Golden Thrones and the Stench of Empire
A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble
“When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” — Often attributed to Sinclair Lewis
This week, President Trump took a literal bulldozer to the East Wing of the White House—without permits, without oversight, and without public consent. In its place, he plans to build a $250 million ballroom, a monument to his own power and vanity. The “People’s House,” steeped in decades of democratic history and symbolic of our shared civic life, is being defaced for the benefit of one man’s ego.
As if to underline his contempt for the American people, he also released an AI-generated video of himself flying a fighter jet over New York City, where he dumps excrement on the nation. You should see it for yourself.1 This video—vulgar, adolescent, and surreal—is not a joke. It’s an intentional act of degradation, a message to every citizen: you are beneath me.
In any healthy society, these actions would spark a constitutional crisis. Clearly, Trump is not fit for office. But we are no longer in a healthy society. We are living in a time when authoritarianism disguises itself as patriotism, when vulgarity parades as strength, and when the machinery of government is bent toward the performance of unchecked power.
These actions are more than political theater. They are a desecration of our shared values and public trust. It is a form of spiritual violence—the erosion of meaning, the corruption of beauty, the manipulation of collective memory.
When a leader mocks the people he serves, when sacred spaces are destroyed for vanity, when history is bulldozed to make room for ego, we must understand that this is not just bad leadership. It is a moral emergency. It is what theologian Dorothee Soelle described as “the crucifixion of God in history”2—a turning away from love, from justice, and from the truth of our interdependence.
This is why what we do in response matters. Every act of protest, every refusal to normalize this absurdity, every tender gesture of repair, becomes an act of resurrection. We are not just resisting a person; we are resisting the collapse of meaning. We are bearing witness to something greater: the resilience of the human spirit, the sacredness of shared life, and the enduring call to justice.
Empires fall. But the people endure. Let us be among those who remember who we are.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
What do you consider “sacred” in public life? How do you respond when it’s desecrated?
In moments when truth is distorted by power, what helps you stay grounded in what’s real?
What small act of restoration—personal or public—can you offer today?
A Prayer for the Day
A Prayer to Remember
God of Justice and Memory, When those in power desecrate the sacred, Help us become the ones who remember. When buildings are razed and people are mocked, Help us become the ones who restore. Let no lie go unanswered. Let no cruelty go ungrieved. Let no truth be buried beneath golden marble. Strengthen our voice. Kindle our courage. And root us, always, in the power of love. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Name and Restore
Take a moment to name something in your community or country that feels desecrated. It may be a literal place, a memory, a tradition, or a value.
Now, light a candle or place your hand over your heart and speak aloud:
“I remember this. I will not forget. I will be part of the restoration.”
Then, take one action, small but real, that resists the desecration and restores the sacred. This might be telling the truth publicly, donating to a cause you believe in, or offering care to someone harmed by this moment.
Let your action be a stitch in the larger mending. Let it matter.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
October 20-24, 2025 - FREE Online 5-Day Summit on “Made for These Times: Spiritual Leadership for a World in Crisis.” Political extremism. Climate collapse. Cultural fragmentation. People of faith across the globe are asking: How do we lead with clarity, courage, and compassion in a time like this? REGISTER HERE.
October 23, 30, November 13, 20 2025, 7pm ET - In Search of a New Story: Reimagining What Comes Next, A 4-Part Online Series with Dr. Matthew Fox, Cameron Trimble, Ilia Delio, Diana Butler Bass, Caroline Myss and Luther Smith. We are living through the unraveling of many old stories—about who we are, why we’re here, and how we are meant to live together on this Earth. As these inherited narratives collapse under the weight of climate crisis, social fragmentation, and spiritual disconnection, the question becomes clear: What story will guide us now? REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!
October 30 - December 4, 2025 - Online Course “Partnering with Life: Our Missing Ally” with Margaret Wheatley. Meg is launching a new course (and I will be tagging along). Partnering with life means much more than getting into nature to soothe our troubled selves. Life is waiting for us to join her as we struggle to maintain sanity through this dark and destructive time. Learn more and register here.
July 19-24, 2026 - Join me and amazing co-facilitator, Victoria, on retreat in the back-country of beautiful Wyoming. The Art of Wilding is a 5-Day Expedition for Women Leaders. We will spend the week reconnecting to nature, exploring our inner landscapes for change, and engage the wisdom of spiritual teachings. Click here to learn more.
I drafted a Strategic Framework for Congregations as we move into the coming years of increased authoritarianism around the world. If interested, you can download it here.
If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.
Soelle, Dorothee. The Silent Cry: Mysticism and Resistance, Fortress Press, 2021.
Thank you, Cameron, for your continuing encouragement to hang on to our values and resist the current madness.
The empire’s gotten lazy with its metaphors. Golden ballrooms, AI airstrikes, and a king who mistakes excrement for symbolism. It’s like Rome rebooted with worse writers. Blessed be the ones who still name the rot with humor, who laugh not to escape but to stay sane while the marble cracks.