On Whataboutism
Progressives have certain tricks in matters of argument, sleight-of-hand techniques in which they commit logical fallacies and then gaslight their opponents by accusing them of logical fallacies. It is so common as to be an architype. This is because the Progressive worldview has a goal to get from Point A to Point B - and they see this transition as deterministically inevitable in a Darwinian sense. Hence no lying, cheating, or stealing in service to the hastening of the Inevitable by means of the Narrative is out of bounds.
One such tactic is the accusation of “whataboutism.”
It is presented as it if were the Tu Quoque fallacy, but it is not the same thing. For the one committing the Tu Quoque fallacy does not deny the premises of his accuser, but rather simply deflects blame. This distinction is crucial to seeing the claim of whataboutism for what it is.
Part of the Progressive worldview is Critical Theory (of which there are several subsets, including literary deconstructionism, Critical Race Theory, and gender ideology). Critical Theory is a form of cultural Marxism that has invaded the government, the academy, and the church at all levels. We in the LCMS delude ourselves if we think we are immune, or that we don’t have the Progressive worldview among our own people: clergy and laity alike.
This Progressive clamor for change also manifests itself in the anti-liturgical Church Growth Methodology that confesses the faith of marketing and manipulation instead of the genuine theology of the Holy Spirit. Even within the “conservative” LCMS, we have our own Progressive wing whose motto mimics the late John Shelby Spong: “Christianity Must Change or Die” - especially in matters liturgical and pertaining to the hymnody of the church. They often accuse us of “legalism” - when they are the ones pushing a heavy-handed paradigm of mandatory change with the promise of numerical growth (the old Theology of Glory coming out of the closet).
There are rostered LCMS pastors and other so-called professional church workers pushing so-called Social Justice and Critical Race Theory, and even a few peddling the new gender ideology. We ignore them and/or tolerate them at our own peril.
They will, for example, claim that one ethnic group cannot, by definition, be racist (which they hold to be a grave, if not unpardonable sin, even as they reserve the right to radically shift the meaning of the word to a definition that has nothing to do with hatred against ethnic groups. But at the same time, they will argue that another segment of the population is inherently, systemically, and irredeemably racist. If one points out the obvious double-standard, one will inevitably be accused of “whataboutism.” And when you hear this word being used, rejoice and be glad. The demon is beginning to expose himself.
At the risk of LCMS Progressives accusing me of whataboutism, what about Jesus?
When the Pharisees saw our Lord and the disciples plucking grain on the Sabbath, they accused them of sin. Jesus said, what about David and the priests? (Matt 12:1-5).
Shortly thereafter, the Pharisees saw our Lord about to perform a miracle at the synagogue on the Sabbath. They were accusing Him of advocating breaking the Third Commandment. Jesus said, what about how you rescue animals on the Sabbath? (Matt 12:9-12).
When the Pharisees saw our Lord exorcising demons, they accused Him of using the Satanic arts. Jesus said, what about when you people exorcise? (Matt 12:24-27).
When the Pharisees saw our Lord ignoring their hand-washing ritual, they accused Him of sin. Jesus said, what about the Corban decree, by which you ignore the Fourth Commandment? (Mark 7:1-13).
When the Pharisees saw our Lord eating with sinners and tax collectors (like Matthew, whom He had just called), they accused Him of inappropriate contact with the defiled. Jesus said, what about doctors who come into contact with sick patients? (Matt 9:10-12).
Similarly, Progressives, today’s Pharisees, the modern champions of the hypocritical double-standard and accusers and gaslighters of those who still cling to both faith in Christ and the godly, ministerial use of reason - likewise establish two sets of rules - one for me and one for thee. Their clown-world Alice in Wonderland heads-I-win-tails-you-lose paradigm is a direct assault on Jesus - who is the Logos, the Word, the Creator of the orderly world, in which there are not two laws of gravity: one for the allegedly oppressed and another for the alleged oppressor. There are not two separate sets of commandments, one in which a favored ethnic or sexual grouping of people are exempt from certain laws, while others are guilty of specific sins, real or imagined, just by their existence.
This evil must be exposed and rooted out. It is a cancer upon the body of Christ and upon the body politic.
And so when Progressives advocate for racial segregation or for the denial of fair treatment based on ethnicity, and when you retort by pointing out that this violates MLK’s famous dictum that people are to be judged by their character and not by their color - and when the Progressives tell you that you may not question the double-standard because of who you are, accusing you of whataboutism - you are causing the demons to shriek. That is the time to double down. Jesus always doubles down. Cast aside their accusations knowing that the very name of Satan means “the accuser”. And when they accuse you of whataboutism, take heart that their accusation points a finger at our Lord. For even as the Progressives of the first century hated Him, they hate us as well (John 15:18-25).
When a counter-example is cited to demonstrate the Progressive double-standard, it is the equivalent of throwing the penalty flag and calling a foul. It is like calling a “point of order” in a debate to deny your opponent-accuser to rig the system contrary to logic. And calling your opponent out on it has the precedent of our Lord Himself - the Creator, the Logos. And in so doing, we are “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb 12:2).
You are not required to play a rigged game. You have the whistle and the flag, and you have the Truth!
So we would do well to see through the claim of whataboutism for what it is: a violation of logic and a distortion of the Logos. It is an attack upon our Lord, upon the Word of God, and upon Truth itself. To pervert words is to pervert the Word. We Christians need to use logic and reason in a ministerial way and avoid being bamboozled by Progressives - whether they argue for racial division, sexual confusion, or the “progress” away from traditional liturgy and hymnody.
So beware of the leaven of those who cry “Whataboutism!”