The Tree of Trump and its fruit

In my Revised Standard Version of the Holy Bible, Jesus says in Matthew 7:15-16 regarding false prophets, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits …” He then raises an analogy between good and bad prophets/people and good/sound trees and bad trees. Regarding good/sound trees and bad trees, Jesus says in Matthew 7:17-20, “ … every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. … you will know them by their fruits.” In Luke 6:43-44, Jesus says regarding good trees and bad trees, “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit.”

What kind of tree is the Tree of Trump? To tell, according to Jesus, we need to look at its fruit … at the fruit that it produces.

Good fruit would include kindness, peace, joy, love, hope, gratitude, thankfulness, life, creativity, calmness, altruism, charity, compassion, generosity, gentleness, tolerance, truthfulness, goodness, humility, empathy, forgiveness, mercy, understanding, serenity, honesty and humbleness. Bad fruit would include cruelty, war, violence, sadness, sadism, hate, despair, death, destruction, debauchery, divisiveness, violence, selfishness, lies, deceitfulness, theft, dishonesty, intolerance and vindictiveness.

What kind of tree is the Tree of Trump? If it is a good tree, then it should be allowed to stand and continue to bear its fruit. But if the Tree of Trump is a bad tree, what is to be done with it?

In Matthew 7:19, Jesus says, “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

Don Buss, Waukegan