President-Elect Trump,

We have read repeatedly in the last week that “white evangelicals” helped carry you to an electoral college win. As white Christians - many of us with evangelical histories or affiliations - we are sending this petition to make clear your appointment of Stephen Bannon as a Chief Advisor in no way reflects our faith.

Our identity as Christians is grounded in our belief in the saving grace of Jesus Christ, available to all who seek it, and our belief in our responsibility to carry with us the Good News of the Gospel, grounded in God's eternal and abiding love for humanity . Our commitments to follow Jesus Christ call us to "love the lord our God with all our heart, soul, strength and mind, to love our neighbors as ourselves” (Luke 10:27). Those commitments also call us to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God” (Micah 6: 8). Stephen Bannon's public career of fostering divisiveness, encouraging hatred of others, smirking at violence toward minorities and members of the LGBTQ community, and denigrating women has been a repudiation of the values. 

We will continue to pray that you reverse your decision to appoint Bannon. Meanwhile, our duty as people of faith, and followers of Jesus, requires that we oppose his appointment in every way we can imagine. 

 We are including Paul Ryan as a recipient of this petition because he is currently the most powerful official in your party. We urge him to oppose Bannon's appointment as well.