To try to define Christian Nationalism, you must break down the broad scope of religion and governance. Christianity is more of a historical perspective of a religion than a unified theology, and our democracy is only one form of governance.

Trying to separate the concepts of power, dominance, religion, politics, theology, and rationality is impossible because they all converge into social norms. Iran is a simpler form of theocracy, and some claim that the United States is moving in that direction. Who is supposed to be in charge?

In the 1920’s America was dominated by isolationism, racism, misogyny, unfettered capitalism, economic inequality, and small government. Today, the same beliefs still function but with different labels. Those with most extreme political views believe their mindset should dominate everything, including abolishing religious freedoms. It’s my way or the highway reasoning. When they criticize science, they are simply avoiding the idea of rational thought.

We have had extremists in this country going back to the Whiskey Rebellion. They were a minor blip in history, but the fissures in American society today are far more consequential. In some sense of the word, we are at war with each other, including a growing willingness to resort to violence. The 17th Century Civil and Religious Wars of England were perhaps the most extreme version of that.

We no longer have common social norms, models of economics, or effective personal interaction. It is acceptable to use hateful speech. The social contract is broken, and we are struggling to repair it. Today a handful of individuals and/or corporations control the economy. The Supreme Court even made the outrageous claim that corporations are people. In fact, the corporations were created to avoid personal liabilities and to grow into international giants, accountable to no one. The morality of profitability regardless of costs to society is the new religion.

The polyglot of immigrants in 19th Century America has descended to a fiefdom of economic war lords who dominate government. We don’t mix and blend anymore, we just get on our soap box and yell louder.

So how will this conflict work out in coming decades? As Americans, we usually wait until the last minute to resolve a crisis, but still work out a way to save the day. Neither the church nor the congress will provide a solution. The only solution will require common sense and mutual respect, which seems to be lacking these days.

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