The Challenge of Christian Nationalism with Mark Noll and Vincent Bacote

As the lines between faith, politics, and patriotism have become, in some quarters, increasingly blurred, it is increasingly important to understand the origin, ideas, and consequences of Christian Nationalism — what it means, why it matters, and how best to respond.

“Responsible Christian patriots try to show how Christianity can be a service to the nation; extreme nationalists make Christianity a servant of the nation.” – Mark Noll

“If you think about the cross: patriotism, rightly construed from a Christian point of view, will put the flag at the foot of the cross. Christian nationalism wants to drape the [flag] over them. So is God serving your country, the sponsor of your country, or are you, as a Christian, operating wherever you are and having loyalty, but not your primary loyalty to your country over God?” – Vincent Bacote

We hope you find this conversation insightful and helpful as you consider the state of our culture and shared political life, and your role in reviving responsible Christian patriotism.

This podcast is an edited version of an Online Conversation recorded in June of 2021. You can access the full conversation with transcript here. Learn more about Mark Noll and Vincent Bacote.

Authors and books mentioned in the conversation:
The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind by Mark Noll
God and Race in American Politics: A Short History, by Mark Noll
The Civil War as Theological Crisis, by Mark Noll
In the Beginning Was the Word: The Bible in American Public Life, by Mark Noll
The Political Disciple, A Theology of Public Life, by Vincent Bacote
Reckoning with Race and Performing the Good News, by Vincent Bacote
The Spirit in Public Theology: Appropriating the legacy of Abraham Kuyper, by Vincent Bacote

Related Trinity Forum Readings:
A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
City of God by St. Augustine of Hippo
Children of Light and Children of Darkness by Reinhold Niebuhr
Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Related Conversations:
Rebuilding our Common Life with Yuval Levin
The Challenge of Christian Nationalism with Mark Noll and Vincent Bacote
The Decadent Society with Ross Douthat
Science, Faith, Trust and Truth with Francis Collins
Beyond Ideology with Peter Kreeft and Eugene Rivers
Justice, Mercy, and Overcoming Racial Division with Claude Alexander and Mac Pier
Healing a Divided Culture with Arthur Brooks
After Babel with Andy Crouch and Johnathan Haidt
Trust, Truth, and The Knowledge Crisis with Bonnie Kristian
Hope in an Age of Anxiety with Curtis Chang & Curt Thompson

To listen to this or any of our episodes in full, visit ttf.org/podcast and to join the Trinity Forum Society and help make content like this possible, join the Trinity Forum Society

Special thanks to Ned Bustard for our podcast artwork.