In Defense of Christian Patriotism: Equipping Believers for Political Theology, Civic Duty, and Love of Nation

by Daniel Darling

In Defense of Christian Patriotism has descriptive copy which is not yet available from the Publisher.

Genres: Christian

267 pages, Hardcover

Published September 30, 2025

About the author

Daniel Darling is an author, pastor and Christian leader. He currently serves as the Director of The Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Assistant Professor of Faith and Culture at Texas Baptist College.

Prior to his leadership of the Land Center, Darling served as the Senior Vice President for Communications of the National Religious Broadcasters. He also has served the Southern Baptist Convention as the Vice President of Communications at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. He has also pastored churches in Illinois and Tennessee.

Reviews

[Paul Hess · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5, so rounding up to 4 stars.

I struggled in how to rate this book. In a very real sense, it’s an easy 5/5. Darling’s book is full of wise, practical advice. He avoid many pitfalls, and eloquently lays out a case for his view of patriotism. In fact, there’s very little that I actually disagree with. I can’t remember any point thinking to myself “oh, that’s very wrong”.

So why the 3.5/5? I think Darling overlooks some key issues, or perhaps more accurately, makes some assumptions that really needed to be stated and caveated.

1) Even though he dedicates a whole chapter to the role of the church, and even in other chapters emphasizes the church, I still think he sells short the importance of Christians being heavenly minded in their civic engagement. He undersells the importance of evangelism and regeneration in the transformation of a nation. He’s obviously aware of it, as he alludes to it at multiple points. But I think he misses the futility of civic engagement apart from this. So minus 0.5 stars.

2) He profoundly underestimates the impact of Donald Trump on the American right. Trump has both instigated and revealed a morass of moral rot among American “conservatives”. Even though Darling himself is not a Trump cultist, and he openly decries the toxicity on the right, he tends to assume that others will tend to see patriotism as he does. MAGA pursues all sorts of radical policies and moral degradation while wrapping itself in an American flag. Far too many in MAGA equate patriotism with devotion to Trump. Darling alludes to this and rejects it, but he repeatedly pull his punches on this point. He (correctly) lands heavy blows on the American left, while missing that MAGA is essentially the same thing, just wrapped in a flag. As a result, any restoration of a truly Christian patriotism as envisioned by Darling (a desire I share and applaud) will ultimately be neither Christian nor patriotic. So minus a star.

[Kevin Halloran]

In Defense of Christian Patriotism offers a clear, thoughtful, and compelling argument for why Christians can (and should) love their country. In a cultural moment when the word patriot is often contested, misunderstood, or just plain lied about, Daniel Darling makes the case that patriotism, rightly ordered, is simply gratitude expressed toward one’s homeland and a commitment to seek its welfare, echoing the call of Jeremiah 29.

Darling suggests that much of today’s toxic political climate stems from a deficit of gratitude and a failure to love our neighbors, especially those with whom we disagree. He dismantles several contemporary misconceptions about patriotism, showing that Christian love for country neither requires blind loyalty nor excuses national flaws.

Throughout the book, Darling presents a balanced, hopeful path forward. In the end the overall message of the book reminded me of both Charles Colson and Tim Keller, two writers he quotes often.

I recommend In Defense of Christian Patriotism to anyone seeking a level-headed, charitable, and biblically rooted vision for Christian engagement in public life.

[Justin Palmer · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I appreciate a good read from perspectives different from my own, I ultimately think this book was not persuasive in convincing me about the biblical approval of patriotism, let alone American exceptionalism. I’m not sure the crux of the issue is “can Christian’s love their country or people that live in their country?” I think many Christians would agree we can. I think the concern is the manner in which we carry that love. I don’t know if I’m convinced if that love should be greater or less than other nations. I can appreciate the need for more gratitude and thankfulness for the context and place God has me, but I find little biblical support for the elevation of one’s national identity over another. Countless New Testament passages cut down these barriers that the author seems to ignore. Moreover, the entire book of Revelation, which depicts empire-like nations as a focal enemy of God, is not discussed once. How can allegiance to empires be congruent with this description of the end times? However, what I did appreciate was the call for more local activism, something I don’t think membership to a political party is necessary for. Finally, the second half of the book seemed to only focus on hot-button cultural issues with which he just seemed to disagree with. Though the author attempted to connect this to the broader narrative of patriotism, I don’t know if I quite followed his logic. Why was there not a critique of issues on the right that run against the grain of the Bible, like immigration or charity?

