News with Nuance: May 24, 2024

Your Friday dose of News with Nuance: the week's biggest stories, unpacked + more ..

Hi Readers,

Since the last time I wrote to you in News with Nuance, a Supreme Court Justice was exposed as flying multiple insurrectionist and Christian Nationalist flags at his home, and an NFL kicker declared that women college graduates should limit themselves to aspirations of motherhood and “homemaking” while speaking at commencement for a Catholic college in Kansas.

And those are just two of the stories that are keeping me awake at night and on edge all day. Christian Nationalism’s public and political influence has never been more clear.

So let’s get to the news … with nuance …

Illustration by Zoë van Dijk for POLITICO

The Headline: The Most Feared and Least Known Political Operative in America

You might be wondering why I’m leading with this story and not by directly covering the Justice Alito flag or Butker commencement speech stories. We will be discussing both of those in detail below in the section on Christian Nationalism (and you can see the video I made here and listen to

The SWAJ Good News

’ podcast with more thoughts here).

But if you’ve been reading News with Nuance for at least a few weeks, you know that my focus here is to go beyond the headlines to expose how these stories play out and how power is exercised behind the scenes.

I also think this story is important because it shows how “access journalism” has made the media complicit in Trump’s rise to power. Part of the genius of Trump advisor Susie Wiles’ ascent to influence and political power has been her ability to manipulate and gain the trust of the press corps. She feeds them strategic scoops, texts them often, and in so doing gets them to serve as unwitting assistants in Trump’s rise to power and a narrative that humanizes and benefits him.

This story also shows why so often authoritarian and exclusionary movements will co-opt the very members of the groups whose rights they seek to constrain, in order to dilute the criticism of such actions from the majority members of those groups. (By the way,

Jemar Tisby, PhD

wrote powerfully about this phenomenon here). In the same way that Trump elevates his few Black supporters to the front row at his rallies, Trump strategically elevates female advisers like Susie Wiles and Kellyanne Conway, to distract from the fact that he is indeed a convicted sex offender and serial misogynist who has brought about restrictive abortion laws and drastically limited reproductive healthcare for American women.

Women like Wiles and Conway might think that they’re “softening” Trump, or they might initially disbelieve what they should was “bad press” about him. But ultimately it seems they too succumb to the siren song of power and wealth and, in Wiles case, a thirst for revenge.

Finally, I also appreciated how this story investigated the impact of Wiles’ childhood with her star athlete, famed broadcaster, and absent, alcoholic father. So many women have been taught that our best skill is managing problematic men and trying to win their favor. How different the world might be if we decided to stop enabling them and held them accountable for their behavior?

The Quote:

“Children of alcoholics, according to experts, are all but forced to learn early on that they can’t control what they can’t control — but that they very much must control what they can. They can learn to manage around a person who can’t be managed. They can learn to make and keep a kind of order in situations that are marked by the utter lack thereof. They can learn to make themselves invaluable, or invisible — and when to be the former, and when to be the latter. They can be, and can grow up to be, quiet and competitive, persistent and resilient, achievers and survivors, and keen, intuitive readers of rooms and moods and needs. They can be compulsive pleasers of people and in particular one person — a person whose needs trump those of others and certainly their own. They can be helpers. They can be enablers. They can be both.”

Story by Michael Kruse, POLITICO

The Headline: Shooting Alone: America’s Social Priorities Shaped by Decades of War

I read this article from Tom Dispatch’s Andrea Mazzarino after the second of my two-part series on Christian Nationalism at a local church. Part of what was so encouraging about those events that we were there - together - in person, in a packed conference room of a local church, because we wanted to face the problem and threat of Christian Nationalism together.

I do a lot of my writing work alone, behind a keyboard, and ever since the pandemic, a lot of my work has also taken place via video. It is possible and important to build community online, and it does help combat loneliness, but there is also something still critical about being present together in the same physical space. I felt encouraged that we’d all made the effort to be vulnerable together, and I felt less alone as I read the headlines this week.

Reading Mazzarino’s article again, I’m struck by the enormity of what humanity is currently facing, from the environmental threat of climate change and increasingly high numbers of destructive storms, as well as the threat of the easy availability of deadly weapons, and our frenzied violence against one another. I think of how she writes that so much of this is rooted in despair, in loneliness, in fear. How hard it is to break down those walls when they’ve been built up over a lifetime, and how it might seem easier to never try.

The Quote:

As we ran, I couldn’t help noticing boarded-up public housing and abandoned schools, potholed roads and a visible (though supportive) armed police presence to help us make our way through city traffic. I wondered what it meant that an event as innocent as a race to benefit healthcare could just as easily have been mistaken for some sort of post-apocalyptic scene.

