Star-Spangled Jesus

September 15, 2024
Podcast host Ajoy pulls no punches in her compelling account of growing up Christian Nationalist. Her story includes cringeworthy experiences like singing "America Say Jesus" on Pat Robertson's 700 Club, visiting an evangelistic "Hell House" haunted by biblical demons, and science lessons in young-earth creationism. Ajoy describes the rise of Donald Trump as key to her disenchantment with Christian Nationalism; his behaviors represented a "glitch in the Matrix." As she writes, "Trump said the quiet parts of Christian Nationalism out loud." Ajoy reports on Christian Nationalism in some conservative churches: the predominance of patriarchal theology, chants of "Let's go Brandon" from pews, and conspiracy-tinged sermons from pulpits. This book provides a bird's-eye view of the breadth of Christian Nationalism, with sections titled Tenets, History, Tactics, and Frontlines. Ajoy is by turns knowing, salty, and funny. She holds grace for Christians yet to detach from nationalism, but there is no love lost for the weird conflation of Christianity and conservative politics that she left. A timely, insightful book for understanding this cultural movement.

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October 7, 2024
TikTokker Ajoy debuts with a witty account of her departure from the toxic Christian nationalism in which she was raised. The daughter of an evangelical pastor, she’d been indoctrinated since childhood in the importance of “keeping America a Christian nation.” Her views began to shift during the Trump presidency and were forever changed after she saw footage of members of her church at the January 6 Capitol insurrection (this was “not some extremist sect I had never interacted with before,” Ajoy recalls thinking. “These were my people”). During the painful spiritual “deconstruction” that followed, the author agonized over “researching topics and finding answers that could destroy meaningful relationships in my life.” Ultimately, she was able to detangle her Christianity from Christian nationalist beliefs and find a more inclusive faith rooted in love. Throughout, she pairs impassioned calls for readers to recognize how Christian nationalism “exploits our faith for power” with flashes of tongue-in-cheek humor. For example, on the quiz she provides to determine where one falls on the Christian Nationalist spectrum, a score of 30–40 points is “Marjorie Taylor Greene Level”: “If you keep reading this book, you probably won’t be triggered too much, because you can just write off what I say by believing that George Soros is paying me with eternal youth from his space lasers.” It’s an approachable insider’s look at a controversial movement.