Advocacy for Christian nationalism and acceptance of infant baptism have ended Joe Rigney’s presidential tenure at Bethlehem College and Seminary, an independent Baptist school aligned with Reformed theology. “His position on the relationship between Christianity and civil government is not…
Inflammatory language of Christian nationalism is a real threat, Hollman and Tyler say
The use of dehumanizing language against people of faith who reject Christian nationalism is an attack on the religious freedoms guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution, leaders of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Freedom said in a recent podcast. BJC General…
Christian nationalists target public schools, undermining freedom of religion, webinar guests show
Multi-state campaigns to legislate prayer and Bible study in public schools seek to undermine freedom of religion and to make non-Christians feel like second-class citizens, Brian Kaylor said during a webinar hosted by Christians Against Christian Nationalism. Other efforts —…
He Gets Us, Part 1: The men and money behind the movement
Comingling faith and football has been a feature of the NFL experience for decades, but this year’s Super Bowl included something different. A group calling itself He Gets Us tweeted: “On February 12, the world’s biggest influencer is coming to…
White evangelicals are three times more likely than Americans in general to support Christian nationalism
New research shows white evangelical Protestants and Republicans are increasingly embracing the ideology of Christian nationalism at much higher rates than the general U.S. population. The survey of more than 6,000 Americans by Public Religion Research Institute and Brookings Institution…
What happens when church and state merge? Look to Nazi Germany for answers
The potential consequences of a merger of church and state sought by Christian nationalists are frighteningly apparent in the history of Nazi Germany, according to Dietrich Bonhoeffer expert John Matthews. Matthews, a Lutheran minister and member of the International Bonhoeffer…
New survey: Republicans and white evangelicals are outliers in fear of immigrants invading U.S.
The gap between Americans on immigration is steadily widening as conservatives increasingly embrace anti-immigrant attitudes that include a belief that migrants are invading the United States to displace white citizens, according to new research by Public Religion Research Institute. The…
The threat of Christian nationalism has only grown since January 6
Last Friday marked the two-year anniversary since the attempted insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. On that day, I was living about a half mile away from the Capitol, and I remember sitting in my home, glued…
Sunrise vigil features prayers to commemorate January 6 anniversary
Christian leaders gathered for a sunrise prayer vigil at the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 to commemorate the two-year anniversary of the 2021 insurrection and to seek divine guidance and protection in the struggle against the ideology of Christian nationalism. Event…
Amanda Tyler testifies before Congress against Christian nationalism
For an ever-so-brief moment Dec. 13, a congressional hearing on the rise of anti-democratic extremism morphed into a Sunday school lesson as Amanda Tyler, executive director of Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, fielded questions on the history of Baptists…
At Salem, a reminder the Puritans were Christian nationalists too
Last year my wife and I, on a trip to Maine, included our annual detour to Salem, Mass. It’s a fascinating city just outside Boston, filled with literary and pre-Colonial history. Quite an industry has grown up around the historic…
Oklahoma elects secretary of education who wants to require training in ‘Christian’ version of American history
The man elected to lead Oklahoma public schools for the next four years believes the state’s teachers all need remedial education from a conservative evangelical school in Michigan in order to teach “true history” that favors “Judeo-Christian values.” Republican candidate…