Yes, the degradation has been gradual, caused by the bleeding out of U.S. cities, thanks at least in part to the dozens of large and small armed conflicts we’ve fought so disastrously around the world in this century and our taxpayer dollars that have been funneled in that direction.

If only we were to reshape our priorities in enough time to vote in leaders who cared about peace, perhaps our democracy and the ideas that define it wouldn’t be coming apart at the MAGA seams. Wouldn’t it be great if we all could get out more and do so together?

Story by Andrea Mazzarino, Tom Dispatch

A Few More Must-Read Stories from the past two weeks …

When you worry about loneliness and the breaking of American civic bonds, you have to look at what’s happening to public school districts, and a big part of that story has been their defunding in favor of business-modeled charter schools. Here’s one story of how some of those schools have been fraudulently stealing federal money without oversight.

And another similar story, here’s part of Minnesota Reformer writer Deena Winter’s intrepid reporting series on the Feeding Our Future scandal, which stole millions of pandemic funds to supposedly feed schoolchildren, but was instead pocketed by non-profit workers for luxury items.

Related: Democracy for sale or rent

But lest you think that all government involvement leads to corruption and/or bad actors, remember that it was federal legislation that desegregated American schools, led by the courage and witness of Civil Rights leaders and Black students and families

Public education could be one of our most treasured American values

This Week in Christian Nationalism and Religious Extremism

While this newsletter won’t focus overall on Christian Nationalism, each Friday I will include a brief update from that week, as it’s both a continuing focus of my work and also, I think, a critical threat to both American democracy and the faithful witness of Jesus’ Gospel, which exists independently of the United States!

In one sentence: Christian Nationalism is a version of the idolatrous Theology of Glory, which replaces the genuine worship of God with worship of a particular vision of America, often rooted in a revisionist history of white people in the 1950s, before the Civil Rights movement or the women’s movement. Christian Nationalism supports a violent takeover of government and the imposition of fundamentalist Christian beliefs on all people. Christian nationalism relies on a theological argument that equates American military sacrifice with Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. It suggests that Christians are entitled to wealth and power, in contrast to Jesus’ theology of the cross, which reminds Christians that they too have to carry their cross, just as our crucified savior did.

This Week: Oh boy - here we go!

Let’s start with this important piece from journalist Sarah Posner on Justice Alito’s Appeal to Heaven flag, flown at his beach house in 2023. This is the same flag flown by Speaker Mike Johnson outside his legislative office, written about in detail by fellow Broadleaf authors and Christian Nationalism experts, Brad Onishi and Matthew D. Taylor.

For more background, history, and analysis on why it matters that Alito is flying the flags of insurrectionists and Neo Nazis at his homes (note also that he’s the second-wealthiest member of the Court and only one of two justices to hold individual company stocks), I again recommend that excellent podcast put together on Thursday this week by

The SWAJ Good News

, listen here.

Taylor has a thread here with more resources; his background work on charismatic revival and Seven Mountains Mandate is extremely relevant to understanding the Appeal to Heaven flag.

In my video I talked about how these flags were flown by many as a response to the Black Lives Matter protest movement after the murder of George Floyd (the anniversary of which is coming up this weekend).

Heather Cox Richardson

also notes why we can’t compare the insurrectionist flags to BLM protest flags: the messages are completely different and have different aims, from human dignity and life to destruction and violent power.

And Laura Bassett says it well: the worst part about Alito’s actions is his utter impunity and contempt for the American people.

But like I mentioned in my video - and as constitutional lawyer Andrew Seidel says in the SWAJ podcast, these flags are more than an individual statement. They signify group belonging. Christian Nationalist conservative activist Leonard Leo (who comped Justices Thomas and Alito on luxury trips) flies the flag, too.

Let’s move on from insurrectionist justices to misogynist, Gilead-esque NFL kickers, shall we?

NPR gives a comprehensive look at Butker’s speech and the response to it, including from the NFL.

But you’ve got to see the double standard for all those within football and politics claiming they have to defend Butker’s right to “free speech” and to “share his opinion.” Where was commissioner Roger Gooddell’s commitment to free speech during quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling protest against police brutality?

And it’s pretty rich to hear former NFL/Mizzou football players who bragged that “some girl” wrote their college papers for them defending Butker’s stance on male superiority and intellect.

