"Most Americans were shocked by the violence they witnessed at the nation's Capital on January 6th, 2021. And many were bewildered by the images displayed by the insurrectionists: a wooden cross and wooden gallows; 'Jesus saves' and 'Don't Tread on Me;' Christian flags and Confederate Flags; even a prayer in Jesus's name after storming the Senate chamber. Where some saw a confusing jumble, Philip S. Gorski and Samuel L. Perry saw a familiar ideology: white Christian nationalism.
Gorski and Perry explain what white Christian nationalism is; when it first emerged and how it has changed; where it's headed and why it threatens democracy. Tracing the development of this ideology over the course of three centuries—and especially its influence over the last three decades—they show how, throughout American history, white Christian nationalism has animated the oppression, exclusion, and even extermination of minority groups while securing privilege for white Protestants. It enables white Christian Americans to demand 'sacrifice' from others in the name of religion and nation, while defending their 'rights' in the names of 'liberty' and 'property.'
The future of American democracy will depend on whether a broad spectrum of Americans can unite in a popular front to combat the threat to liberal democracy posed by white Christian nationalism."
"Taking America Back for God points to the phenomenon of 'Christian nationalism,' the belief that the United States is—and should be—a Christian nation. At its heart, Christian nationalism demands that we must preserve a particular kind of social order, an order in which everyone—Christians and non-Christians, native-born and immigrants, whites and minorities, men and women—recognizes their 'proper' place in society. The first comprehensive empirical analysis of Christian nationalism in the United States, Taking America Back for God illustrates the influence of Christian nationalism on today's most contentious social and political issues.
Drawing on multiple sources of national survey data as well as in-depth interviews, Andrew Whitehead and Samuel Perry document how Christian nationalism shapes what Americans think about who they are as a people, what their future should look like, and how they should get there. Americans' stance toward Christian nationalism provides powerful insight into what they think about immigration, Islam, gun control, police shootings, atheists, gender roles, and many other political issues—very much including who they want in the White House. Taking America Back for God is a guide to one of the most important—and least understood—forces shaping American politics."
"Once confident of their victory over pornography in society at large, conservative Protestants now fear that 'porn addiction' is consuming even the most faithful. How are they adjusting to this new reality? And what are its consequences in their lives?
Drawing on over 130 interviews as well as numerous national surveys, Addicted to Lust tells us that, compared to other Americans, pornography shapes the lives of conservative Protestants in ways that are uniquely damaging to their mental health, spiritual lives, and intimate relationships. Samuel L. Perry demonstrates how certain pervasive beliefs within the conservative Protestant subculture unwittingly create a context in which those who use pornography are often overwhelmed with shame and discouragement, sometimes to the point of depression or withdrawal from faith altogether. Conservative Protestant women who use pornography feel a 'double shame' both for sinning sexually and for sinning 'like a man,' while conflicts over pornography in marriages are escalated by patterns of lying, hiding, blowing up, or threats of divorce.
Addicted to Lust shines new light on one of the most talked-about problems facing conservative Christians."
