You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
alisarae 's review for:
Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation
by Kristin Kobes Du Mez
Jesus and John Wayne argues that above anything else, an embattled, militant, patriarchal masculinity and a submissive femininity unite the evangelical identity. Indeed, it is a cultural and political identity and no longer a mere faith tradition, as historical denominational demarcations along beliefs about infant baptism, dispensationalism, election & predestination, and sacrificial atonement have been forgotten or minimized in favor of agreement on gender roles and expressions in both the public and private spheres.
One question that Silas and I have been talking about is why is there such an emphasis placed on “complimentarian” gender roles, to the point that proponents insist that it is a fundamental part of the Trinity (this traditionally unorthodox doctrine is known as Eternal Submission of the Son - ESS / Arianism)? Why the insistence, and what are the practical implications of this? Is it simply a power trip for these men? Perhaps it is simply that. But if Kobes du Mez is correct, they are defending the very essence of their identity—one that has been meticulously constructed and refined throughout the 20th century to form a uniquely American concoction of religious nationalism. If this identity is challenged, then the entire worldview about the health, greatness, and security of the nation, family, and supreme being of the universe will crumble, not to mention their privileged position of undeserved power. Considering reality in the face of this construct, it is quite the fragile identity. The author insists, however, that this was built and not the inevitable course of evangelical Christianity. “What was once done might also be undone.”
Kobes du Mez’s writing is impeccable and brought much clarity to the mosh pit that is religion and politics in America. It’s hard to get a bird’s eye view of the interactions between individuals and trends when you are on the ground in the thick of it all (especially since I was just a kid for so much of my life) so this book was a useful map to sort out my own religious past.
One question that Silas and I have been talking about is why is there such an emphasis placed on “complimentarian” gender roles, to the point that proponents insist that it is a fundamental part of the Trinity (this traditionally unorthodox doctrine is known as Eternal Submission of the Son - ESS / Arianism)? Why the insistence, and what are the practical implications of this? Is it simply a power trip for these men? Perhaps it is simply that. But if Kobes du Mez is correct, they are defending the very essence of their identity—one that has been meticulously constructed and refined throughout the 20th century to form a uniquely American concoction of religious nationalism. If this identity is challenged, then the entire worldview about the health, greatness, and security of the nation, family, and supreme being of the universe will crumble, not to mention their privileged position of undeserved power. Considering reality in the face of this construct, it is quite the fragile identity. The author insists, however, that this was built and not the inevitable course of evangelical Christianity. “What was once done might also be undone.”
Kobes du Mez’s writing is impeccable and brought much clarity to the mosh pit that is religion and politics in America. It’s hard to get a bird’s eye view of the interactions between individuals and trends when you are on the ground in the thick of it all (especially since I was just a kid for so much of my life) so this book was a useful map to sort out my own religious past.