I also feel I need to add how dismissive and dehumanizing Butker’s comments were to women who don’t have children. I have two very, very close friends who have both opted not to have kids. Their lives are rich, powerful, and meaningful - filled with love and deep relationships. They’re both creative, and their contributions of care and creativity and knowledge in the professional world are many. They happen to both be married to men - but their marriages don’t define their worth, as their status on childbearing doesn’t define their worth, either. I feel incredibly lucky to have these women in mine and my children’s lives. They do not deserve the shortsighted and ignorant comments and assumptions made about their lives by Butker or anyone else. <mic drop!>

(oh and by the way - women who don’t have children are incredible gifts to the church: I’ve seen this countless times among pastoral colleagues and lay church leaders. The church is deeply indebted to their ministry and wisdom and grace)

Moving on …

Prof. Sam Perry nails the reason why Christian Nationalism gets the crucifixion (and atonement theory) all wrong: “Crosses are for losers. And real Christians are never losers, always invincible conquerors (the men, of course).”

(I’ve long suspected that a large part of this movement is really just covering up male feelings of inadequacy and insecurity. Christian Nationalism might be one big phallic symbol.)

And lest we forget that CN has been operating in the background for a long time in America, setting the stage for Trumpism, this story from California, where Jewish jurors were long excluded from serving.

India reminds us that religious nationalism isn’t confined to America or to the Republican Party or to Christianity. But it’s always fostered by a (wannabe?) authoritarian leader who manipulates religion for personal power.

And this, from Jacobin:

India’s Neoliberal Crisis Is Fueling Hindu Authoritarianism

No, this is not about “American” tradition. It’s a part of global far-right movements, as Trump himself reminded us this week by referencing the “reich.”

Christian Nationalists are deeply entrenched in American society and public life, and they’re coming for your local school board.

Thank God for people like the Book Club of (mostly) retired educators who I met with this past week to discuss Red State Christians. They’re been meeting since 1991, initially for graduate school credit, to work on equity in education, anti-racism, and how to address other social issues within public education. Their passion and heart was clear to me - and I told them that, like in Azar Nafisi’s book Reading Lolita in Tehran, often resistance to authoritarianism and religious fundamentalism begins in book clubs like theirs.

(Do you have a book club reading Red State Christians prior to the 2024 election? Let me know!)

(And ICYMI, I updated my website with upcoming events. Hope to see some of you there! And send me a message if you’d like to schedule something …)

Like those retired educators, progressive Catholics have also been pushing back against reactionary conservative Catholics in America to lift up the power of Catholic social teachings.

Don’t count out the religious sisters, who sent their own scathing response to Butker last week.

Jesuit magazine AMERICA has done a great job covering this story from a Catholic perspective, as the college Butker addressed was not Evangelical but Catholic.

The truth is that Christian Nationalism warps all sorts of theology to its ends of violence and political power. One of the branches that has been most influential is CN’s co-opting of charismatic theology (often blended with the Prosperity Gospel preached in so many American megachurches). No one knows more about this movement and the charismatic Christian Nationalist leaders driving it than Matthew D. Taylor and Paul A. Djupe.

More on this movement from religious right eminent scholar Frederick Clarkson:

Where’s Wallnau? A New Apostolic Reformation apostle takes aim at swing counties in ‘the battle for the mountain of government’

And this:

Belief in the 7 Mountain Mandate Appears to be Growing in the Last Year

Charismatic movements tend to be more racially diverse than traditional conservative American Christian movements. In that vein, I read with sadness this story of a Hispanic pastor who was lost in Trumpism, and a Christian movement that seeks dehumanization of his fellow Hispanic Americans, especially immigrants.

The Right denounces “cancel culture” but it’s usually progressives and moderates who are ousted from conservative organizations, like in this case, where Christian college professor was driven out of his Christian college by an activist right-wing movement begun by … moms of college students?

Speaking of moms, in this Mother’s Day month, Wisconsin sociologist

Jess Calarco

is doing indispensable work. She writes here of the dehumanizing “valorization of motherhood,” which reminds me of how Christian nationalists valorize the military without honoring or caring for individual servicemembers, a key reminder to think about this Memorial Day weekend.

Instead of driving out professors, maybe Christian moms can focus on actually teaching the 10 commandments to our kids, because they really have no place inside the walls of a jail. Glad this one was repainted!

Kristin Du Mez

has spoken courageously about her own experiences critiquing American Christianity from inside a Christian college, and here she lifts up the work of Anxious Bench writer Joey Cochran, who calls for more outspokenness and public defense of Christian scholars who dare to step out of the prescribed lines of political conservatism and Trumpism to defend the Gospel. It reminds me of times in meetings and churches when I’ve stepped up to criticize a person in power for their treatment of others. Often, people will say privately how much they appreciated my words. But we need to support each other publicly, too. Or nothing will change, and they’ll just scapegoat and fire those who speak out.

