3 reasons Christians should support Trump’s Iran policy

In an age when foreign policy often divides Americans along partisan lines, Christians must resist the temptation to see international affairs through an entirely political lens. Instead, we are called to discern right from wrong, justice from injustice, peace from oppression. Nowhere is this more urgent than in our response to the Iranian regime’s pursuit of nuclear weapons.

President Trump’s consistent Iran policy — that Iran completely dismantles its nuclear program — is firm, clear and morally grounded; it deserves the support of Christians. The president’s insistence that Iran never acquire a nuclear weapon is not only wise and prudent foreign policy but is also a just and principled position. Here are three reasons why Christians in particular should support it.

1. Just war theory requires that we resist evil — even militarily, if necessary

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Christianity is not pacifistic. Our sacred tradition, from the Apostles to Augustine, Aquinas, and beyond, teaches that military force can be morally justified, provided that it is a last resort and if its aims are to restore peace and protect the innocent. That is the heart of Christian Just War Theory. Under that framework, preventing Iran — a regime that openly calls for genocide, funds global terror against non-Muslims, and attempts to assassinate the sitting President of the United States on U.S. soil — from acquiring a nuclear weapon is not just permitted. It is morally necessary.

The Iranian regime has, time and again, rejected norms of decency towards its own people and any foreign entities that do not comply with its apocalyptic empire-building. It has used diplomacy as cover for its grand ambitions to spread terror throughout the world. Years of negotiations and UN resolutions have done nothing to stop Iran’s nuclear march. The failed JCPOA, which President Trump was right to rip up, gave Iran billions in sanctions relief while allowing the regime to continue developing ballistic missiles and enriching uranium under the guise of civilian energy.

For Christians, the use of military force must always be regrettable, but it is not inherently wrong or immoral. When faced with an apocalyptic theocracy hellbent on regional domination and world destabilization, stopping that regime from going nuclear is not warmongering. It is responsible stewardship. It is the use of force in the service of peace.

2. Nuclear non-proliferation is a Christian good

The Bible begins with God bringing order out of chaos. As Christians, we are called to preserve that order that God established by protecting life and resisting the forces of evil that threaten the fabric of creation. Nuclear weapons, in the hands of tyrannical regimes, are precisely that threat.

If, Heaven forbid, Iran acquires a nuclear weapon, an arms race in the Middle East, an already volatile region, is likely to ensue: Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt might scramble to get the bomb themselves. The Middle East would become a tinderbox, threatening not only the world’s most sacred and holy places but the world.

As Christians, we are the stewards of the earth and the guardians of life. The spread of nuclear weapons is antithetical to both. President Trump’s maximum pressure campaign against Iran is a principled and moral position; all lovers of life should stand behind him.

3. The Iranian regime has been brutal to Christians

Lastly, we cannot forget that the Islamic Republic of Iran has been a persecutor of the Church. Since 1979, Iran has systematically repressed Christians in Iran and has spread terrorism against Christians across the region. The regime has the blood of tens of thousands of innocent Americans and others on its hands. How can any Christian fathom this oppressive and repressive regime emboldened by a nuclear weapon as anything less than the final tool needed for Iran to eradicate the last few Christians from the Middle East?

A nuclear weapon would solidify the regime’s grip on power. It would make international pressure infinitely more difficult. Iran would enjoy a shield of impunity, allowing it to continue its campaign of religious repression while expanding its influence abroad.

Christians cannot ignore the plight of our brothers and sisters in Iran. We cannot allow a regime that sees Christianity as an enemy of the state to gain the ultimate weapon.

Christianity demands that we “seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:15). But peace is not passivity. Sometimes, to preserve the good and protect the innocent, we must confront evil with strength. In confronting Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Trump continues to pursue the only moral path left. Christians should say so — and support him for it.