The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory, by Tim Alberta
Review by Dave Gamrath
In his new book, The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism, Tim Alberta investigates the evolution of Christian nationalism within America’s evangelical church.
Book Review:
In his new book, The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism, Tim Alberta investigates how evangelicalism in America has changed in the past years. Alberta grew up in an evangelical church in Michigan, where his father was the pastor. In the book Alberta comes across as a pretty conservative guy exploring what has happened to the church that he once loved.
Alberta writes that until recently, evangelicalism in America focused on the teachings of the gospel, including the standard biblical lessons of loving your neighbor as yourself, and to “do to others as you would have them do to you.” The gospel teaches to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Christians are to see in everyone, especially their enemies, “the image and likeness of God.” Alberta writes that “the Bible clearly tells us that our struggle is not against flesh and blood,” and most definitely is not about politics. Christians are supposed to follow Christ, not any man.
Traditionally, American evangelicals have largely been white conservatives. Alberta writes how the election of Barack Obama, a Black man, was a shock to many white evangelicals. Although the gospel states to “pray for those in authority over us,” Obama created a backlash in the church. For many, the election of Obama showed they were “under siege” and losing their country. Evangelicals transitioned from believing the most important thing about a politician was that politician’s personal moral behavior, to believing that the most important thing was taking back their country. Christian leaders preached that “America was under assault from secular liberal elites and godless government bureaucrats, and Christians needed to start fighting back.” Alberta writes that for many evangelicals, “the first step toward preserving Christian values…was to do away with Christian values.”
As a candidate in 2016, Donald Trump “served up a cocktail of discontent – one part cultural displacement, one part religious persecution, one part nationalist fever.” Trump played on the idea of “Christians losing their status in a secularizing America.” Even though it was clear that Trump was not Christian, many evangelicals believed that “God raised up Trump, ordained him as America’s leader, and delivered him the presidency,” restoring hope for a nation in decline.
Alberta reports that “two-thirds of white evangelicals either explicitly supported the notion of Christian nationalism or were sympathetic to it,” and that nearly 90 percent agreed that “God intended America to be a new promised land…run by European Christians.” Evangelicals began to be seduced by the “cult of Trumpism,” which called for destroying ones enemies. The church became about winning, not about following Jesus. Alberta tells many stories of pastors being forced to turn their sermons away from the gospel towards politics. If pastors didn’t turn political, their congregants left in waves to join a church where preaching politics was the priority.
Then Covid hit. Many congregants believed that the church was too essential to be shuttered for any reason. Government mandated Covid protocols led to conspiracy theories. Many evangelicals believed that Covid “is the biggest lie perpetrated on humanity that we’re ever going to see in our lifetime.” Covid was a great accelerator in American evangelical churches becoming much more angry, fearful, and political.
Alberta details the teachings of Christian nationalism that has taken over American evangelicalism. At its center is the worship of America instead of the Bible: you’re an American first and a Christian second. The church promotes the “twin narratives of America at the abyss and Christianity in the crosshairs.” Describing their sermons as “about good against evil,” pastors preached against gay rights, Black Lives Matter, Critical Race Theory, wokeness and Joe Biden. Guns are a God-given right. Children are being groomed. Instead of focusing on the Bible, pastors challenged “the legitimacy of our election system; the question of whether to confront racism in society; the etiquette of wearing masks during a lethal pandemic; the morality of vaccines; and the existence of a satanic cult of Democrats who cannibalize kids.” And, of course, immigrants are “spreading all over the country, and they’re carrying all kinds of diseases, and they’re being moved under the cover of night.” Alberta describes how “talking politics was now as much a part of church life as taking communion.” Effectively, church leaders baptized their worldview and called it Christian.
Crucial in Christian nationalism teaching is that the separation of church and state is a myth. “America should be declared a Christian nation,” but instead their faith was being banned. “The time had come for evangelicals to reclaim their rightful place atop the nation’s core governmental and cultural institutions.” By the way, Christians have “biblical authority to take America ‘by force.’” Pastors began preaching the possibility of a second civil war. What ten years ago would have been considered a cult, is now mainstream.
Throughout the book, Alberta visits many centers of the Christian nationalism movement, and interviews many of its leaders. Alberta conducts deep-dives into Jerry Falwell’s Liberty Baptist College, into the Southern Baptist Conference, and into First Baptist Dallas and its senior pastor Robert Jeffress. Alberta interviews Ralph Reed, founder of the Christian Coalition, and describes how Reed’s most powerful tool is fear. Alberta captures efforts at monetizing “owning the libs” and profiting on America’s culture wars. He also discusses Vladimir Putin’s weaponizing religion in pursuit of his policies, including geopolitical conquest. “When you have a special mission from God…you are free to do whatever your mission requires you to do.” Putin’s ultimate goal is to “Make Russia Great Again.”
Alberta closes his book with the stories of a few Christian leaders who are pushing back, and returning to preaching the gospel instead of politics. This has not been easy, and many have lost much of their congregation. Alberta also details sex abuse scandals in the church, including the Southern Baptist Convention, and the heroic insiders who fought to expose the abuse and change things. But, to me, these attempts at ending on a positive spin seemed pretty weak compared to the magnitude of the Christian nationalist movement Alberta describes. As Alberta writes, this movement’s goal is “restoring a version of America that never existed,” at whatever the cost. If Trump wins in November, will he succeed at turning America into an autocratic, illiberal, Christian nationalist state? Let us pray not. If Trump loses, will his Christian nationalist warriors accept defeat, or turn to violence? Heaven help us…
Reviewer Opinion:
Scary, but good
Reviewer Rating of Book:
Thumb up