[Ericka Andersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly well done and solid book on a topic that desperately needs deeper conversation right now.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read.

However I do think he is a little naive with how vicious the far left can be and why people push back so hard on it. They aren’t necessarily coming from a place of love as the author urges us to use. Is he being gullible or ignorant of far leftist tactics? I’m not sure.

Either way amazing read

[Emily Gillen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is out of my usual wheelhouse, but I enjoyed reading it. Although I do not agree with all of the points the author is making, his logic as well outlined and well supported through references. I didn’t like in the beginning when he argues that Christians have to be patriotic to be good Christians. He later defines that patriotism isn’t a blind belief in America’s superiority. Rather, it’s a belief in the goodness of America’s founding principles that still guide this country today. This viewpoint resonated more with me than his initial description.
The rest of the book talks in great detail about how Christians have a responsibility to love their neighbor and to be actively involved in the spiritual + social health of their local communities, policies, schools, churches, and families. He addresses how polarized our politics are and how Christians need to remember that it is their job to never lose sight of other people’s values as humans created by God (even if their political views differ from your own). While nice in theory, I did feel like his ideas were more conceptual than applicable because a lot of the changes he speaks of will take significant time to actually occur. It also focuses heavily on the obligation of Christians to be pushing their moral belief into local politics, but of course those views he talks of are those of traditional and not progressive Christians. It’s understandable because the author is writing in support of his views on Christian Patriotism, so it comes with the nature of this kind of book. He did a good job of recognizing how the average American fits into his concepts, though, which is an important factor to consider and gives more credence to his ideas.

Overall it was an interesting and well-written book, even though I don’t agree with all of the author’s points.

[Lianna Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darling’s viewpoint here is deeply appreciated. He advocates a genuine love of country while thoughtfully upholding what distinguishes America’s founding principles from those of the rest of the world. He frames the Christian posture toward the nation as living in Babylon rather than viewing America as an Israel-like covenant nation. I can understand both perspectives: Babylon in light of the deep secularism that marks much of the modern world, and Israel (by analogy) in that so many of America’s founding principles align closely with Scripture.

That said, Darling’s commitment to a “Babylon” framework in no way diminishes his patriotism or love of country. In a cultural moment where loving the flag or upholding one’s nation is often mocked or denigrated, it was genuinely refreshing to hear a thoughtful, biblically grounded defense of patriotism articulated so clearly and charitably.

For this reason, I found the book’s earlier, more theoretical section particularly enriching, more so than the later, more practical portion. In conclusion, Darling repeatedly modeled for me what a principled, humble love of country can look like. I hope to mirror that example in the days ahead. God has indeed blessed us with a remarkable place—and a remarkable time—in history.

[E · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this book is very good. It makes a strong case for "Christian patriotism" (which is simply the realization that, just as we love our family, our local church, our neighborhood in a unique way compared to other families, etc., so it is good and right to love our country in a special way). Darling's strength is his use of excellent sources. Three cheers for the multiple Allen Guelzo references.

The back half of the book grows stale. It's more about "how to be a Christian in the world, including politics." Nothing wrong here, but handled in plenty of other places, and with more verve than Darling displays here. Nevertheless, good things of which to be reminded, and it reads fast. So in that sense it's worthwhile to read the whole thing--but especially to affirm patriotism, including the incredibly blessed reasons that America is unique.

[Chad Grindstaff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought it might be a good book to listen to in light of the 250th anniversary of the founding of our nation. Overall a good book. Certainly some things that were good to chew on and it's worth the read. You won't agree with everything (but when do you with a book?), but it's worth the time.

[Alex Helm · Rating 1 out of 5]

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