Increasingly cultish Trump rallies aim to shield him with 'armor of God'

Donald Trump's rally speeches have evolved since he left office under the cloud of Jan. 6 and now conspicuously blend evangelical Christian themes with QAnon conspiracy theories.

The former president follows the same script for rallies, making a quick stop at a local eatery to bask in the attention of supporters assembled by his team as a local pastor warms up the crowd with an "opening prayer" tying together conspiratorial themes with religious fervor, wrote attorney Ron Filipowski for The Daily Beast.

"Even though there are different pastors giving these prayers at each rally, the theme generally remains the same — that there are dark, satanic, sinister forces who have taken over the government behind the scenes (the Deep State), and these forces are threatened by the only man capable of defeating them — Donald Trump," wrote Filipowski, who has watched every Trump rally, interview and speech since January 2021. "Attendees are then typically asked to pray to put a 'hedge of protection' around Trump and his family, or to 'put the Armor of God' on him to safeguard him, because the agents of the Deep State will stop at nothing to destroy him."

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After suggesting the former president was in mortal danger from his enemies, the pastors then make that case that he was chosen by God as the only individual who could defeat these sinister forces, and they underline Trump's suggestion that he should accumulate autocratic powers to destroy the Deep State.

"He has been anointed by God for the task, and they often compare him to King David in this respect," Filipowski wrote. "The faithful are told the monumental task Trump is about to undertake on behalf of God cannot be accomplished by any other person because nobody else is willing to do what must be done."

Trump rallies then conclude with QAnon theme music, and many of the gathered fanatics hold up one finger as a symbol of the conspiratorial cult's slogan, “Where We Go One, We Go All."

"Whether moderate swing voters who tend to pay attention later in the election cycle will recoil at the idea that Trump is presenting himself as the second coming of King David," Filipowski wrote, "this messianic messaging clearly appeals to the fanatics who attend Trump’s rallies."