The problem seems to be that no one wants to be the critic going up against the formidable combination of both church and state
In their zeal to stoke the fires of a culture war, conservatives have drafted Jesus into their army, with some, including soccer-mom-turned-goofball Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, proudly espousing that she’s a Christian nationalist — which combines two of my favorite character traits, religious zealotry and fascism.
It’s a clever political position that takes some Americans for granted, co-mingling a love of Jesus with a fuzzy, non-specific appeal to patriotism, tailored especially for those too lazy to parse out nuance. Today’s form of Christian nationalism, served American style, makes all things about Jesus. Allegedly.
To stand up to this emerging mix of religion and politics is to invite scorn. I mean: Declaring you’re against Christian nationalism is akin to saying you’re anti-Jesus and possibly have misgivings about America itself.
Yet my reading and study of America and its founding documents, plus academic studies of Christianity, lead me to believe that Jesus wouldn’t endorse America’s new found love of Christian nationalism, and nothing in the Constitution reserves an elevated position for Christianity.