The Theocratic Turn
Understanding and Resisting the Global Rise of Religious Authoritarianism
The following is an edited version of a speech I recently gave to a group of concerned community members in Moscow, Idaho who gathered to address the rise of theocracy in their city. To learn more about what is happening in Moscow, stay tuned.
Introduction: The Moment We're In
We are witnessing a global phenomenon, the rise of theocratic movements across virtually every major faith tradition. From Modi's Hindu nationalism in India, to Erdogan's Islamist authoritarianism in Turkey, to the Taliban's return in Afghanistan, to the Christian nationalist movement here in the United States, religious authoritarianism is surging worldwide.
This isn't coincidence. It represents a radical response to what scholars call the "multiple modernities crisis," the collision between ancient faith traditions and the dislocating forces of globalization, digital information systems, and rapid cultural change.
Today, I want to help you understand this phenomenon, trace its specific evolution in the American context, and most importantly, equip you with strategies to resist it while building the inclusive democracy we need.
The Global Context: Why Now?
Several converging forces have created fertile ground for theocratic movements worldwide:
Cultural, Economic, and Political Disruption in the Information Age: Digital technology has shattered traditional gatekeepers of religious knowledge. Anyone with a smartphone can claim prophetic authority, bypassing centuries-old institutions. This has democratized interpretation of religious texts and traditions but also unleashed authoritarian religious demagogues. Moreover, it has made religious demagoguery more profitable.
Globalization's Backlash: Economic globalization has created unprecedented wealth alongside devastating inequality, and opened the door to threats to deeply held, often authoritarian, traditions. Traditional communities feel their ways of life under assault. Theocratic movements offer promises of restored order and divine protection.
The Secularization Crisis: While secularization hasn't meant the end of religion, it has fundamentally changed religion's role in public life. Many believers feel marginalized, creating reactive movements seeking to reassert religious authority over society, which in turn creates opportunities for those who would exploit the faith crisis to build political and economic power.
Liberal Democratic Fragility: Democracy's promise of progress through pluralism is being challenged by its own success in revealing deep disagreements about fundamental values. These disagreements tend to rest on a foundation of historical white supremacy and patriarchy, particularly in terms of racial integration, promotion of racial equity, and the changing roles of women in the family and in society, especially as a result of the advancement of reproductive freedom. Theocrats exploit this by offering certainty in place of complexity, stability of social hierarchies as opposed to change.
The American Story: From Christian Right to Christian Nationalism
Phase 1: The Christian Right Emergence (1960s-1980s)
The modern Christian Right didn't arise in a vacuum. It emerged from specific historical triggers:
The Real Origin Story: Contrary to popular belief, the Christian Right wasn't primarily motivated by abortion. It was school desegregation that galvanized conservative Christians when the IRS threatened the tax-exempt status of segregated Christian schools like Bob Jones University.
Key Architects: Leaders like Paul Weyrich, Jerry Falwell, and Pat Robertson understood that political power required organization beyond the pulpit. They built massive mailing lists, created PACs, and developed sophisticated voter mobilization strategies. Other Pioneers like Eagle Forum founder, Phyllis Schlafly, recognized that by politicizing and organizing the evangelical movement (in this period, the fastest growing social movement in the world), it was possible to build a popular front for neoliberal policies that would lift regulatory barriers to wealth accumulation, undermine the power of organized labor, and break the New Deal coalition.
Early Strategy: The focus was cultural - stopping the Equal Rights Amendment (which, in this period, was supported by a majority of Republicans in Congress), opposing LGBTQ rights, and promoting "traditional values." These early leaders weren’t theocrats. Their goal was to influence policy, not capture government entirely.
Phase 2: The Institutionalization (1990s-2000s)
The Think Tank Revolution: Organizations like the Heritage Foundation, the Family Research Council, and the American Family Association created intellectual infrastructure. They didn't just want to win elections; they wanted to reshape ideas.
