Since the January 6, 2021 coup attempt at the U.S. Capitol, Christian nationalism has widely been called the “greatest threat to democracy in the United States.” Yet academics and activists present many conflicting definitions and solutions. On Christian Nationalism: Critical and Theological Perspectives features an array of scholarly essays on Christian nationalism, offering innovative exploration of topics including definitions and historical context, current trends in the United States (including intersections with racism, sexism, antisemitism, and Islamophobia), comparative phenomena abroad, and practical ways to address the problem theologically or politically. An important book at a time of rising Christian far-right mobilization and urgent need for a deeper theoretical analysis, On Christian Nationalism pushes the conversation further and explores new vantage points. The book will be of interest to those seeking a fuller, richer, and more complex understanding of Christian nationalism: scholars of religious and political movements, activists, pastors, journalists, and others with a concerned focus in the area.
David M. Gides is Professor of Theology at the University of Providence in Great Falls, Montana. He is the author of Pacifism, Just War, and Tyrannicide: Bonhoeffer’s Church-World Theology and His Changing Forms of Political Thinking and Involvement (2012) and editor of Uncivil Disobedience: Theological Perspectives (2023).
Joan Braune is Lecturer in Philosophy at Gonzaga University and works in Critical Theory and Critical Hate Studies. Her previous books include Understanding and Countering Fascist Movements: From Void to Hope (Routledge, 2024) and The Ethics of Researching the Far Right: Critical Approaches and Reflections (2024).