A Companion to The Case for Christian Nationalism

by Canon Press

Evangelical elites and the progressive media complex want you to think that Christian nationalism is hopelessly racist, bigoted, and an idol for right-wing Christians. Is Christian nationalism the golden calf of the religious right—or is it the only way forward? Evangelical elites and the progressive media complex want you to think that Christian nationalism is hopelessly racist, bigoted, and an idol for right-wing Christians. Is Christian nationalism the golden calf of the religious right---or is it the only way forward? Few “experts” answering this question actually know what nationalism is--and even fewer know what could make it Christian. In The Case for Christian Nationalism , Stephen Wolfe offers a tour-de-force argument for the good of Christian nationalism, taken from Scripture and Christian thinkers ancient, medieval, and modern. Christian nationalism is not only the necessary alternative to secularism, it is the form of government we must pursue if we want to love our neighbors and our country. Wolfe shows that the world’s post-war consensus has successfully routed the United States towards a gynocratic Global American Empire (GAE). Rather than the religious right’s golden calf, Christian nationalism is the idea that people in the same place and culture should live together and seek one another’s good. The grace of the gospel does not eliminate our geography, our people, and our neighbors. Instead, it restores us to pursue local needs and local leadership freely and without apology. If you want to be able to answer the political debate raging today, you must understand the arguments in The Case for Christian Nationalism .

Genres: Religion, Politics

52 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2022

Reviews

[Jeremy]

My review of the actual CCN was too long, so I put Achord stuff here:

Regarding the Thomas Achord thing, here's Canon Press's press release (and Doug Wilson's post, answers to letters, and another post [followed by Toby Sumpter's emphasis]), Rod Dreher's thread (and first and second blog post), and Alastair Roberts's post. Thomas's first statement is here, and in a strange second statement, he says that the tweets were indeed his. Here is Stephen's response. Samuel James weighs in here, saying that the "Holy Spirit is a political liability" because he is neither "a skilled wordsmith of put-downs" nor "a ruthless social media assassin" nor "based," and "Christianity is cruciform-shaped"; here's some pushback.

I'll also link to Andy Naselli's recap of a series of 12 interviews on the topic. Here are some scattershot thoughts on CN and whether the US was ever Christian. See here for some FAQs (and answers, and here for a defense of nationalism.

[Miles Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sort of sparknotes for the larger book, which I own but havent read. First, the bad: Wolfe's language is sometimes injudicious and his rhetoric is often sensational. The work is not sectarian perse, but its given to certain Calvinist particulars that depart from Anglican conceptions of what might be called Christian nationalism. Im also not sure if there is a space for Christian minorities in Wolfe's conceptualization of a Christian nation. I cant speak to the charges of racism because I havent read the whole book, but much of the rhetoric makes me uncomfortable.

The good: he seems to take political theory seriously. He also is aware of Protestant intellectual and political history in ways most lay-writers and even Evangelical academics are not. His descriptive mode is his best, especially when criticizes apolitical and often over spiritualized Evangelical conceptions of church and state.

[Jesus Salgado · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful guide for understanding and considering key points of the Case for Christian Nationalism book.