That level of certainty in Trump’s divinity can justify a lot of extreme behavior.
By Max Burns
Contributor & Founder
Third Degree Strategies
This week brought two chilling reminders that, despite America’s constitutional commitment to secular government, Christian nationalism is thriving in the Trump era. From the Alabama Supreme Court’s stunningly theocratic ruling on the legal status of embryos to the MAGA-aligned groups designing Donald Trump’s Christian nationalist second term, it has never been clearer that Republicans are at war with our fundamental separation of church and state.
The resurgence of Christian nationalism will come as no surprise to anyone who has watched Trump’s MAGA movement merge with a constellation of extremist preachers and apocalyptic prophets. Many of them, including prominent Mississippi Pastor Shane Vaughn, believe Trump was anointed by God to rule America. A growing number of evangelical voters now view the former president as the second coming of Jesus Christ and frame the 2024 election as a battle not just for America’s soul but for the salvation of all mankind.
That level of certainty in Trump’s divinity can justify a lot of extreme antidemocratic — and even violent — behavior. After all, shouldn’t a “good” (read: Trump-aligned) Christian be willing to do anything to ensure God’s anointed leader returns to the White House next year?
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