Manifest Destiny
The Christian Nationalist would lead us to believe there is only one true religion, theirs, and that the United States has been chosen by God to enforce that notion.
American Christian nationalism is based on a worldview that America is superior to other countries, and that such superiority is divinely established. It posits that only Christians are "true Americans". Christian nationalism also bears overlap with the American militia movement. The 1992 Ruby Ridge standoff and the 1993 Waco siege served as a catalyst for the growth of militia activity among Christian nationalists.[95] Christian nationalists believe that the US is meant to be a Christian nation, and that it was founded as a Christian nation, and want to "take back" the US for God.[107][108] _wikipedia
Really?
James Madison, who crafted the First Amendment, didn't believe that. He feared the consequences of one true religion, a state religion. I'll have more on that below. The problem of a state religion is exclusion. Only certain people will be included in this quest. The rest will be marginalized and persecuted.
More from Wikipedia:
Christian nationalism prioritizes an ethno-cultural, ethno-religious, and ethno-nationalist framing around fear of "the other", those being immigrants, racial, and sexual minorities. Studies have associated Christian nationalism with xenophobia, homophobia, misogyny, political tolerance of racists, opposition to interracial unions, support for gun rights, pronatalism, and restricting the civil rights of those who fail to conform to traditional ideals of whiteness, citizenship, and Protestantism.[106]: 6 The Christian nationalist belief system includes elements of patriarchy, white supremacy, nativism, and heteronormativity.[106]: 7 It has been associated with a "conquest narrative", premillennial apocalypticism, and of frequent "rhetoric of blood, specifically, of blood sacrifice to an angry God".
In “Federalist No. 10,” part of a series of essays written to support the Constitution, Madison warned about the dangers of factions and intolerance. A dominant religious group could marginalize others. A “religious sect may degenerate into a political faction,” he warned. In his view, a religious faction with political power can create a political tyranny, especially when it claims to act in God’s name.
Madison understood that religious freedom did not mean protecting one faith against others. Religious freedom is best secured in a nation that respects religious diversity in all of its variety, including the right to no religion at all. The point was not to privilege any tradition but to protect all traditions.
More from Wikipedia:
Christian nationalism prioritizes an ethno-cultural, ethno-religious, and ethno-nationalist framing around fear of "the other", those being immigrants, racial, and sexual minorities. Studies have associated Christian nationalism with xenophobia, homophobia, misogyny, political tolerance of racists, opposition to interracial unions, support for gun rights, pronatalism, and restricting the civil rights of those who fail to conform to traditional ideals of whiteness, citizenship, and Protestantism.[106]: 6 The Christian nationalist belief system includes elements of patriarchy, white supremacy, nativism, and heteronormativity.[106]: 7 It has been associated with a "conquest narrative", premillennial apocalypticism, and of frequent "rhetoric of blood, specifically, of blood sacrifice to an angry God".
In “Federalist No. 10,” part of a series of essays written to support the Constitution, Madison warned about the dangers of factions and intolerance. A dominant religious group could marginalize others. A “religious sect may degenerate into a political faction,” he warned. In his view, a religious faction with political power can create a political tyranny, especially when it claims to act in God’s name.
Madison understood that religious freedom did not mean protecting one faith against others. Religious freedom is best secured in a nation that respects religious diversity in all of its variety, including the right to no religion at all. The point was not to privilege any tradition but to protect all traditions.
A broader attack on our freedoms.
This administration and the Supreme Court are silencing entire voting blocs, attempting to squash freedom of expression, legislate a national religion, and silence the press, all while claiming it is part of the original intent of the founders of this country. A quick look at what was adopted as the First Amendment makes clear none of that is true. James Madison, the author of the Constitution, proposed more descriptive First Amendment.
Madison’s proposal for what eventually became the First Amendment is broadly consistent with the final product but in some respects more descriptive:
“The civil rights of none shall be abridged on account of religious belief or worship, nor shall any national religion be established, nor shall the full and equal rights of conscience be in any manner, or on any pretext infringed.
“The people shall not be deprived or abridged of their right to speak, to write, or to publish their sentiments; and the freedom of the press, as one of the great bulwarks of liberty, shall be inviolable.
“The people shall not be restrained from peaceably assembling and consulting for their common good; nor from applying to the legislature by petitions, or remonstrances for redress of their grievances.”
Thanks to Middle Tennessee State University and the Free Speech Center for the information about James Madison.
The Supreme Court has gotten it wrong before. Plessy v Ferguson codified segregation based on separate but equal. They were separate alright, but not equal. Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) is widely considered the worst decision in U.S. Supreme Court history because it declared that Black Americans could not be citizens and ruled that the federal government had no constitutional authority to ban slavery in the territories. This overt racism, judicial overreach, and failure to peacefully resolve the slavery crisis pushed the country directly into the Civil War. (Wikipedia) The damage done took generations to fix.
But what's happening now can be repaired if we, like those who came before us, do not stand idly by.
But how?
Historian and Andrew Carnegie Fellow Timothy Snyder suggests ways to defend democracy with individual actions.
- Do not obey in advance.
- Defend institutions.
- Beware the one-party state.
- Take responsibility for the face of the world.
- Remember professional ethics.
- Be wary of paramilitaries.
- Be reflective if you must be armed.
- Stand out. Someone has to.
- Be kind to our language.
- Believe in truth.
- Investigate.
- Make eye contact and small talk.
- Practice corporeal politics.
- Establish a private life.
- Contribute to good causes.
- Learn from peers in other countries.
- Listen for dangerous words.
- Be calm when the unthinkable arrives.
- Be a patriot.
- Be as courageous as you can.
