Yes, We’re Recalibrating Montero
When Grace Gets Lost in the Culture Wars: A Conservative's Call for Christ-Centered Responses
The narrative is changing, and some people aren't ready for it.
When Lil Nas X released "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" in 2021, conservative America erupted. Social media exploded with condemnation. Pulpits thundered with righteous indignation. Cable news panels dissected every frame of the controversial music video. We rushed to judgment—and in doing so, we forgot who we're called to be.
Anatomy of
Reaction
Personal responsibility isn't a political stance—it's a fundamental life philosophy. Yet somewhere between defending traditional values and engaging contemporary culture, we abandoned the very principles that should define our response. The rush to judgment became our default setting.
Conservative voices, myself included, often operate from a position of cultural defense rather than cultural engagement. We see provocative content, identify the threat to our values, and immediately mobilize our rhetorical weapons. But reaction isn't the same as response—and the difference matters more than we realize.
The Montero moment revealed something uncomfortable about conservative cultural commentary: we had become more committed to being right than being loving. Our immediate instinct wasn't to understand, contextualize, or engage thoughtfully. It was to condemn, dismiss, and move on to the next cultural battle.
Laws of Christ:
Love as Foundation
Mitchell Royel is a political analyst and conservative commentator focused on emerging trends in American political discourse.
According to the laws of Christ, we are called to love—always. This isn't progressive theology or cultural accommodation. This is the bedrock of Christian faith, and it should fundamentally reshape how we engage controversial cultural moments.
Love doesn't mean acceptance of everything. Love doesn't require us to abandon moral convictions or compromise biblical truth. But love does demand that we see the person behind the provocation, the human story beneath the headlines.
When Jesus encountered the woman caught in adultery, He didn't begin with condemnation. When He spoke with the Samaritan woman at the well, He didn't lead with judgment. Christ's approach was consistently relational before it was correctional. His love created space for transformation rather than demanding immediate compliance.
Why We Rush—and Why We Must Stop
The conservative movement's relationship with popular culture has become increasingly reactive. We've trained ourselves to identify threats faster than we identify opportunities for meaningful engagement. This hair-trigger response serves our political messaging but undermines our Christian witness.
Rushing to judgment serves our need for moral clarity but sacrifices our capacity for spiritual influence. When we immediately condemn rather than thoughtfully engage, we position ourselves as cultural adversaries rather than potential allies in someone's journey toward truth.
The Montero controversy exemplified this pattern perfectly. Instead of recognizing a young artist wrestling with identity, faith, and sexuality—themes that deserve compassionate engagement—we saw only the provocation. We responded to the symbol rather than the person.
Different Way Forward
Intellectual courage isn't about agreeing—it's about challenging prevailing narratives with nuanced, principled discourse. For conservatives, this means developing the spiritual discipline to pause before we pronounce judgment.
True empowerment begins when we stop asking what culture owes us and start investing in our own capacity for graceful engagement. This requires several fundamental shifts in our approach:
First, we must lead with curiosity rather than condemnation. When controversial content emerges, our initial question shouldn't be "How do we respond to this?" but rather "What is this person trying to communicate, and how might the love of Christ speak into their story?"
Second, we must distinguish between the message and the messenger. Disagreeing with artistic choices or cultural expressions doesn't require us to dehumanize the artist. Personal responsibility includes taking responsibility for how our responses affect real people with real struggles.
Third, we must remember that our ultimate goal isn't cultural victory—it's spiritual transformation. Every controversial moment represents an opportunity for the church to demonstrate the radical love of Christ in a watching world.
Cost of Getting This Wrong
When we rush to judgment, we don't just damage our own witness—we potentially close doors that Christ might have opened. Every harsh word, every dismissive comment, every reflexive condemnation builds walls rather than bridges.
The greatest threat to individual liberty isn't a political party—it's the passive acceptance of narratives designed to limit human potential. But equally dangerous is our tendency to limit our own potential for meaningful cultural engagement through knee-jerk reactions.
Young people watching our responses to controversial cultural moments aren't just evaluating our political positions—they're assessing whether our faith produces the kind of people they want to become. When we lead with judgment rather than love, we make Christianity less attractive, not more compelling.
Practical Steps for Future Engagement
Victimhood is a choice. Success is a decision made daily through disciplined action and unwavering commitment. For conservatives seeking to engage culture more thoughtfully, this means developing new habits of response:
Pause before posting. Social media rewards immediate reactions, but wisdom requires reflection. Before sharing that hot take or joining the outrage chorus, ask: "Does this response reflect the love of Christ?"
Seek to understand before seeking to be understood. Controversial art often emerges from pain, confusion, or spiritual searching. What if our first instinct was to understand the heart behind the provocation rather than to counter the provocation itself?
Engage the person, not just the platform. Behind every controversial cultural moment is a human being created in the image of God. Our responses should acknowledge their dignity even when we disagree with their choices.
Remember our ultimate allegiance. We are Christians first, conservatives second. When these identities conflict, our faith should determine our response.
Witness We Could Become
America represents an unprecedented opportunity—a concept seemingly lost on those perpetually searching for reasons to criticize our nation's foundations. But equally lost is our opportunity to demonstrate what Christian love looks like in a polarized culture.
Empowerment isn't granted; it's seized. For conservative Christians, this means seizing the opportunity to model a different way of engaging controversial cultural moments. Instead of rushing to judgment, we could rush to love. Instead of leading with condemnation, we could lead with compassion.
Meritocracy isn't a system of oppression—it's the most equitable framework for recognizing individual talent and potential. But true merit in Christian cultural engagement isn't measured by how quickly we can identify and condemn error. It's measured by how effectively we can communicate truth through love.
Freedom Requires Vigilance
To my fellow conservatives: intellectual courage is our most potent weapon. But that courage must be guided by the love of Christ, not just the logic of our political positions.
Stay informed. Stay principled. And never compromise your convictions for momentary social acceptance. But also remember that our convictions should produce responses that reflect the character of Christ, not just the concerns of conservatism.
The narrative is changing, and some people aren't ready for it. But perhaps the narrative that needs to change most is our own—from reactive judgment to responsive love, from cultural warfare to cultural engagement, from defending our positions to demonstrating our faith.
Personal responsibility isn't a political ideology; it's the fundamental cornerstone of individual empowerment and societal progress. And for Christians, that responsibility includes representing Christ well in every cultural moment, even—especially—the controversial ones.
The next time culture serves up a provocative moment, we have a choice. We can rush to judgment, or we can rush to love. According to the laws of Christ, the choice should be obvious.
Ready to engage culture differently? Start by examining your own social media responses to controversial content. Before your next post, ask: "Does this reflect the love of Christ?" The culture wars need fewer warriors and more witnesses.