more of an “us” v “them” culture?
Thank you, Graham. I believe that Christian leaders need to be intentional about building relationships with others, especially other faith leaders outside of Christianity. It doesn’t mean you are endorsing another faith, but you are endorsing respect and a shared humanity that desperately needs to be role-modeled now more than ever. True friendships. Guests at each other’s dinner tables. Concern for each other’s families. Loving our neighbors authentically.
This Amazon Prime commercial says it best: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W26d_twg5cM
If you can’t access the link, search on your YouTube version for Amazon Prime Ad – A Muslim and a Christian in Peace.
Blessings to you and your family.
Hi Jennifer,
Sorry you had to live through the OK bombing. It certainly had an effect on all of us, but I am sure not half of what you all did living nearby,
Interesting thought you wrote: “Our identities should never be about our shifting moods or family of origin. It should be about who God is and what God can do.”
Where I totally agree with you on that statement; aside from evangelizing – what do you do about non-believers?
Great question, Chris. I think it goes back to what you talked about in your blog post. Humanizing each other. Grab a meal, be intentional to form a relationship, listen to understand, and learn from each other. Building basic trust and rapport can open more doors than you know. Well, you probably DO know that because you probably had to learn how to interact with different personality types.
I can see the trend in my own responses for the past few weeks – it all goes back to relationships. Thank you, friend.
Jennifer, this is a wonderful post. I bet you never imagined such a tragic event in 1995 would prove to be such a relevant example in a post for your doctoral studies. I agree with you. When we remain siloed, there are major consequences. I see this firsthand in North Africa. Kari’s post shares more about this. However, I recently attended a university event where students and faculty emphasized the importance of learning from one another and giving each person a voice. It was beautiful. Yes! Our identities are rooted in who God is and what God can do.
What does this idea of identity synthesis look like in prison work? Is there openness to discussion on the subject?