Here are quite a few of the best of the best from this book:īut evangelical support for Trump was no aberration, nor was it merely a pragmatic choice. I always include a few pages of Quotes and Excerpts from the book – the “best of” Randy’s highlighted Passages. #3 – This book describes why the left has little chance of moving Evangelicals in their direction.
#2 – This book explains the enduring power of John Wayne’s hold on America and how the Evangelicals adopted that view as their own. #1 – This book provides something of a history of the rise of, and power of, the Evangelical movement over the last century. When I prepare my synopses, I always ask: What is the point? Here it is for this book: Evangelicals adopted the stances of the conservative Republican culture as their own views, and built a network of reinforcing messengers that has led to Evangelicals becoming a most reliable voting block.Īnd I ask Why is this book worth our time? Here are my three reasons for this book: I felt like I was reading a history of the struggles of my lifetime. From Billy Graham to Bill Gothard, with plenty of Pat Boone mixed in, along with Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, and others. The book provides something of a history of my own intellectual life at least, from a major chapter of my life. (The author is a Professor of History and Gender Studies at Calvin University). This is a provocative book, written by a careful researcher. And, I present synopses of books dealing with issues of social justice for the Urban Engagement Book Club, sponsored by CitySquare in Dallas (currently, only on Zoom).įor July, I presented my synopsis of the book Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez. I present synopses of business books at the First Friday Book Synopsis (in Dallas, in-person and over Zoom). Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation
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In learning how to be Christian men, evangelicals also learned how to think about sex, guns, war, borders, Muslims, immigrants, the military, foreign policy, and the nation itself. It is linked to opposition to gay rights and gun control, to support for harsher punishments for criminals, to justifications for the use of excessive force against black Americans in law enforcement situations, and to traditionalist gender ideology.įROM THE START, evangelical masculinity has been both personal and political. Christian nationalism-the belief that America is God’s chosen nation and must be defended as such-serves as a powerful predictor of intolerance toward immigrants, racial minorities, and non-Christians.