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On this ideology

Christian Nationalism is a socio-political ideology that seeks to merge a particular interpretation of Christianity with national identity, law, and governance. At its core, it asserts that a nation’s legitimacy—and often its moral standing—is derived from a covenantal relationship with a Christian God, and that the laws, symbols, and institutions of the nation should show Christian doctrine. This ideology goes beyond personal faith; it is a politicized theology that claims cultural supremacy, often tied to patriarchal values, racial majoritarianism, and anti-pluralist sentiment.

Christian nationalism tends to sanctify the nation-state as divinely chosen or ordained, positioning its political and legal structures as rightful extensions of Christian will. In the U.S. context, it often draws upon myths of American exceptionalism, interpreting the founding documents and early governance of the United States as evidence of a Christian foundation betrayed by secularism, multiculturalism, or progressive social change.

Since 2020, Texas has become a prominent staging ground for Christian nationalist revival, often under the guise of “religious freedom” or “parental rights.” Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton have both invoked religious language to justify anti-LGBTQ+ policies and abortion bans. For example, the state’s near-total abortion ban—enacted even before the fall of Roe v. Wade—was framed as defending “the sanctity of life” in ways resonant with Christian nationalist rhetoric. Similarly, recent legislation targeting trans youth and restricting classroom discussions of race, gender, or sexuality has been promoted using theological language about preserving “moral clarity” and “protecting children.”

In school boards, county commissions, and curriculum standards committees across Texas, Christian nationalist ideologues have pushed for Bible-based education, book bans, and the marginalization of non-Christian or queer perspectives. In these ways, Christian nationalism in Texas functions not merely as belief, but as a structure of control—sanctifying domination while cloaking it in divine right.

Annotated Reading List:

Christian Nationalism and the Forces of Anti-Reason

Katherine Stewart – The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism (2020)

Why It Matters: A meticulously researched exposé showing how Christian nationalism is not grassroots piety but a transnational political strategy. It maps the funding, legal maneuvering, and public messaging efforts behind policies that erode democratic and pluralist foundations.

Connection to Anti-Reason 2025: Reveals how anti-reason gains force through sacralized structures of control—echoing my treatment of propaganda, mythic certainty, and neo-fascist drift in the Current Empire.

Umberto Eco – “Ur-Fascism” (1995)

Why It Matters: Eco identifies the structural features of fascism as a cultural tendency, rather than a single ideology. His motif of “the cult of tradition” and “newspeak” harmonizes with christofascist strategies in Texas and beyond.

Connection to Anti-Reason 2025: Informs my diagnosis of “anti-reason” as the veneration of affective authority over dialogical reflection. Supports framing of the Current Empire–the Neoliberal Society of Control–as rooted in psychological seduction.

Gregory A. Boyd – The Myth of a Christian Nation (2005)

Why It Matters: Written by a former megachurch pastor, this theological reflection argues that the church’s entanglement with political power is a betrayal of Jesus’ actual teachings.

Connection to Anti-Reason 2025: Reveals the inner contradiction between faith and empire, and offers an insider’s critique of christofascism from a Christian perspective—useful for students or readers negotiating inherited religious beliefs.

Jeff Sharlet – The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power (2008)

Why It Matters: Documents a secretive elite Christian nationalist network that links U.S. policymakers to authoritarian theology.

Connection to Anti-Reason 2025: Illustrates how anti-reason doesn’t just move through popular media, but through backdoor diplomacy and elite affective alignment—an empire of belief, not law.

Mountain Dog School – Thwarting Anti-Reason Workbook (in development, Winter 2025 from Sparrowhawk Publications)

Why It Matters: A pedagogical and visionary manual in progress to equip learners and seekers with reflective, poetic, and dialogical tools to resist the seductive collapse into ideological conformity.

Connection to All Texts Above: The workbook will act as a counter-practice—a contemplative and philosophical response to the rise of control ideologies in the post-2020 cultural field. Anchors thinkering as resistance.