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When news broke Thursday that former President Donald Trump had been found guilty of 34 criminal counts, I wondered what the convictions would mean for his relationship with Christian leaders.

I didn’t have to wait long for the answer.

Within hours of the jury announcing its verdict, prominent religious leaders who have partnered with the Trump campaign in the past took to social media to share their support for the former president.

• “My prayers are with (Donald Trump). It’s a very sad day for this nation. … I am proud to have known this man and I will continue to be a friend he can count on. I know who I can’t wait to vote for on Nov 5,” said the Rev. Jentezen Franklin, a megachurch pastor in Georgia.

• “One of the greatest honors in my life was being in the Oval Office to pray with other faith leaders led by Paula White for President Trump some years ago. We continue to pray for him and his family. What took place today is nothing short of an abuse of power that will ultimately backfire against the left,” said the Rev. Tony Suarez, vice president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference.

• “This guilty verdict that the Democrat led NYC Judge & Juror (delivered) just re-elected Donald J. Trump as the 47th President of the United States of America,” said the Rev. Mark Burns, a televangelist and Republican congressional candidate in South Carolina.

To be sure, some Christian leaders were critical of Trump. But they were generally people who are already known as never-Trumpers, including Russell Moore.

• “The question is what it has always been- fit or unfit. And the answer was obvious all along. Character matters, still,” Moore tweeted Thursday.

This pattern was present even if you didn’t zoom in on religious reactions to the jury’s decision. Those who supported Trump before the ruling really aren’t phased by it, while those who have concerns about the former president still have those concerns.

If anything, the news will serve to deepen the divide between the two camps, including in religious circles. Trump’s supporters will be even more motivated to defend him, while his detractors will be even more convinced that he’s a threat to the country.

To supporters, “he’s a martyr for the cause,” said political scientist Ryan Burge to Christianity Today after the verdict was announced. “Trump almost paints himself in a messianic light. And all messiahs face persecution.”

In general, “consistent” is a good word to use to describe Trump’s relationship with the Christian community and especially with white evangelical voters.

In 2016, 2020 and again this year, politically conservative Christians have turned out in droves at his rallies, while more liberal Christians have asked questions like, “What do you see in this guy?!”

One small change has been that, this year, the Trump campaign seems to be relying less on big-name Christian leaders and more on pastors at smaller churches. These pastors have been invited to deliver prayers at Trump rallies and connect him to individual Christian voters, according to NBC News.

“Celebrity pastors … have long stood by Trump’s side, giving him early credibility in their corner of Christianity. Now, the pastors taking the political stage across the country are most often local pastors with more immediate followings — further proof that Trump’s reach goes well beyond the television megachurches and into local congregations that were once more skeptical of a somewhat vulgar New York real estate tycoon and casino owner,” the article said.

Around 8 in 10 white evangelicals support Trump and majorities of Catholics and nonevangelical Protestants also plan to vote for the former president, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey.

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Term of the week: Wayfarers Chapel

Wayfarers Chapel is a house of worship in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. It was designed by Lloyd Wright, one of beloved architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s sons, according to The Associated Press.

The chapel, which is also known as “The Glass Church,” is set among “soaring redwoods” and has incredible views of the Pacific Ocean, the article said, noting that it opened to the public in 1951.

Because of its location, Wayfarers Chapel has sustained damage in landslides over the years. The situation recently got so dangerous that the chapel’s caretakers decided to close it.

“It’s actually dangerous to even walk on the grounds now because everything is breaking,” the Rev. Dan Burchett, the chapel’s executive director, told The Associated Press.

After deciding on a temporary closure, construction crews took apart Wayfarers Chapel. The plan is to rebuild it later after stabilizing plans are finalized.

“Reconstruction is expected to take four years and cost at least $20 million — a price tag that does not include a new plot of land in a very expensive area,” The Associated Press reported.

What I’m reading …

You likely saw some headlines in late May about a Christian missionary couple who were killed while serving in Haiti. Bobby Ross Jr. offered some more insight on that tragic situation in his weekly newsletter for Religion Unplugged.

As it prepares for an expansion, Arlington National Cemetery is wondering what to do with the thousands of mementos that have been collected from the graves of people lost to war in the years since 9/11. Some hope they will be adopted by a museum and put on display, according to The Washington Post.

On the occasion of his 30th wedding anniversary, Russell Moore wrote a lovely essay about why he regrets banning a popular Bible passage from the book of Ruth from his wedding.

Odds and ends

Over the weekend, I celebrated 10 years since I started as an intern at the Deseret News. Thanks to all of you newsletter subscribers for helping to make the past decade so special.