Man Arrested in Capitol Siege Asked God For Guidance First: “I Never Heard a No”

One of the men arrested for his role in the Capitol siege was Doug Sweet, a Virginia man who was charged with Unlawful Entry.

The Wall Street Journal spoke with him after he returned home. Sweet is open about how he believes the right-wing conspiracy theories and how he was directly moved to riot by Donald Trump:

“He said, `Hey, I need my digital soldiers to show up on January 6,’” Mr. Sweet says of the president. “And we all did.”

Not exactly Antifa material right there.

Anyway, it was this next passage that stood out to me because it’s clear Sweet’s faith played a role in his crime. He literally asked God for guidance and it went exactly as you’d expect:

He says he hesitated. He says he felt the need to go inside to share his views with Congress but wanted to consult God first. He prayed aloud: “Lord, is this the right thing to do? Is this what I need to do?” He says he felt God’s hand on his back, pushing him forward.

“I checked with the Lord,” he says. “I checked with Him three times. I never heard a ‘No.’”

This is what happens when right-wing politics mixes with religious delusion. No one in this man’s life ever taught him God doesn’t speak to people. God doesn’t offer advice. God doesn’t respond because God doesn’t exist. Those are just voices in your head. You need a better foundation for your ethics.

Instead, they told him consulting with God was a perfectly normal thing to do, and he eventually used that as justification to join in the Capitol siege. This attempted coup could not have happened without the active participation of Christian Nationalists who have been brainwashed into thinking they’re victims of persecution by pastors who will never admit their role in this tragedy.