CNN
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If you don’t realize how powerful white Christian evangelicals have become, consider this:
A white evangelical Christian, who was describe as “the incarnation of White Christian nationalism in a tailor-made suit”, is now second in line to the presidency.
Rep. Mike Johnson, the new Speaker of the House, is a White evangelical. His rise represents one of the greatest political ironies of our time. White evangelical Protestants make up only about 14% Americans, and this number was regularly contraction. But white evangelicals have amassed more political power than ever before. They helped inspire the Supreme Court of the United States for to spill Roe v. Wade last year, and their unwavering support of former President Trump could send him back to the White House.
Yet there is still widespread misunderstanding of the white evangelical subculture. The media tends to portray white evangelicals as foaming at the mouth Christian insurgents, like some of them. who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
A former evangelical, however, has done something rare: He has written a new memoir that illustrates how white evangelicals have been led astray by their lust for political power, but also describes many of them as serious spiritual fighters who retain always “an immense power for good”.
The book is called “Testimony: Within the evangelical movement that failed a generation”, and it’s from Jon Ward, chief national correspondent for Yahoo! News. Ward describes growing up in a Christian bubble where watching secular television shows like “Sesame Street” was forbidden. He attended churches where people were “slain in spirit” while singing songs with refrains such as “we all deserve to die.”
The son of a pastor, Ward would go on to become a White House reporter, traveling the world aboard Air Force One with former presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Ward recounts in his brutally honest memoir how his family, like others, was torn apart by the rise of Donald Trump.
“I felt abandoned by my own father,” he writes of his father, who led an influential evangelical church and whom he declines to name in the book. He and his father had argued over Trump calling the media “the enemy of the people,» » Ward said.
“But it helped me understand how good people could stand by and make excuses for bad people in power,” he wrote. “They couldn’t ignore their own resentments and prejudices, even when the people they loved were hurting or afraid.”
CNN spoke to Ward about why he thinks white evangelicals remain misunderstood and why he’s wary of using the term “Christian nationalist”, and what it would take for white evangelicals to abandon Trump. Ward’s remarks have been edited for brevity and clarity.
The new Speaker of the House is a white evangelical Christian and is second in the list of presidential candidates. Does this inspire or concern you? Or maybe a little of both?
I think with his (Johnson’s) surprise rise to such a position of power so close to the presidency, there is now a lot more attention being paid to the type of conservative Christian beliefs that have been common among millions of evangelicals for centuries. decades. What’s unusual about Johnson is that while his views are quite common, it’s rare for someone to rise to such a high position of power with their views, as they usually have to go through a lot more vetting. His opinions on America being a Christian nation are a fairly telling marker of what many experts call “Christian nationalism.”
It’s a term that comes up often. I’m wary of its use because I think it’s being used as a caricature. There are people trying to weaponize Christian nationalism. And I don’t think that’s most evangelicals. I think these are people who are associated with the former president’s attempt to overturn the last election. These beliefs have been common for a long time. But right now, they are merging with a strain of apocalyptic and anti-democratic forms of Christianity that have already shown a willingness to reject respect for the Constitution and democracy.
I think most evangelicals probably have shared views. And one of them is that America is a Christian nation, and that doesn’t have a lot of implications. When you categorize everyone as extremist simply because they share these views, I think it pushes more evangelicals toward the bad actors who are trying to draw people into an anti-democratic movement.
You seem reluctant to use the term “white Christian nationalism.” Am I right?
Yes, because first of all, most people don’t call themselves Christian nationalists. When you call someone and say, “Hey, I’m not one of those,” I think that’s not great. In many cases, this will just make people more defensive, discourage them, and push them away from you. And second, there are fully developed forms of Christian nationalism. But in many cases, it’s just a very amorphous thing. I think a lot of them are just normal patriotic Americans.
And again, there is a small group of extremists who want to use these ideas to draw people into an anti-democratic movement. And I think the more you tell people, “You’re one of them,” the more you leave them little room and push them toward these extremists.
Christian nationalism is not actually true to Christianity. In churches, it is pastors who will play a crucial role in the fight against the forces of extremism. because they are the ones who need to talk to their neighbors, friends, and church members about the idea that America is a Christian nation that is actually not true to historic Christianity.
You tell the story of a former colleague in the fall of 2016 who emailed you saying he was alarmed to see Christian evangelical leaders supporting Trump. And then he became one of Trump’s fiercest defenders. Why did he and others make a similar change?
I don’t know what was in their motivation or in their hearts. I think a lot of people at the beginning of the Trump presidency were known for being anti-anti-Trump. They may have been anti-Trump at first, but then they got tired of the Trump criticism and the backlash against Trump. And they say, I’m now done being anti-Trump. I am anti-anti Trump. And so that was part of it. I think a lot of it was a rationalization to get to where their audience was. When your audience wants more pro-Trump stuff, it often ends up misleading people.
You said, “I still believe in evangelicals, but I don’t believe in evangelism.” What does that mean?
That means there are a lot of really great people in these evangelical churches, all over the country and around the world. Just fantastic individuals and families. But there is a whole culture of political beliefs and cultural practices that added to the faith I was indoctrinated into. It took me decades to unpack all the assumptions that were superimposed onto my worldview by these teachings.
You say you were taught what to feel, what to believe, but not how to think. Can you elaborate?
When you’re in that kind of place where all the answers to life’s questions begin with a very firm set of beliefs that are based on a text that is interpreted and read in a way that isn’t even that of the Bible. read most of the history of Christianity, then you’re stuck in a bind when it comes to asking questions. You can ask them to a certain extent. But once you run into one of the set-in-stone answers, the answers start to be labeled as dangerous, sinful, or bad.
What changed your beliefs from how you were raised?
If I had to put him on one thing, I would give him permission to ask questions and follow the truth wherever the facts lead us.
Who or what gave you this permission?
Become a journalist.
Are you still evangelical or do you call yourself something else?
I don’t think I would use that label. I think I would just call myself a Christian.
Is there anything that could cause former President Trump to lose the allegiance of white evangelicals who support him?
I think it should be something more pragmatic and political than theological or moral. If it depended on him vs. Nikki Haley (the former governor of South Carolina and 2023 Republican presidential candidate), and it was clear in the poll that Trump would lose to a Democrat and Haley would beat the Democrat, many evangelicals would shift their support to Haley because they would like a Republican to win. The Presidency. People are often looking for an epiphany that will cause them to stop supporting him (Trump), but I think we are beyond that in most cases.
If Trump wins a second term, what will be the impact on the white evangelical world?
You would see adulation from many evangelicals. We would see a minority of evangelicals moving away not only from Trump, and not only from Republican politics, but also from evangelicalism. But that’s probably the minority. The word “evangelical” has become increasingly shaky over the past decade because the Trump movement has managed to attract many people to this style of merging religion and politics. This attracts a lot of people who aren’t even really practicing.
How did your father react to your book?
We spent several hours one day talking about it. He expressed positive feelings about parts of the book, but his overwhelming response was negative. The level of disagreement I have with him may have come as a surprise. It must be very difficult for your son to write anything that doesn’t praise you.
I came back to him later and explained every moment of the book that he mentioned and pointed out that 75% of those mentions are very positive. I was grateful for his love and for his place in my life and for the person that he is. Through our conversations, we have arrived at a better place.
Time will tell if it holds up, I guess. It was good for us to talk about it rather than letting a lot of things fester.