The Homeschool Movement: Christian conservatives built parallel educational systems, creating generations raised on revisionist history and biblical world views. This wasn't just about education, it was about creating a separate society and information eco-system.
Electoral Sophistication: Karl Rove's 2004 strategy mobilized evangelical voters with unprecedented precision. The movement learned that winning required not just enthusiasm but data, micro-targeting, and professional organization.
Phase 3: Christian Nationalism Emerges (2010s-Present)
Something fundamental shifted around 2010. The Christian Right evolved into something more dangerous: Christian Nationalism.
Key Difference: While the Christian Right wanted to influence a secular system, Christian Nationalists want to replace it. They believe America was founded as a Christian nation and must return to its "true" identity.
Strategic Innovations:
Constitutional Revisionism: Promoting the myth that America was founded as explicitly Christian
Election Skepticism: Claiming divine mandate trumps popular will
State Capture: Focusing on state legislatures, school boards, and courts rather than just federal politics
Militia Networks: Some factions now embrace political violence as divinely justified
The New Apostolic Reformation: The Most Dangerous Evolution
Perhaps the most concerning development is the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), a movement most Americans have never heard of but which has profound influence.
Core Beliefs:
Modern-day apostles and prophets receive direct revelation from God
Christians must take dominion over all spheres of society: government, education, media, arts, business, family, and religion
Spiritual warfare is literally fought against demonic forces controlling institutions
Key Figures: Peter Wagner (founder), Lance Wallnau, Dutch Sheets, Paula White (President Trump's spiritual advisor)
Dangerous Innovations:
Prosperity Theology 2.0: God wants Christians to be wealthy and powerful as proof of divine favor
Leveling Up Spiritual Warfare: Believing they can change reality through prayer and spiritual warfare, which in turn makes winning policy fights a test of religious legitimacy
Seven Mountains Mandate: Systematic strategy to capture control of society's key institutions
Political Impact: NAR leaders provided theological justification for January 6th, claiming God had revealed Trump's victory and that resisting it meant resisting God himself.
Key Factions in American Theocracy
Today's theocratic movement isn't monolithic. Understanding the factions helps us recognize their different approaches:
1. Constitutional Originalists
Focus on legal and judicial capture
Promote "originalist" interpretation as coded Christian nationalism
Key players: Federalist Society, Alliance Defending Freedom
2. Dominion Theologians
Believe Christians must rule society directly
Support includes former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos's family foundation
Focus on education, media, politics
3. NAR Prophets and Apostles
Claim direct divine revelation
Growing influence in charismatic and Pentecostal churches
Increasingly militant in language and tactics
4. Paleo-Confederates
Like Douglas Wilson's movement in Moscow, Idaho
Combine Christian nationalism with Confederate nostalgia
Focus on local community takeovers
5. Catholic Integralists
Want Church and State reunified under Catholic teaching
Growing influence among conservative intellectuals
Key figures: Adrian Vermeule, Sohrab Ahmari
How They Built Their Base
The success of these movements comes from sophisticated base-building strategies:
Infrastructure Development: Decades of investment in churches, schools, media, and think tanks created a parallel society with its own information ecosystem.
Cultural Warfare: Rather than just political campaigns, they waged cultural campaigns through creating homeschool curricula, Christian entertainment, and promoting alternative histories.
Economic Networks: Built Christian-only business networks, providing economic incentives for participation and punishment for dissent.
Media Ecosystems: From Christian radio to Fox News to social media influencers, they created alternative information universes.
Crisis Exploitation: Every cultural crisis became evidence of secular failure and divine judgment, driving recruitment.
Their Vision of the Future
Make no mistake about their end goals:
Governmental: Replace constitutional democracy with biblical law interpreted by select religious leaders
Educational: Mandatory Christian education, with secular subjects taught through biblical frameworks
Economic: "Biblical" capitalism with tithe-like taxation funding religious institutions
Social: Strict gender hierarchies, heteronormative families, racial "reconciliation" that preserves white leadership
Legal: Replace constitutional law with biblical law, with religious authorities claiming to have a direct line to God having final say
Cultural: Christian supremacy in all public spaces, other religions marginalized or banned
This isn't hyperbole, these are stated goals found in their own documents.
