After Saturday, Trump’s Devotees See ‘God’s Protection’

For Donald J. Trump’s most devoted supporters, the bullet that nicked his ear and came within inches of ending his life was only further proof that a higher power is looking out for him.

“I don’t see this as luck,” said the Rev. Nathaniel Thomas, a Republican National Convention delegate and a pastor from the Washington, D.C., area. “I see this as God’s protection.”

After he spent decades pursuing riches, fame and power, Mr. Trump’s life has been far from pious. Yet he has drawn a committed core of followers — many in Milwaukee this week for his nominating convention — who view him as handpicked by God for a second term in the White House.

These supporters are less likely to explicitly compare him to Jesus and instead view him as the latest example of a morally flawed Old Testament hero, like Cyrus or David, who was ordained by the heavens to lead profound missions of good versus evil. Their passion for Mr. Trump has long transcended slogans on faded rally T-shirts or political bumper stickers, but now, it appears to be reaching new heights after the assassination attempt on Saturday.

“Something’s got to be at play,” said Michael Thompson, the Republican chairman in Lee County, Fla., while looking toward the sky as if to invoke the heavens. “I don’t think the average person could withstand a tenth of what he has gone through. So yeah, I think he’s probably chosen at the right time in our country’s history.”

Sue Means, 73, a delegate from Bethel Park, Pa., the hometown of the gunman accused by law enforcement officials of attempting to assassinate Mr. Trump, is an evangelical Christian who has been a member of a prayer team for the former president since 2016.