Far beyond the halcyon days of the Bible Belt, faith remains important in eastern North Carolina. And the Rocky Mount Events Center crowd of nearly 5,000 who attended former President Donald Trump’s campaign rally on Wednesday made sure that was known at every turn.

“We unite Christians, Jews, Catholics, Evangelicals, Muslims and Mormons and all those who want one thing to make America great again,” Republican presidential candidate Trump told his enthusiastic audience decked out in red, white and blue.

Laurie Buckhout, candidate for the 1st Congressional District in these districts, shed light on what this means with The Center Square before the 45th president takes the stage.

“I was backstage talking to a Secret Service agent,” he said. “’I was prayed for yesterday,’ he says. He didn’t do this. And I said, ‘How did you feel afterward?’ I said. ‘I felt very good,’ he says. ‘Hold on, baby,’ I said. One of the best parts of running in North Carolina is this belief, this love. And this is positive. It’s based on good things. It’s really based on joy; “This is about restoring prosperity and a faith-based vision.”

Faith was pushed forward in this selection phase. Maybe as much or more since America elected John F. Kennedy in 1960, the first Roman Catholic president who came with a very different narrative than the President who succeeded him, Joe Biden.

Four years ago, when Biden’s faith mostly stayed out of the headlines, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris called Trump a fascist and the Democratic National Committee linked him to Hitler.

For context, Hitler’s days nearly 90 years ago included Germans who became Christians, although they belonged to neither the Roman Catholic nor the Protestant church.

Strictly speaking, fascism is a political ideology that suppresses dissent and social hierarchy; all of which are contrary not only to his rival’s Presbyterian ascendencies, but to Christians in general.

There is also the war in the Middle East, sparked after Hamas attacked Israel 13 months ago, at the center of increasing protests on American campuses, and punctuated by a rise in Democrats supporting Palestine and a ceasefire because of America’s historic ally in the region.

Harris, In a social media post dated September 19“One need not abandon one’s faith or deep-seated beliefs to agree: The government, and certainly not Donald Trump, should not be telling a woman what to do with her body,” she wrote.

Just 90 minutes after his post, NFL Hall of Fame coaching legend Tony Dungy and many others responded, saying in part: “Are you talking about the Christian belief that all babies are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26) before God conceives them (Jeremiah 1) :5) and not to take life unjustly (Luke 18:20) What ‘faith’ are you talking about?

On October 10, Harris was in the pulpit of a church in eastern North Carolina, just down the road from Rocky Mount. Five days later, at a rally in Wisconsin, he responded to an attendee yelling “Jesus is Lord” with the following words: “You are at the wrong rally. The other one is down the street.”

“It makes you question his sincerity, because this was a pre-written script,” said Republican U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson of the state’s 9th Congressional District. “What wasn’t in the script was him telling that young man that he was at the wrong rally. “He really believes that.”

Trump’s lifestyle has made his share of headlines, with accusations of affairs on secret tapes and men’s locker room conversations. When it comes to faith, many thought he was done with an infamous quote from Liberty University reading “two Corinthians” instead of “second,” less than 11 months after defeating Hillary Clinton in January 2016.

“Faith matters,” said Buckhout, a retired lieutenant colonel who is facing Democratic Rep. Don Davis and trying to become the first Republican since 1882 to win an election representing the state’s northeastern district. “Faith is important in this state. Faith is more important than a lot of people think in this region.”

And he says he’s not down the old Bible Belt path.

“It shook,” he says of the nickname, “and a not-so-good conversation started. Now there’s a loving, accepting positive environment. It’s a broad environment. I see it all over the state. It’s loving, it’s kind, it’s accepting, it’s positive. Everyone is.” You want good things for every race, every demographic, and everyone.

Buckhout and Hudson, who got the crowd pumped up before Trump took the stage, say there’s nothing wrong with people standing up for what they believe in, regardless of their political party.

“There are people in this room who disagree with me on some issues, but I’m happy to have them here,” Hudson said. “It’s something as fundamental as your faith, and for you to say you’re not welcome at a Kamala Harris rally is shocking. He lost his way.

“The thing about America is that we have the freedom to choose our religion. We have the freedom to express our opinions. “It was shocking.”

Hudson said this is more than just politics where Democrats are wrong.

“The American people know this; “They don’t like the direction of the country,” he said.

The division driven by Harris and Trump will finally have a resting place — Election Day is Tuesday. And this battleground state commands 16 electoral college votes.

“It’s not red churches and it’s not blue churches,” Buckhout says, echoing the words of many pastors on the Tobacco Trail. “These pastors come in; No matter what color shirt you wear, they will pray for you. We feel the same way. I see more hugs happening.

“I run into people on the campaign trail and they say, ‘Hey, you know what, I’d love to vote for you, but I’m a Democrat.’ And I would say, ‘May God bless you.’ Thank you for being a part of the American experience. God bless you and thank you for voting.’ It’s not important.”