Anyone who has read about the history of various races, ethnicities and countries knows that there has never been a religious group in charge of government who has not hated and committed violence against another group of people because of their religion, race, politics, gender or other trait. Religion is used as an excuse to hate and commit violence because their "god" promotes it. I support religious freedom but I condemn religious hatred.
George and Todd, great post, and as the president/founder of PRRI (and an reader of Big Picture!), grateful to see the inclusion of the recent PRRI/Brookings Christian Nationalism survey in the post today. This movement is a serious threat to American democracy. Thank you for amplifying.
For anyone interested in a deeper dive, I teamed up with Kristin Du Mez and Jemar Tisby (who were on the panel at Brookings for the survey release) for a unique virtual roundtable on our respective substacks. You can check it out here: https://robertpjones.substack.com/p/a-virtual-roundtable-on-the-threat-c2b.
You're welcome. I'm an admirer of your work and so appreciative of your courage, clarity, and leadership. My 12-year-old son learned so much from "They Called Us Enemy."
This is an excellent, detailed explanation of the position and strategy of the anti-democratic movement being pushed by the far right. I could write a similar piece pointing out the logical errors and anti-Christian ideas they push. For now, I would just point out that the U.S. Constitution is not based on the Bible. Rather it is based on 17th Century ideas of democratic government as understood by James Madison and the other framers, one if which is that citizens should have full freedom of personal belief and should not be forced to accept any single government-enforced religion. The First Amendment clearly defines the separation of church and state and is the law of the land.
Just because the 'Christian' right usurps that title doesn't mean they have any but the use of a faith for reasons of power & self-service. W hen Jesus was asked "who is my neighbor?" after he had said the Law required only love of God & love of neighbor, he illustrated his answer by describing a foreign non-Jew who went out of his way to lovingly care for an injured Jew...the 'Good Samaritan'. It seems the ethic of love does not fit the rhetoric of the 'right' despite what they call themselves.
Last month I binge-watched all 5 seasons of The Handmaid's Tale and anxiously await the concluding season 6. The blog was a fantastic, if somewhat terrifying coda to that. It compliments nicely Rachel Maddow's ULTRA podcast series, and Ken Burns' "The U.S. and the Holocaust" 3-part documentary. The message and historical implications here are lessons every American should know.
I am so glad I subscribed to this Substack! This is a great read, and it persuasively argues that discrimination and hatred against trans people and LGBTQ people will not end there. None of us are safe so long as one group of marginalized people is threatened. Congratulations George and Todd!
Isn’t it ironic that so many who draw their precepts from the Hebrew “bible” are also antisemites.
And do the likes of MJT define WHICH Christianity they are talking about? Does it embrace transubstantiation? Papal infallibility? Purgatory? Salvation by works, not faith? The need for Last Rites by a priest if one is to go to heaven? Absolution only by a priest after confession? Will they all agree on the date of Easter? How long after the US becomes a Christian nation will we get the next 30 Years War, the next face-off between the religious laws of Bloody Mary vs Elizabeth I.
I'm in the process of finishing the book "Ye Will Say I Am No Christian," the collection of letters between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson after they'd both finished their presidencies and renewed their deep friendship. Their comments about religion and ministers/priests are all quite deprecating. Both men were firm deists, believing that God created the world and then stepped back to run on its own. They both intensely disliked Catholics, especially Jesuits, but didn't have much good to say about other religious leaders either. Jefferson is famous for saying that he wanted the United States to be a welcoming place for all faiths, "including Jews, Musselmen, and Hindoos."
I doubt that these two Founding Fathers were alone in their beliefs.
May I insert a plug for a podcast? It's called "Banished," by Amna Khalid, who grew up in Pakistan and is now a history teacher in the US. She covers all forms of censorship and "cancellation," from murals that may be destroyed because they depict Native Americans in what some feel is a negative light, to book bans in elementary and high schools, and professors being fired or disinvited from giving keynote speeches because of their views. I mention it because it's in keeping with the themes of this discussion.
Excellent analysis of how politicians have twisted the Way, the Truth, and the Life into a distorted vision of a society that must be controlled at all costs, by any means necessary, even if it means imposing their so called religious views on everything, regardless of whether it's loving your neighbors like yourself or not.
Definitely not!! Just as the Pharisees and Saducees were fixated on imposing their interpretation of what's right in God's eyes or not, I believe the Good Lord Jesus said "Give unto Ceasars what is Ceasars and give unto God what is God's". That doesn't mean taking away anyone else's free will, even if the choices are not what they consider acceptable. If the Good Lord is willing to be a God of mercy and acceptance, who are they to say their way is the only right way regardless. I'd like to see them explain why their views are more important 🤔 than God's grace and love and mercy for all regardless. Just as Pope Francis said recently that a person's sexual inclination is not a crime, he too is trying to stress a God of mercy and acceptance, not one of vengeance. That's why the bureaucrats in the Vatican as well as the conservative American Bishops are chomping at the bit to replace him.
The only way to defeat the radicals is for all Americans to vote 🗳 them out in 2024 so legislation can be enacted to increase the Supreme Court justices ⚖️ to 13 , accurately reflecting the 13 federal appellate districts, and increasing the number of representatives from 435 since 1911 to more accurately represent all the American people and defeat all the GOP gerrymandering. If the same number of representatives % truly represented today's America 🇺🇸, it would require over 1600 representatives.
Anyone who has read about the history of various races, ethnicities and countries knows that there has never been a religious group in charge of government who has not hated and committed violence against another group of people because of their religion, race, politics, gender or other trait. Religion is used as an excuse to hate and commit violence because their "god" promotes it. I support religious freedom but I condemn religious hatred.
