The Religion of American Greatness: What’s Wrong with Christian Nationalism

“Christian nationalism is a bad political theory, illiberal in theory and practice and at odds with key features of the American experiment,” contends Miller (Just War and Ordered Liberty), an international affairs professor at Georgetown University, in this predictable analysis. Examining “the historical development, key beliefs, and political, cultural, and theological implications of Christian nationalism,” Miller critiques the ideology and its role in pushing the Republican Party rightward. The author suggests that globalization and deindustrialization weakened America’s national identity, spurring the contemporary movement to restore it. Miller argues that Christian nationalism is built on faulty premises because it incorrectly assumes that culture neatly maps onto national boundaries and that Anglo-Protestantism is a prerequisite for democracy. As an antidote, the author encourages cultural pluralism, imploring readers to “embrace and celebrate our differences without fetishizing or idolizing them.” This is well-trod ground and Miller doesn’t bring much new to the table, though his conservative credentials (he’s “a longtime Republican” with “a deep history in America’s conservative churches”) could put this on the radar of an audience for which his arguments may be less familiar. It’s a sensible if unsurprising account of Christian nationalism’s recent influence on U.S. politics. (July)