Understanding White Christian Nationalism

By Tony Keys, GCC Board Member

How do we recognize White Christian Nationalism?

Why is it so prevalent in today's government?

Those questions and many others were answered in the spirited conversation at the Germantown Community Coalition's (GCC) event "White Christian Nationalism: An Urgent Conversation" featuring Pastor Jessica Short from Lutheran Church of the Living Christ.

Among the things learned were:

• Christianity varies by where you were raised.

• White Christian Nationalism is like a chameleon.

• Religion is not faith.

White Christian Nationalism's roots go all the way back to early America, where two competing visions for the country were already taking shape. The Puritans came here to practice their own version of Christianity and saw America as a kind of Promised Land. They tied their faith to the idea that this new nation had a divine mission, and that if they failed, the world wouldn’t see “true Christianity.” That early sense of American exceptionalism still echoes today.

The Framers, meanwhile, had a very different approach. Fifty‑five delegates shaped the Constitution, and while many of them were religious, faith wasn’t the foundation of the government they were building. Thomas Jefferson is a perfect example: he admired Jesus’ teachings but literally cut the miracles out of his personal New Testament (what people later called The Jefferson Bible). He also wrote about the need for a “wall of separation between church and state,” making it clear that the government shouldn’t be run by any one religion.

Today, Christian Nationalism pushes hard against that separation. And layered into this history is not just a religious divide but a racial one. Race became a way to call out the Framers’ hypocrisy for declaring “all men are created equal” while enslaving people. Slavery was widely accepted among many early Christian communities, and that acceptance helped fuse faith, power, and racial hierarchy in ways that still shape our politics now.

Understanding this history helps explain why these tensions haven’t gone away. They’ve been baked into the American story from the beginning.

1915

"Birth of A Nation" becomes first film screened at the White House, by Woodrow Wilson. The movie pushed the idea of America as a “true republic” and a true White Christian nation.

1930-1980

A wave of extreme White Christian Nationalists known as the Latter Rain Movement emerged in the 1940s, starting in Canada. They believed speaking in tongues could literally shift world events. Their focus was on a “new order” of worship, restoring apostles and prophets, and passing on spiritual gifts through the laying on of hands instead of traditional prayer practices. Versions of this style of worship are still common in many Southern churches today.

Post WWII, 1940-1980

California looked bleak in the 1940s, so the government built defense factories and promised stable, middle‑class jobs. It was the American Dream. Out of that boom came new, independent Christian movements like the Crystal Cathedral. California became a magnet for people who wanted a freer, less formal version of Christianity, and those churches grew fast.

Meanwhile, politics was shifting. Senator Barry Goldwater rose to prominence in 1964. He opposed Civil Rights legislation, embraced a hard‑right ideology, and blurred the line between religion and government. Many see him as a precursor to today’s MAGA politics, someone who believed that if you weren’t radical, you weren’t truly American.

Another major figure of this era was Paul Weyrich, a Wisconsin native. He co‑founded the Heritage Foundation and launched the “Moral Majority” in 1979. He traveled to churches urging pastors to fight desegregation in religious schools. White Christian schools remained segregated until the government finally forced integration in the 1970s.

1980

Ronald Reagan wasn’t deeply religious, but he knew how to speak the language of White Christian Nationalism. He famously told church audiences, “I know you can’t endorse me, but I endorse you.” His use of the “shining city on a hill” imagery (a phrase rooted in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and first used in America by Puritan leader John Winthrop) helped tie his presidency to a sense of divine national purpose. That framing strengthened the idea of American exceptionalism and gave Christian Nationalists a powerful cultural anchor.

Today, White Christian Nationalism shows up most visibly in parts of the White Evangelical world, but it survives by constantly shifting its shape. Its change is necessary to stay out of the mainstream. It avoids anything that looks like a formal organization. There are no charters, no membership lists, no clear leadership structure. Instead, it operates as a loose, highly adaptive network built on secrecy and shared ideology. What you do see are familiar threads: the “right way” to be Christian, isolation from outsiders, a sense of victimhood, militaristic language, persecution narratives, and racism woven throughout.

Many of the ideas fueling White Christian Nationalism today come from different sects and movements, including the New Apostolic Reformation. Its founder, C. Peter Wagner, helped build the modern megachurch model inside this movement. He taught that certain leaders (almost always white men) were modern‑day apostles and prophets who could literally hear the voice of God. This wasn’t about interpreting scripture; it was about imparting authority. Wagner created a charismatic network that still influences churches across the country.

This helps explain how a self-described non-religious figure can be seen as "chosen by God" to lead and return the US to a strictly white-ruled Christian Nation. Enter Trump's so-called "Cyrus Anointing." Some Christian Evangelicals compare him to the Persian King Cyrus the Great, a non-believer who, in the Bible, was used by God to protect Israel. In this view, Trump is considered divinely appointed and chosen by God to protect conservative White Christian interests, appoint conservative judges, and support Israel with the assistance of the "Seven Mountain Mandate."

The Seven Mountain Mandate (7MM) is a dominionist plan within charismatic and Pentecostal Christianity that aims to control seven key pillars of society:

1. Religion

2. Family

3. Education

4. Government

5. Media

6. Arts and entertainment

7. Business

The goal is to place Christians (specifically white Christian Nationalists) in leadership roles across these “mountains” to usher in the Second Coming. White Christian Nationalists believe these seven pillars must be dominated by them for the kingdom of God to manifest on earth. Destroy the old system and create a new one. So much for separation of church and state.

Our event covered all of this and more, and the audience was incredibly engaged. Attendees generously donated much-needed hygiene items for families served by our friends at Casa Guadalupe Multicultural Center. If you weren't able to attend, donations of non-perishable items can always be dropped off in our bin located at Lutheran Church of the Living Christ. Learn more on our new Mutual Aid webpage!

We have already received numerous requests for a Part II on White Christian Nationalism that would include a discussion panel with faith leaders. Become a GCC member and get first notice of all of our free and educational events!

Full presentation can be found here.

Additional resources for continued learning can be found here.