"In all of this, we see a prominent recurring theme for evangelical leaders during the Bush era: the attempt to make a theological case for American power, both to the public and to those who directly wielded it. ...

The evangelical leaders and celebrity pastors who support Donald Trump do not appear to have a strong interest in building a moral world order" (continued in /3)

#Trump #Iran #war #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #HolyWar #authoritarianism #morality
/2

"through international coalitions and a foreign policy rooted in what the Christian tradition teaches about war, peace, and human dignity, as their forebears who supported Bush did. Instead, they seem guided by a desire to punish their enemies now, rejoice in the victory, and worry about the rest later."

#Trump #Iran #war #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #HolyWar #authoritarianism #morality
/3

"A good number of Trump’s supporters see him in sacralized terms. ...

The appeal of this religious rhetoric also involves a psychological attraction to brutality, cruelty, and domination. Amongst Trump’s base, many adhere to an idea of religion that, properly understood, is one of domination, of crushing of foes, of iron will, a celebration of hypermasculine violence."

~ Katherine Stewart

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism
/4

https://writekaths.substack.com/p/is-this-really-a-holy-war

"We now take for granted that, at a whim, Trump can unleash the tremendous power of the U.S. military on anyone – and also withhold it. This is a message that he wants to convey to his internal political enemies along with his supporters.

The language of reactionary religion is a useful tool for consolidating power. In the end, it is about replacing American democracy with a corrupt, kleptocratic, authoritarian order."

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism
/5

"The number of people who embrace this heresy [of Christian nationalism] in the United States hasn’t actually increased over the past decade. It is a minority position –two thirds of Americans reject it, as do most Christians. (Again, it isn’t Christian at all)."

~ William J. Barber and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism
/6

https://ourmoralmoment.substack.com/p/we-need-more-than-light-to-expose

"But the latest polling from PRRI shows that more than half of Republicans embrace this ideology, and its influence in our public life has been supercharged by Trump’s rise to power. ...

Religious nationalism isn’t new in American public life. Our colleague Phil Gorski calls it a 'deep story' – a trope Americans have come back to again and again."

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism
/7

"Religious nationalists distort both Christianity and Judaism in American public life to persuade people who feel like they are losing control that Trump is the strongman who can save them. In the face of so many uncertainties, they have presented Trump as 'God’s chosen one' to assure people that everything is going to be alright."

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism
/8

Wajahat Ali and Sarah Posner discuss how "Christian nationalists and pro-Israel extremists are uniting to burn The world." Ali says,

"We're not allowed to say white Christian nationalism. ... Meaning [not allowed by the] corporate media. You're just not. I was told, Can you say religious nationalism? Let's just say religious nationalism. Don't say Christian."

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism #media
/9

https://thelefthook.substack.com/p/how-christian-nationalists-and-pro

"And Robbie [P. Jones] and I are like, Nah, it's Christian nationalism. [The media say], Don't say white Christian nationalism, because it offends two powerful groups, white people and Christians. And so we still don't have a conversation about it in the mainstream, even though we're literally at war right now, thanks in part to a white Christian nationalist cheerleader cabal that is surrounding Donald Trump."

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism #media
/10

"It is pretty clear that 'Christian nationalism' is the popularly accepted term for 'Trump-Christianity' or 'MAGA Christianity' or the most-recent-form-of-a-form-of-fundamentalist-Christianity that has been present in the United States for a very long time (under a variety of monikers!)."

~ Diana Butler Bass

#Trump #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #authoritarianism #media
/11

https://dianabutlerbass.substack.com/p/no-kings-and-prodigal-protestants

"In the first Christian worship service at the Pentagon since the start of the strikes against Iran, Pete Hegseth, who likes to call himself the 'Secretary of War,' used prayer and several Bible passages to cast the conflict as a holy war against God’s enemies."

~ Brian Kaylor

#Trump #PeteHegseth #Iran #war #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #HolyWar
/12

https://publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/at-pentagon-worship-service-hegseth

"He prayed that God would pour out righteous wrath by helping 'break the teeth' and kill the 'wicked' enemies 'who deserve no mercy' and should be 'delivered to the eternal damnation prepared for them.'"

#Trump #PeteHegseth #Iran #war #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #HolyWar
/13

"And he did so during the service on Wednesday (March 25) while carrying up to the podium what looked like his Bible that’s stamped on the cover with a Jerusalem Cross and the phrase 'Deus Vult,' thus matching the controversial Crusader tattoos on his body."

#Trump #PeteHegseth #Iran #war #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism #HolyWar
/14

Lyz Lenz says that it's impossible to talk about what's happening politically in the US now without noting the role religion plays in US politics and culture:

"As I travel around reporting on my next book, I am noticing once again that churches and religious leaders continue to be powerful voices in this American moment, both for good and for ill."

#Trump #MAGA #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism
/15

https://www.patreon.com/posts/why-is-religion-153858743

"Joe Biden went to church more than Donald Trump, but it’s Trump who is seen as a 'Christian president.' This is because he embraces the branding of Christianity more than its tenets."

#Trump #MAGA #WhiteEvangelicals #WhiteChristianNationalism
/16