Spotlighting Christian Nationalism in the Texas Panhandle: Jimmy Witcher
Pastor Jimmy uses right-wing politics to enforce his religious beliefs.
James L Witcher Jr. is not an exceptional man. If you put him in a line-up with 5 other Joel O’Steen-type Evangelical preachers, he’d be indiscernible from the rest. The crisply tailored suit, perfectly styled hair, well-groomed facial hair intended to convey ruggedness and professorial intellect. The ever-present smile displaying perfect white teeth, and the piercing blue eyes staring at you with conviction.
His show on-stage isn’t unique or exceptional, either. He promises adherents of his doctrine that God will reward their faith with material blessings, financial success, great marriages, perfect children, and physical health. He’s your typical motivational speaker with some Bible verses thrown in. All delivered in a melodic cadence carefully crafted to convey a sense of unity with his audience.
In my view, the only notable things about “Pastor Jimmy” are his blatant disregard of the Constitution he claims to defend, his open violation of IRS rules prohibiting churches from participating in political campaigns, and his extreme Christian Nationalism.
Pastor Jimmy and his wife Kim joined Trinity Fellowship Church in Amarillo in 1994. It seems he wasted no time in setting his sights on letting the rest of the community know how he intended for them to live their lives. It’s not enough for Pastor Jimmy to dictate the rules of life for the 10,000 congregants who enable him to live a very comfortable lifestyle. He wants to write the rule book for ALL of us. Muslims, Buddhists, atheists, agnostics, Pastor Jimmy intends to rule us all.
Pastor Jimmy knows that he is not charismatic or intelligent enough to convince all of us to abide by his demands, so he unabashedly uses his church as a right-wing political tool. He regularly promotes and endorses political candidates during his Sunday “church service”. On April 23, 2023, Pastor Jimmy ignored federal tax rules by hosting a political candidate forum. The potential violation was already audacious, but Pastor Jimmy didn’t stop there. He only invited candidates to participate who were members of his church. Apparently, Pastor Jimmy is no fan of democracy.
The forum itself was unethical, and potentially illegal. The events that occurred during the forum further revealed the character of Pastor Jimmy and his flock. When a church member asked Canyon ISD school board candidate Paul Blake how he would handle the “LGBTQ agenda”, Blake answered “I just don’t think the school board has any business in sex education or promoting a perverse, degenerate, demonic thing that's from the devil, because there's nothing right, you know it's a mental issue," This cruel and ignorant statement led an LGBTQ+ advocacy group to file a federal lawsuit against Blake. The status of the planned lawsuit is unclear because Paul Blake died a few months later.
Pastor Jimmy also says women are not allowed to terminate pregnancies. At the beginning and end of each service, he tells his flock there are petitions available for them to sign for the “Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn” initiative. He wants to impose travel bans on women who need to travel out of state to seek abortion healthcare. Interestingly, Pastor Jimmy’s high standards for morals and values do seem to have limits. In 2016, a $50 million lawsuit was filed against the church. The lawsuit alleged members of the church kept quiet about child molestation committed by one of their volunteer pastors, “Pastor Randy” Castillo. According to the lawsuit, members of the church indicated in internal emails that they were aware of Pastor Randy asking junior high-aged girls for nude pictures. The church did not inform law enforcement, or the parents of the children. Ultimately, Pastor Randy was indicted on two counts of sexual assault of a child, and two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child.
The Texas Panhandle is still a free and democratic society (unless you are a woman). People have the right to attend whatever church they choose. They are free to listen to any slick-talking preacher they like, and empty their pockets to him. However, conforming to that preacher’s rules and beliefs is a choice. And the biggest majority of us do not choose to listen to Pastor Jimmy’s beliefs, thoughts, or opinions. We don’t care what he thinks is right or wrong. Tend to your sheep, Pastor Jimmy. Leave the rest of us alone.
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