SPIRITUAL BROTHERS AND SISTERS
Christian Nationalist rhetoric promises broad benefits to all Americans — including Christians of all faiths — when the Christian Nationalist movement gains control of all governments. That is the theme of their propaganda, but the truth is that the movement will only benefit Christian Nationalist leaders with political power and material wealth. The truth is that what is good for the Christian Nationalists always means hardship for someone else — including other Christian faiths. Political and religious activism is always a zero-sum game. When Christian Nationalists win, someone else loses. We see this equation at work every day in the news. We should not be surprised because we see these inter-religious conflicts throughout the bible.
The ironic truth is that the winners and the losers share the same spiritual roots: The literal words of the bible. The only differences between name-brand, legacy religions and Christian Nationalists are in how those literal words are interpreted and applied in doctrine and religious practice.
History tells us that there has never been real peace within and between the Abrahamic religions even though they claim to follow the same God. Religious dominance and submission have always been the reason for interreligious conflict between spiritual brothers and sisters. Moreover, the bible clearly reports that there has always been intrareligious conflict. Sharing the same spiritual roots has never been a good enough reason for different religions to get along.
The Old Testament reports intrareligious division between the northern and southern tribes of Israel. The New Testament reports interreligious conflict between Jews and Christians. The crusades and reformation are exceptional examples of bloody interreligious religious disputes played out in a never-ending series of religious conflicts. Even today we see denominations splitting because of doctrinal disputes.
Doctrinal differences are spread across the spectrum of Christian, Muslim and Jewish denominations. At one end of the spectrum, some sects are relatively obscure and benign. Historical, mainline religions know their place in the fabric of American religious culture and are content to maintain their share of the Christian religious market. Not so with the Christian Nationalists who are not content with their share of the America’s religious kingdom. At the extreme end of the religion spectrum, Christian Nationalists are visible, malignant, and on the move to colonize the nation for God’s glory (so they say) and their control. At the other end the legacy/mainline Christian faiths and Judaism passively submitting to religious abuse in government and the judicial system.
Historically, when a religious sect believes God has given it the right understanding of scripture, it mobilizes to force the other religions to adopt that understanding. The case of Christian Nationalism is only the most recent iteration of this history, thus proving what God has said about nothing new under the sun.
Christian Nationalists are at the visible, malignant end of the spectrum even though their doctrines and practices emerge from belief in the same God and the same literal words of the bible read by their spiritual brothers and sisters: Catholics, all protestant sects, Jews and Muslims. In fact, Christian Nationalists’ fear of Muslims is evidence that the seeds of historical, interreligious conflict between the two religions still produces bad fruit.
Sharing a common biblical heritage does not deter Christian Nationalists from wanting to convert all brands of religion to the Christian Nationalism brand. Finding all other religious brands doctrinally deficient and inferior to the Christian Nationalism brand of Christianity, Christian Nationalists see full conversion to their brand of Christianity as the goal that will earn God’s full blessing for them and America. They have said as much without shame or reservation in their Seven Mountains Mandate.
Motivated by unshakeable self-righteousness, Christian Nationalists are fully committed to religious imperialism that presumes to absorb all religions into theirs. And they are fully prepared to use the following strategies reported in Perplexity AI:
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Christian nationalists have aligned themselves closely with the Republican Party, particularly under the leadership of Donald Trump, leveraging electoral politics to gain power and shape legislation1, 5.
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They advocate for policies that prioritize their interpretation of Christian values, such as restricting LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive freedoms, and racial justice initiatives 8.
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Efforts include promoting candidates and judicial appointments sympathetic to Christian nationalist views and supporting legislative agendas that weaken the separation of church and state5, 8.
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Christian nationalists work to influence the judiciary, aiming for court rulings that favor Christian interests and erode boundaries between church and state5, 6.
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They support legal initiatives to prioritize biblical principles over secular law, with some advocating that the Bible should take precedence over the will of the people in legislative matters4.
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There is a strong focus on reshaping public education, including proposals to abolish the Department of Education, promote school privatization, and revise curricula to align with Christian nationalist ideology5 6.
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They push for book bans, censorship in schools and libraries, and the teaching of a “whitewashed” version of American history that supports their worldview8.
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Right-wing media, disinformation campaigns, and coordinated messaging are used to manipulate public opinion, spread fear, and mobilize supporters around perceived threats to Christian America87.
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Religious language and imagery are employed to frame political and cultural battles as spiritual warfare, often portraying Christians as persecuted and under siege6 7.
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Movements such as the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) use networks of self-appointed prophets and apostles to mobilize believers, emphasizing direct divine guidance and spiritual battle for control of the nation6.
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Churches, religious organizations, and affiliated groups serve as organizing hubs for political action and community influence3 6.
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The movement is supported by wealthy donors, corporate interests, and political action committees that fund campaigns, media, and advocacy efforts8.
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Christian nationalists often channel societal fears and grievances into resentment against minorities, immigrants, and non-Christians, using exclusionary rhetoric to define “true Americans” as Christians who conform to their ideals7 9.
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They sometimes advocate for authoritarian measures to “recapture” the nation and suppress dissent, including voter suppression and election denialism 8 9.
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Anyone who has watched the news during President Trump’s second term knows that these strategies are very much in play and having some success. Many Americans — including some Christians — are rising up to protest Trump’s policies as threats to democracy, but no one — including Jews, Christians, Muslims and other faith traditions — are resisting these threats by employing conventional political/legal strategies, but they are not mounting their resistance as religious/spiritual warfare which would include other strategies included in this website.