Impacts on Democracy
The damage is already visible:
Political:
Election denial and voter suppression justified by divine mandate
Rejection of pluralism as satanic influence
Political violence increasingly seen as righteous
Cultural:
Attacking public education and promoting religious alternatives
Censoring books, curriculum, and cultural expression
Creating parallel societies that reject democratic norms
Economic:
Using economic pressure to enforce religious conformity
Redirecting public funds to religious institutions
Creating Christian-only business networks
On Democracy's Future:
Fundamental rejection of the idea that legitimacy comes from popular consent
Belief that God's will supersedes constitutional law
Preparation for political violence if democratic means fail, including through training children in the use of firearms
Four Key Resistance Strategies
1. Expose and Educate
Map the networks, funding, and strategies
Conduct civic education about actual constitutional history, especially with young people who often attend schools in which civic education is no longer in the curriculum
Also conduct education about the true meaning of democratic pluralism
Create alternative media that competes with theocratic information ecosystems, including ecumenical Christian online ministries and communities
Train activists to recognize and counter theocratic messaging
2. Defend Institutions While Building New Ones
Protect public education, libraries, and democratic institutions
Build parallel institutions that model inclusive values
Support religious communities that oppose theocracy
Strengthen unions, civic organizations, and mutual aid networks
3. Coalition Building Across Difference
Unite secular and religious opponents of theocracy
Build bridges between communities targeted by theocrats
Create unlikely alliances around shared democratic values
Organize both locally and nationally with consistent messaging
4. Electoral and Legal Strategies
Run candidates for school boards, state legislatures, courts
Challenge theocratic policies in court systematically
Expose theocratic funding and coordination
Protect voting rights and electoral integrity
Four Pivots: From "No" to "Yes"
1. From Secular Fundamentalism to Sacred Pluralism
Move beyond rejecting all religion to promoting a vision where multiple faiths and secular world views coexist with mutual respect. Show that diversity of belief strengthens rather than weakens society.
2. From Defensive Politics to Generative Culture
Stop only opposing theocratic culture and start creating compelling alternatives. Invest in arts, education, community-building that embody our values and attract people toward inclusive futures.
3. From Elite Resistance to Grassroots Democracy
Move beyond expert opposition to mass movement building. Create spaces where ordinary people can experience democratic participation, build relationships across difference, and develop shared power.
4. From Crisis Response to Systems Change
Stop only reacting to theocratic crises and start building economic and political systems that address the root causes - inequality, isolation, lack of meaning - that drive people toward authoritarian solutions.
What It Will Take
Building this alternative requires several commitments:
Long-term Thinking: Theocrats built for decades. We need 20-year plans, not just 2-year election cycles-based organizing.
Cultural Investment: We need to fund art, education, storytelling, and community-building that competes with theocratic alternatives.
Economic Justice: We must address the inequality and insecurity that makes authoritarianism appealing.
Spiritual Seriousness: We need to engage seriously with questions of meaning, purpose, and transcendence rather than ceding this terrain to authoritarians.
Democratic Practice: We must model in our movements the inclusive, participatory democracy we want to see.
Conclusion: The Choice Before Us
The theocratic movement represents a fundamental choice about what kind of society we want to be. They offer certainty, hierarchy, and belonging to those who conform. We must offer something better: complexity managed through justice, equality that includes rather than excludes, and belonging that doesn't require conformity.
This isn't just about stopping bad policies, it's about whether democracy itself will survive. The theocrats understand the stakes. Now we must as well.
The choice is ours: retreat into our own enclaves, or build a multiracial, multi-faith democracy that proves inclusion is stronger than exclusion, that justice is more powerful than hate, and that love of neighbor transcends the barriers that divide us.
The future of democracy depends on our choice. Let's choose wisely, and let's choose together.