WNUG Ep. 5- How I Escaped the Web of White Christian Nationalism
Discover more from Footnotes by Jemar Tisby
WNUG Ep. 5- How I Escaped the Web of White Christian Nationalism
Listen to the true and painful story of how one person went from an ambassador of white Christian Nationalism to becoming an intentional resister.
We often hear about how people are caught in the web of white Christian nationalism and its pernicious beliefs. This is the rare is the story of someone who escaped.
When I met Chuck Armstrong at a conference a few years ago, I had no idea that he was in the middle of a long and painful journey out of a type of political and Christian conservatism that we now recognize as white Christian nationalism.
I know Chuck to be a man who has earnestly wrestled with what he has believed and promoted in talk radio and in his ministry as a church staff member.
I find the people who are forthrightly dealing with the biggest challenges in their lives (as opposed to deflecting or avoiding them) to be the most refreshing kinds of people to be around.
Chuck is no exception.
In episode 5 and the finale of our “White Nation Under God” series, you’ll hear Chuck Armstrong candidly and vulnerably talk about his upbringing, his rise to the heights of influence in conservative talk radio, his time as a staff member at a mega church, as well as the profound changes in life and vocation he has experienced in the past several years.
Chuck’s story is one of hope, courageously standing for one’s principles, and the possibility of escaping the web of white Christian nationalism.
How I Escaped the Web of White Christian Nationalism
White Christian Nationalism is not merely a set of beliefs, it is a net that ensnares real people. At one time, Chuck Armstrong, a dedicated Christian, worked closely with far-right radio host and Congressional Medal of Honor winner (under Trump), Rush Limbaugh. As Armstrong matured in his faith and had more contact with marginalized and oppressed people, he realized he had been deceived into following a pernicious belief system. This is his journey into and out of White Christian Nationalism.
Previous Episodes:
What Is White Christian Nationalism with Dr. Jemar Tisby
How White Christian Nationalism Threatens Democracy with Drs. Philip Gorski and Samuel Perry
White Christian Nationalism and the January 6th Insurrection with Andrew Seidel
How Christians Can Resist White Christian Nationalism with Amanda Tyler
WNUG Ep. 5- How I Escaped the Web of White Christian Nationalism
Hi Dr. Tisby! I’m a Footnotes subscriber and I just finished listening to this last episode of the White Nation Under God series. The whole series has been so incredible and informative!! Thank you so much! I wonder if you might be willing to go into more depth in a future episode or article about how conservatism (like Rev. Armstrong described) can lead to an embrace or acceptance of White Christian Nationalism. It would be helpful to understand more clearly how the two are directly connected. Thank you!
It’s funny, as I think about my story above, especially the power of my dad’s example to me, after more reflections on my words above, I see I am really missing a big point. I haven’t escaped the toxicity. I still feel it and deal with it every day. I was part of the problem, even as I felt like I saw through the problem.
I was a small group leader in that church I left. So many of my spiritual habits, including my sense of calling and self-justifications for how I set my goals, were and are wrapped up in either protecting or defending elements of white Christian nationalism, especially the theological books and ideas around the doctrines of grace those churches taught. There was a ton of legalism in that church masked as humility, and the baggage people have carried from the failed experiment of Sovereign Grace Ministries is truly multi-generational.
It sucks to think about. I am glad I left, but that toxicity and presumption of spiritual superiority still lives in me and comes out through my own toxicity. It’s an every day fight, played out in my anxiety levels and my communication patterns.
This discussion really spoke to me today about all of this, and it says what I’m trying to get at far better than I can now.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-disrupters-faith-changing-culture/id1495107302?i=1000586124890