The Power Worshippers: INSIDE THE DANGEROUS RISE OF RELIGIOUS NATIONALISM

The Power WorshippersReviews

For too long the Religious Right has masqueraded as a social movement preoccupied with a number of cultural issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage. In her deeply reported investigation, Katherine Stewart reveals a disturbing truth: this is a political movement that seeks to gain power and to impose its vision on all of society. America’s religious nationalists aren’t just fighting a culture war, they are waging a political war on the norms and institutions of American democracy.

Stewart pulls back the curtain on the inner workings and leading personalities of a movement that has turned religion into a tool for domination. She exposes a dense network of think tanks, advocacy groups, and pastoral organizations embedded in a rapidly expanding community of international alliances and united not by any central command but by a shared, anti-democratic vision and a common will to power. She follows the money that fuels this movement, tracing much of it to a cadre of super-wealthy, ultraconservative donors and family foundations. She shows that today’s Christian nationalism is the fruit of a longstanding antidemocratic, reactionary strain of American thought that draws on some of the most troubling episodes in America’s past. It forms common cause with a globe-spanning movement that seeks to destroy liberal democracy and replace it with nationalist, theocratic and autocratic forms of government around the world. Religious nationalism is far more organized and better funded than most people realize. It seeks to control all aspects of government and society. Its successes have been stunning, and its influence now extends to every aspect of American life, from the White House to state capitols, from our schools to our hospitals.

The Power Worshippers is a brilliantly reported book of warning and a wake-up call. Stewart’s probing examination demands that Christian nationalism be taken seriously as a significant threat to the American republic and our democratic freedoms.

“Stewart also effectively reminds us that even though the religious right comprises a minority of the American populace, it has become very effective at insinuating itself in the national, state, and local seats of power.”

“[Stewart is] a seasoned investigative journalist, weaving together historical analysis and on-the-ground reporting to create engaging narratives . . . offer[ing] a behind-the-scenes view of how an interconnected network of think tanks, advocacy groups, and pastoral organizations joined forces with global anti-democratic religious nationalists long before entities like Russia became players in the 2016 presidential election.”

“A timely and useful introduction to the single most organized force in American politics today . . . One of the biggest strengths of The Power Worshippers is its close attention to political economy. In fact, Stewart's entire body of work demonstrates how the Christian nationalist movement has successfully redirected public resources to fund their own private religious initiatives, like the public financing of religious charter schools through tax breaks and grant programs.”

“Stewart provides a comprehensive, chilling look at America's Christian nationalist movement, which she convincingly portrays as a highly organized political coalition that has 'already transformed the political landscape and shaken the foundations upon which lay our democratic norms and institutions.' . . . Her insightful investigation places the power of Christian nationalism into full context.” –

“If anyone is wondering how the Religious Right and President Donald Trump ended up in their unholy alliance, Katherine Stewart has the answer. The Power Worshippers provides a fascinating x-ray into the political eco-system of religious conservatives who threaten the health of our democratic institutions. She argues that this movement is much more about power, money and invented pasts than ethics, theology and God. Stewart’s book is an important contribution to our understanding of contemporary politics.”

“Katherine Stewart knows from years of investigative reporting why the Trumpvangelicals who use faith to whitewash corruption are a preeminent threat to American democracy. Read The Power Worshippers and you will understand why nothing is more important to the health of our common life than challenging the false moral narrative of religious nationalism.”

“We are faced with a religious movement that is fundamentally opposed to pluralism and has long-term plans to transform America into a Christian nation. While for decades they have worked to infuse our culture with what they think are biblical values and reshape our legal system to conform to ‘biblical law,’ they are now in political power in all levels of government. Katherine Stewart’s The Power Worshippers is a comprehensive study of who’s who of this movement and those efforts as far back as the 1970s. Stewart is an adept journalist who roots her work in the most current scholarship. The result is a highly readable and important book.”

“Katherine Stewart’s exposé of Christian nationalism couldn’t be more relevant – or more necessary. Employing a sharp investigative eye, Stewart connects the dots between radical theocratic groups that want to create an officially ‘Christian nation’ and extreme free-market libertarians who despise social programs for the poor, taxes and public institutions. Backed by a network of big donors and well-funded think tanks that crank out a steady stream of propaganda, this disturbing partnership yearns to create an America hewing to their narrow definition of ‘traditional’ values, a country that works well for them, but not anyone else. After reading this book, you should be prepared to fight back like nothing less than our democracy is at stake – because it is.”

“Are millions of American churchgoers being inflamed and exploited by a cynical, well-funded alliance of power seekers? Katherine Stewart presents chilling evidence that this is indeed the case. Read it to understand what the relentless political agitation against abortion and homosexuality has really achieved—and for whom.”

NANCY MACLEAN, AUTHOR OF DEMOCRACY IN CHAINS: THE DEEP HISTORY OF THE RADICAL RIGHT’S STEALTH PLAN FOR AMERICA

HTTPS://KATHERINESTEWART.ME/

https://www.amazon.com/Power-Worshippers-Dangerous-Religious-Nationalism/dp/1635573432