Picture yourself, if you will, as pregnant. You’ve only just discovered your condition six weeks post-conception, meaning that you are legally barred from obtaining an abortion due to the detection of what is commonly referred to as a “fetal heartbeat.” Should you somehow manage to procure an abortion, you will be subject to prosecution. Furthermore, any individual who performs or assists in the procedure is likewise subject to legal action.
Your state has taken it upon itself to empower its citizens to act as watchdogs, reporting and initiating civil suits against you or any other parties involved. The incentive for such actions is, of course, financial gain, but also saving the lives of the unborn. Successful litigants are awarded no less than $10,000 in damages and court costs, all paid for by the defendant.
This may sound like something out of a dystopian novel - “The Handmaid’s Tale” comes to mind - but it is, in fact, the current reality in the state of Texas. And other states, including Florida, are eagerly seeking to follow suit. Some lawmakers there are even considering legislation that would make it illegal to travel out of state to obtain an abortion.
Let us not mince words here - anti-abortion legislation is driven and directed by Christian conservatives who, once in positions of power, see no issue with imposing their particular brand of “Biblical” beliefs on the rest of society. And we can be certain that they will not stop at abortion.
These Christian Nationalists seek to turn back the clock to a time when the Christian Church and state were so intertwined that it was nearly impossible to distinguish one from the other.
In the waning years of the 1970s, Republican politicians realized that evangelical Christians could be co-opted into their party by pandering to their desire for religious power. Ronald Reagan, for example, adopted nearly verbatim the notion of America as a shining example of God’s nation, invoking John Winthrop’s 1630 declaration: “For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill.”
The only problem with this narrative? America has never been a Christian nation. Many of the constitutional framers were deists or theistic rationalists, rejecting almost all the fundamental doctrines of Biblical Christianity, including the deity of Christ. They did not intend to create a Christian nation - none of them ever made such a claim.
Despite this historical reality and the fact that the First Amendment explicitly prohibits the government from establishing religion, favoring one religion over another, or even favoring religion over non-religion, Christian Nationalists persist in perpetuating the myth of America as a Christian nation. Confronted with the overwhelming evidence that few if any of the founders were Christians, they fall back on the claim that all of them adhered to “Judeo-Christian” values - a term so nebulous that it can be adapted to fit any person, situation, or secular value, and so divisive as to place Christians and Jews at the top of our religious class system.
By fusing the identities of the Christian church and the nation, Christian nationalists seek to advance the notion that America is a nation exclusively for Christians, subject to the ultimate authority of their God. To them, church and state are inextricably linked, rendering any criticism of the country tantamount to an attack on their faith. And we need only look to history to see how a church wielding political power deals with those perceived as attacking the faith - it was called the Inquisition.
As recounted by history.com:
“Inquisitors would arrive in a town and announce their presence, affording citizens the opportunity to confess to heresy. Those who did so were subjected to punishments ranging from a pilgrimage to a whipping. Those accused of heresy were compelled to testify. If they did not confess, torture and execution were all but inevitable. Heretics were not permitted to confront their accusers, received no counsel, and were often the victims of false accusations.”
Jews and Muslims were particularly targeted during the European Inquisition, but anyone who failed to conform to the official state religion was at risk. It may seem unthinkable that such atrocities could occur in modern society, but in a country where Christianity and government nationalism take hold, all political dissent is viewed as a direct attack on God himself. And when defending the faith, any retaliation - including imprisonment, torture, and death - could be considered fair game if civil law is second to God’s law.
We are already witnessing the beginnings of this phenomenon in Florida, where the current right-wing government is endeavoring to rewrite the history of slavery in this country, now claiming that slaves acquired valuable life skills during their time in bondage. Teachers who dare to speak out against this whitewashing of history risk losing their jobs.
With God on their side, any action, law, or punishment inflicted upon unbelievers that furthers their cause can be justified. Non-believers including atheists, Humanists, and others are particularly vulnerable to the excesses of a Christian state, and marginalized groups such as the LGBTQ+ community and women are easy targets for Christian Nationalist leaders seeking to flex their power.
We have already seen repugnant campaigns, sponsored by the state government, aimed at branding non-Christians, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and indeed anyone who does not conform to conservative norms, as “groomers” and “deviants.”
Christian Nationalists cherry-pick selected passages from the Old and New Testaments to justify their actions, conveniently ignoring the fundamental tenets of Christianity concerning love, tolerance, and forgiveness. At the CFFC, we have witnessed firsthand how Christian Nationalist groups and their allies, such as Liberty Counsel, engage in historical revisionism, outright lies, and slanderous campaigns in their single-minded pursuit of establishing a Christian nation in this country by any means necessary.
Christian Nationalists have repeatedly attempted to inject Christian teachings into the public school system, fully cognizant of the fact that such actions are unconstitutional. But the problem with Christian Nationalists - and indeed with all religious zealots - is that they believe their God supersedes all secular laws. In their minds, they are doing God’s work by breaking laws and even flouting the US Constitution if they deem them to be at odds with their God’s teachings and principles.
Christian Nationalists are often impervious to logical arguments that expose the fallacious basis for their belief that America is a fundamentally Christian nation. One effective deterrent is to challenge them by engaging the legal system as necessary and when possible. At the CFFC, we have already achieved victories in preventing the introduction of religious materials into the public school system in Orange County Public Schools and securing access to secular invocations at the Brevard County Commission. But we can be certain that further action will be required in the future to counter the relentless efforts of believers to establish their vision of “heaven on earth.” However, with the federal and state courts leaning further and further to the right, this will be even harder.
Our constitutional protections guaranteeing freedom of religion protect all citizens to practice or not practice their religion as they see fit. A government co-opted by a specific denomination of Christian faith will inevitably seek to control and undermine competing religious interests, as Amanda Tyler of the Baptist Joint Committee points out in her interview with the Center for American Progress.
While most rank-and-file Christians are not actively pushing for a Christian state, the authoritarian nature of religious belief means that many will blindly follow their leaders. And much of the church leadership is all too willing to cozy up to politicians who, in turn, are more than happy to pander to a large religious and patriotic base susceptible to populist, emotional appeals to God and country.
Christian Nationalists are hell-bent on advancing their agenda, untroubled by any considerations other than a naked power grab where the ends justify any means employed. Demographic trends indicate that Christian and religious influences in this country are rapidly waning with the growth of the non-religious and other segments of the population. But like a dying, cornered animal lashing out in its final throes, Christian Nationalists are making a last-ditch effort to seize power through lies, propaganda, and dog-whistle appeals to those who feel threatened by their loss of majority status.
Christian Nationalism poses a grave threat to the core principles of our democracy - religious freedom and equality. As members of the CFFC, we stand united in our commitment to opposing this ideology and advocating for a pluralistic society where everyone is free to express their beliefs or lack thereof. Let us continue to champion the values that have made our nation strong, inclusive, and respectful of the rich tapestry of humanity.
