Evangelical Support of Trumpism Goes Deeper than Racism
Racism is a problem in the United States. Yes, there is racism in white evangelical circles. They use the Bible and the pulpit to justify their racism, their intolerance of other faiths, and their embrace of authoritarianism. University of Pennsylvania professor and author Anthea Butler makes a clear connection between white evangelical racism and what is happening in the United States today in this article.
Racism is insidious. But many white evangelicals are more dangerous than white supremacists. Their approach to governance is informed by their commitment to spiritual correctness, an absolute certainty that their faith is correct and anyone who disagrees with them is an ungodly enemy. To defeat their movement, it is imperative that we educate ourselves on what they believe and why.
Sarah Stankorb’s excellent GEN article thoroughly covers Christian Nationalist racism. But as I read articles across the web, journalists struggle to codify the presence of Jesus at the January 6 2021 Capitol insurrection. Two excellent articles in The Atlantic, Mass Delusion in America by Jeffrey Goldberg and A Christian Insurrection by Emma Green, are good places to start. However, they do not fully examine why many white evangelical Christians support overthrowing a free-and-fair election.
