The Three Sects of Christian Nationalism
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Most Americans don’t know that Christian Nationalism is a tenuous alliance between three very different Christian sects: Dominionist Pentecostal/Charismatics; Opus Dei Catholics; and hardline Baptists with a smattering of other Protestants.
While they’ve been willing to band together to fight culture wars and engineer a theocratic transformation, they believe different things about who are “Real Christians.” They may cooperate today, but should their coalition succeed in consolidating their power in this or any government, their cooperation will falter on the question of whose version of Christianity will be forced upon all of us.
Prior to the revolutionary concepts of freedom of religion and the separation of church and state, passionate disagreement about religious beliefs had typically led to holy wars. The eventual Christian Nationalists’ holy war may not span Thirty Years, but it could be even more deadly, and not just to Christian Nationalists.
This week’s newsletters will help readers better understand the similarities and differences between the three sects in order to highlight rifts in the Christian Nationalist coalition.
Each sect teaches its members that they are the only “Real Christians.”
I grew up in the Baptist/Protestant branch of Christian Nationalism. My pastor probably delivered more sermons about the evils of Catholicism than any other topic, unless one counts his disdain for Pentecostal speaking-in-tongues and faith healing. Of the three groups, we were the only “Real Christians.”
Dominionist Charismatics believe their anointed leaders are new apostles and claim to directly channel (i.e., speaking in tongues) the views and edicts of the One True God. They believe this kind of possession is an essential component of “Real Christianity,” incontrovertible proof their sect is the One True Faith. Since the other sects don’t engage in this kind of performance, of course they aren’t “Real Christians.”
Opus Dei Catholics are what I call “New Crusaders.” They believe Catholicism is the One True Faith; everything else is heresy that must be stopped or converted. Its leaders want to return us to a world before the Enlightenment, where the Catholic church banded with obscenely wealthy people to form an elite hierarchy that rules over everyone else as serfs or slaves.
This Wednesday, 26 Feburary at Noon EST, and I will talk about her experiences with Opus Dei.
We will learn to spot their coded language in the wild and better understand their objectives.
This Substack LIVE event is for Paid Subscribers. We hope you’ll join us!
Each sect deploys different tactics to achieve domination.
The Baptist/Protestant branch of Christian Nationalism is very in-your-face about their Christianity. Oklahoma state representative Dusty Deevers is a leader of this sect, as is Joel Webbon, the radical pastor who suggested we publicly stone women who falsely accuse men of sexual assault.
They are sanctimonious and believe they have the God-ordained right/responsibility to preach to everyone about morality. They don’t hide their beliefs.
They believe they are always the holiest people in every room. Their holier-than-thou behavior is their most overt display of their narcissism.
The leaders are almost always white men. They do not believe women should lead men or have a meaningful role in society.
I would also put Christian Reconstructionists like Pete Hegseth in this category.
The Statement on Christian Nationalism & the Gospel series I did in January was authored by the Baptist/Protestant sect.
Dominionist/Charismatics follow the Seven Mountain Mandate. It advises adherents to work toward conquering their individual mountain - let’s say to become Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court - before they reveal the full extent of their faith.
While they may attend church and talk about their faith, they use coded language known only to their fellow adherents and hide their radicalization until they reach the top of their mountain.
Both women and men can be apostles in this sect. Paula White-Cain, selected to lead the so-called “White House Faith Office,” is a prominent female Dominionist. I would put Russ Vought, newly-confirmed head of the Office of Managment and Budget in this group as well.
They apply the Seven Mountain Mandate to every aspect of life. We saw this in action when Tom Parker, Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, used Dominionist language in his ruling against IVF.
Opus Dei Catholics aim to return the world to a time when Catholicism was the powerful state religion aligned with the wealthy class. They were heavily involved in crafting Project 2025. Kevin Roberts, former head of the Heritage Foundation, is aligned with Opus Dei, as is JD Vance. I would wager that the five male Catholic Supreme Court justices are also in their ranks.
Like Dominionists, Opus Dei Catholics are encouraged to hide their radicalization until they reach their targeted leadership position. They also use coded language to let other group members know who they are.
Their leaders are largely white men. Women cannot be leaders in this movement, but they can be recruited to attract other women.
They are New Crusaders who will use various tactics to conquer their perceived enemies, including violence if necessary. Hence, Kevin Roberts’ assertion that the revolution will be bloodless if the Left allows it to be. Or Mike Flynn’s open bloodlust in his public appearances.
We will learn a lot more about Opus Dei in our Substack LIVE with Shannon Vavich this Wednesday, 26 February, at Noon EST.
Each sect believes they have the right and responsibility to turn society’s leadership away from rational secularism and to force everyone to follow their specific interpretation of faith.
Because they do not agree on what makes one a “Real Christian,” they will have to either compromise on a national religion or fight over which one will rule.
Each sect believes with absolute certainty that their interpretation of the Bible is the One True Faith. Their certainty will make compromise impossible, leaving us with the high probability of holy war.
What we can do:
Get them to openly call out perceived flaws in other Christian Nationalist sects. Get Baptist/Protestant representatives to show public disdain for Catholicism and the charismatic movement. Record more Opus Dei Sam Alitos claiming they can’t compromise. Ask Dominionists if people like Dusty Deevers will have a place in their movement since he doesn’t speak in tongues or believe women can be ordained.
Learn more of their coded language. I’ve spent over a year educating readers about Christian Nationalism’s coded language. The more we know, the more we can spot and call out in the wild. Shannon Vavich puts “Hi Opus Dei!” on every online comment she sees with their coded language, for example.
If you’re a Christian Protestant or Catholic but not a Christian Nationalist, stand up for your faith. More Christians must publicly condemn these sects. If you’re Catholic, educate everyone about why they should reject Opus Dei. If you’re Protestant, be vocal like Bishop Budde. And if you’re Pentecostal/Charismatic, publicly rebuke the Dominionist cult that perverts your beliefs.
Andra, I hope I can make it. Super interested.
When I was in grad school there was a man from Spain whom a Catholic classmate told me was a member of Opus Dei. He characterized him as an extreme sexual conservative. I did not have any interaction with this man in our class except for the casual greeting. Then, the professor assigned us to work in teams. Each team in our class had to create a lesson you could use to teach a certain topic in ESL, and we also had to have an activity in this lesson. So my group was doing sex education, and I had an activity of putting on a condom using a small cucumber. This man in our class told me at the end of our group's presentation that my presentation was the best, but he would never use the lesson because he believes condom use is wrong.
He seemed to be a very nice guy, but other than hearing him tell me that, I never talked religion or politics with him. Now I am wondering if my classmate was correct. I would love to learn more.
According to what you are saying we cannot see Amy Conney Barrett as a member of Opus Dei, just the Federalist Society. I am sure there is a lot of overlap though.
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