From “Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism – And What Comes Next” by Bradly Onishi
In 2005, after eleven years in the movement and seven years in ministry, I left evangelism. My elders in the church had always told me that if I read too many books, my brain would railroad my heart and lead me away from the church. Turns out they were right.
When I began to read widely in theology, philosophy, and church history during and after college, my perspective started to expand and change. It became clear to me that the timeless truths we had attributed to the Bible in my church were modern inventions. I learned that our staunch commitment to voting Republican in order to oppose abortion of any kind was fueled by GOP operatives who preyed on our care for the unborn in order to garner millions of votes. From there, I digested the histories of evangelical theologies of sex, gender, race, and immigration. As I read and studied and reflected on my own experience, the picture grew ever more complex and yet much more vivid: White evangelicalism is a movement thoroughly entrenched in American nationalism, White supremacy, patriarchy, and xenophobia.