Speaking of Nikki Haley and her vowing to vote for Trump this week, making all of her criticism of him completely ineffectual and exposing her cowardice and greed … how many times again and again do we have to see this from GOP politicians before we acknowledge Trump’s stranglehold on the Party?

I was grateful, then, for MN House Rep. Dean Urdahl’s courageous words this week - if only politicians would speak like this before they announce their retirement.

Silence and fear and coverups lead to authoritarianism and loss of human rights and freedoms, and oftentimes, they lead to death, too, as in this case with 3M.

But we just keep taking half-measures, thinking that appeasement and stepping gently will work. It won’t. Trust me, I have tried. No surprise that the breakaway conservative Presbyterian Church in America (started to avoid giving more rights to people) canceled a flimsy panel on “polarization.” Nothing but complete worship of the Christian Nationalist idol will suffice.

Accomodationalism (like that practiced among prominent PCA leaders) was great for selling books and growing megachurches, but it won’t stop Christian Nationalism. Now the real fruits of the movement are becoming apparent.

Mainline churches aren’t exempt from this, btw.

And again - how much of this stems from white powerful men’s desire to center themselves and stoke their egos, rather than listening and finding real solutions? Our Secretary of State does not need to be giving wartime concerts in the midst of humanitarian disasters.

Photo by Thomas Lohnes, epd

In contrast, how about this packed German cathedral for the Taylor Swift service? As I shared with fellow pastors, what I liked about this story was that they didn’t just import music into their regular service, they adapted a theological viewpoint from Swift’s songs and made the whole service cohesive, really much of it as a criticism of CN:

“Though the idea might suggest a wild concert atmosphere, it was largely one of quiet devotion.

Parish Pastor Vincenzo Petracca quoted numerous lyrics and traced Swift's biography, emphasizing her attachment to and understanding of Christianity in everyday life.

Petracca acknowledged that Swift's songs are open to numerous interpretations but highlighted the strong Christian — and political — messages she integrates into her songs, which address the subjects of women's rights, racism and gender equality, among others.

The pastor noted, however, that such topics have made Swift the object of criticism in conservative Christian circles, especially among Evangelicals in the US, who have branded her "anti-Christian."

"Theologically speaking, she points to the justness of God," says Petracca, adding, "For her, faith and action are inseparable."

Christian Solidarity in the face of Christian Nationalism

Global Christians are praying for U.S. elections. Will we pray for theirs?

As women leave Evangelical churches in the face of the clergy abuse crisis, collapse follows.

Fortunately, the DOJ is investigating the Southern Baptist Convention, and charges were brought this past week as the investigation goes on

And I spent the afternoon on Monday with first-call pastors in the Minneapolis-Area Synod, who weren’t afraid to discuss Christian Nationalism and lift up the Theology of the Cross

Trump constantly attacks “the media” and journalists bc he wins huge margins of those who don’t read the newspaper or follow the news. So thank you for supporting the journalism that goes into this newsletter - and please share it!

Related: I’ve been trying to exit the outrage/despair/nihilism cycle by mixing up my news reading with reading actual books. This week I finished The Soul of Black Folks by W.E.B. DuBois and I’m ashamed I didn’t read it until I was almost 40. A must-read for all white American Christians; so much of it reads as incredibly prescient for what’s happening in politics and religion today.

Now I’m reading local writer (and bookseller) Louise Erdrich’s novel The Sentence. Also really, really good. I need to go to Birchbark Books - soon!

What are you reading?

Speaking of Erdrich and the importance of listening to Indigenous Americans, I’ll leave you with this:

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is now banned from all tribal lands in her home state

GREAT SUBSTACK READS

From

Lyle Enright

Bonfires II: What is Possible with God?

From

Jemar Tisby, PhD

A Virginia School Board Reinstated Confederate Names on Local Schools

Should Billy Graham Represent North Carolina in Statuary Hall?

That Time Jerry Falwell Called Desmond Tutu a "Phony"

From

Amelia Mavis Christnot

No, Kristi Noem, Farm Life Does Not = Shooting Puppies

From

Joyce Vance

Justice Alito

Another Flag for Alito

From

Jared Yates Sexton

An Authoritarian Cult: The GOP and the Next Stage of Democratic Destruction

From

lyz

Dingus of the Week: DOUBLE HEADER TIME

Some thoughts on home

From

Heather Cox Richardson

May 17, 2024

From

Katherine May

This is the life

From

Ruth Whippman

Boyhood: The Shark Experience

From

Ryan Burge

The Nones Have Hit a Ceiling

From

Word&Way

Why ‘Baptizing America’ Matters

From

Sarah Stankorb

Persecuted: Donald Trump and the Football Kicker?

From

Chrissy Stroop

There and Back Again

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Thanks for reading,

Angela

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