Well said.
Well said, Patricia!
Oh yes, Patricia!
George and Todd, great post, and as the president/founder of PRRI (and an reader of Big Picture!), grateful to see the inclusion of the recent PRRI/Brookings Christian Nationalism survey in the post today. This movement is a serious threat to American democracy. Thank you for amplifying.
For anyone interested in a deeper dive, I teamed up with Kristin Du Mez and Jemar Tisby (who were on the panel at Brookings for the survey release) for a unique virtual roundtable on our respective substacks. You can check it out here: https://robertpjones.substack.com/p/a-virtual-roundtable-on-the-threat-c2b.
Thank you, Robert! Such essential work you're doing to raise the alarm about this dangerous ideology!
Thank you for subscribing, and for your important work, Robert.
You're welcome. I'm an admirer of your work and so appreciative of your courage, clarity, and leadership. My 12-year-old son learned so much from "They Called Us Enemy."
And I'd be honored to have you as a reader over at my White Too Long substack: https://robertpjones.substack.com/.
Just subscribed!
This is an excellent, detailed explanation of the position and strategy of the anti-democratic movement being pushed by the far right. I could write a similar piece pointing out the logical errors and anti-Christian ideas they push. For now, I would just point out that the U.S. Constitution is not based on the Bible. Rather it is based on 17th Century ideas of democratic government as understood by James Madison and the other framers, one if which is that citizens should have full freedom of personal belief and should not be forced to accept any single government-enforced religion. The First Amendment clearly defines the separation of church and state and is the law of the land.
Thank you, Bert! And well said!
Just because the 'Christian' right usurps that title doesn't mean they have any but the use of a faith for reasons of power & self-service. W hen Jesus was asked "who is my neighbor?" after he had said the Law required only love of God & love of neighbor, he illustrated his answer by describing a foreign non-Jew who went out of his way to lovingly care for an injured Jew...the 'Good Samaritan'. It seems the ethic of love does not fit the rhetoric of the 'right' despite what they call themselves.
Last month I binge-watched all 5 seasons of The Handmaid's Tale and anxiously await the concluding season 6. The blog was a fantastic, if somewhat terrifying coda to that. It compliments nicely Rachel Maddow's ULTRA podcast series, and Ken Burns' "The U.S. and the Holocaust" 3-part documentary. The message and historical implications here are lessons every American should know.
Thank you, Mark! And agree, Ultra was fascinating and utterly terrifying.
I am so glad I subscribed to this Substack! This is a great read, and it persuasively argues that discrimination and hatred against trans people and LGBTQ people will not end there. None of us are safe so long as one group of marginalized people is threatened. Congratulations George and Todd!
Thanks so much, Barbara!
Isn’t it ironic that so many who draw their precepts from the Hebrew “bible” are also antisemites.
And do the likes of MJT define WHICH Christianity they are talking about? Does it embrace transubstantiation? Papal infallibility? Purgatory? Salvation by works, not faith? The need for Last Rites by a priest if one is to go to heaven? Absolution only by a priest after confession? Will they all agree on the date of Easter? How long after the US becomes a Christian nation will we get the next 30 Years War, the next face-off between the religious laws of Bloody Mary vs Elizabeth I.
Excellent read. Thank you!
Thank you, Brian!
I'm in the process of finishing the book "Ye Will Say I Am No Christian," the collection of letters between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson after they'd both finished their presidencies and renewed their deep friendship. Their comments about religion and ministers/priests are all quite deprecating. Both men were firm deists, believing that God created the world and then stepped back to run on its own. They both intensely disliked Catholics, especially Jesuits, but didn't have much good to say about other religious leaders either. Jefferson is famous for saying that he wanted the United States to be a welcoming place for all faiths, "including Jews, Musselmen, and Hindoos."
I doubt that these two Founding Fathers were alone in their beliefs.
May I insert a plug for a podcast? It's called "Banished," by Amna Khalid, who grew up in Pakistan and is now a history teacher in the US. She covers all forms of censorship and "cancellation," from murals that may be destroyed because they depict Native Americans in what some feel is a negative light, to book bans in elementary and high schools, and professors being fired or disinvited from giving keynote speeches because of their views. I mention it because it's in keeping with the themes of this discussion.
Excellent analysis of how politicians have twisted the Way, the Truth, and the Life into a distorted vision of a society that must be controlled at all costs, by any means necessary, even if it means imposing their so called religious views on everything, regardless of whether it's loving your neighbors like yourself or not.
Definitely not!! Just as the Pharisees and Saducees were fixated on imposing their interpretation of what's right in God's eyes or not, I believe the Good Lord Jesus said "Give unto Ceasars what is Ceasars and give unto God what is God's". That doesn't mean taking away anyone else's free will, even if the choices are not what they consider acceptable. If the Good Lord is willing to be a God of mercy and acceptance, who are they to say their way is the only right way regardless. I'd like to see them explain why their views are more important 🤔 than God's grace and love and mercy for all regardless. Just as Pope Francis said recently that a person's sexual inclination is not a crime, he too is trying to stress a God of mercy and acceptance, not one of vengeance. That's why the bureaucrats in the Vatican as well as the conservative American Bishops are chomping at the bit to replace him.
The only way to defeat the radicals is for all Americans to vote 🗳 them out in 2024 so legislation can be enacted to increase the Supreme Court justices ⚖️ to 13 , accurately reflecting the 13 federal appellate districts, and increasing the number of representatives from 435 since 1911 to more accurately represent all the American people and defeat all the GOP gerrymandering. If the same number of representatives % truly represented today's America 🇺🇸, it would require over 1600 representatives.