by Marty Essen, Victor
The unholy marriage between conservative Christianity and the Republican Party has produced a petulant child, called Christian Nationalism. Although this isn’t the first attempt at Christian Nationalism in America, the current version appears to be the strongest of the bunch, leading the way for devastating environmental damages, a school shooting season, the subjugation of women, and the banning of books.
Christianity has a long history of harming others, from the Crusades to the Spanish Inquisition to the Salem witch hangings to over 6,000 indigenous children murdered in Canada’s forced-attendance Christian residential schools to more than a million children molested by clergy. Christian Nationalism is history eager to repeat itself.
I could write numerous essays on the dangers of Christian Nationalism, but since Banned Books Week (September 18-24) is upon us, I’m going to concentrate on the ideology’s abuse of literature. Political parties and ideologies with winning ideas don’t need to ban books. Christian Nationalism, however, features inferior ideas that can’t compete in the modern world without cheating. It’s as if its followers are saying, “God forbid if our children read about diverse ideas that open their eyes and . . .” gulp, “turn them into liberals!”
Disdain for education fits right in with banning books. After all, education usually involves reading. In Montana, Christian Nationalist Republican politicians know their ideas can’t compete in the domain of well-read college students, so they’ve tried to make it difficult for college students to vote. No wonder Republicans swooned when their demigod, Donald Trump, proclaimed, “I love the poorly educated!”
Banned Books Week has a special meaning for me, because I’ve experienced a variation of book banning, called review bombing. This happens when like-minded people get together and attempt to tank books they find offensive by posting vicious one-star reviews on internet book sites. In most cases, review bombers haven’t read the book. My books, which support human rights and the environment, have been called “bigoted,” “liberal idiocy,” and “left-wing propaganda.” Other one-star reviewers have simply posted “I have chosen not to read his book,” and “Trump 2020.” Review bombs are easy to recognize, because they often use similar wording and arrive in clusters. Fortunately, most book sites will remove review bombs, if they are reported.
With all that in mind, my question to the Christian Nationalist Republican Party is this: Why are you so afraid? If you must force your religion onto others, make it difficult for college students to vote, and prevent people from reading books that might open their minds, then, obviously, you’ve admitted that your values are too defective to survive without repression and deception. But beware. Even people who you thought were on your side are giving you the side-eye. That church attendance in America plummeted to an all-time low during Trump’s presidency should be a warning to you: Americans are waking up.
Let’s celebrate Banned Books Week! Buy a controversial book and give it to a student.
Marty Essen is a multi-award-winning Montana author and frequently booked college speaker. His seventh and most controversial book, “Doctor Refurb,” will be published during Banned Books Week. He lives in Victor.
On Wednesday, September 21, at 6 p.m. he will be reading from “Doctor Refurb” at Chapter One Book Store in Hamilton.
Mike Miller says
Marty, Marty, Marty… how I (haven’t) missed you.
Thankfully democrats never banned any books, right?
Oops; apparently democrats ban books, too! According to an article in Newsweek (“When It Comes to Banning Books, Both Right and Left Are Guilty”, dated Apr 7, 2022), democrats banned several books: To Kill a Mockingbird, Harry Potter books, and Dr Seuss books.
Other books, such as Huck Finn, Of Mice and Men have also been slated for democratic banning. Democrats got all worked up over Charlie Brown being racist and called for banning.
I could go on, but the point is you blame (again) only half of the problem. Democrats are just as guilty of banning books as conservatives.
Mike Mercer says
Opinions vary
Mike Mercer says
Fine words to be sure but a bit heavy on the idealistic side. Please remember that politicians serve the will of the people not their own ideologies. It has been my experience that in order to convince someone of something you must have solid evidence to back it up, which is something our politician’s lack in policy making, virtue signaling aside. As for the well-read college students, the jury is still out.
Helen Sabin says
Mike -“…Politicians serve the will of the people not their own ideologies.” Not quite Mike. I refer you to this article from the New American magazine about Theresa Manzella killing the Convention of States. 80% of Americans want and are requesting that all OUR state legislatures approve applications to convene a gathering to stop the tyrannical Biden government from creating even more damage to this country than they already have.https://thenewamerican.com/john-birch-society-credited-with-killing-constitutional-convention-call-in-montana/
Ed Brickey says
Ninety perce of Americans do not understand COS or the more fitting name Constitutional Convention well enough to describe it in their own words. COS or ConCon is a horrible idea. We should not use that Article V because once the body of delegates convene then we have no control over what happens to our constitution. We the people don’t even have a say in picking the delegates. The best tool for current situation in not Article V but rather Article VI, Nullification. We have great constitution, we just need to follow it, stop passing bills into law that are conflicting with our constitution, an use A6 to nullify all the current unconstitutional laws. Learn your the c
US Constitution and use the tools available.
Gomez says
What do they fear? They fear the curtain being pulled back to reveal that they’ve gullibly allowed themselves to be manipulated by no more than men is silly hats who have promised that they will live forever if only they believe in the invisible sky wizard. They do not wish to face the reality that they’ve wasted their entire lives believing something that is not only patently false, but embarrassingly and obviously so.
Mike Mercer says
Hey Gomez, silly hats and invisible sky wizard? Define sky wizard…sorry, I had to.
Gomez says
LOL, no worries. That’s the great thing about gods. Everyone creates one in their own image that just happens to believe the same things that they do.
God did not create man. Man created god.
Helen Sabin says
Gomez – PROVE YOUR statement. Show us facts or evidence that proves it.
Gomez says
One. No one in the entire history of mankind has ever been able to prove that the god that they believe in actually exists. Not the Abrahamic god, not the Greek gods, not the Norse gods or the Hindu gods. In fact, the world behaves exactly as you’d expect to if there was no god. It is random, chaotic, and often cruel. Prayers are “answered “ statistically at the same exact rate as complete random chance. Prayers can have personal benefits, in the same way that mediation can focus and clear one’s mind, but is there any evidence that an invisible sky wizard actually answers the prayers? No, there is not.
Two. Don’t you think that it’s highly suspicious that the gods people believe in, also just happened to believe that the same exact things that they do? If they’re against same sex marriage, so is their God! If they are against abortion, so is their God! You see this even within Christianity, where there are more different Christian Sects than there are actually sentences in the Bible. Each has its own interpretation and understanding of the same exact words in the book. Even within the same religion, the same church, and even sitting in the same pew, you will find believers that have a different interpretation and understanding of the words in their holy book. How is it that you got it right, and everyone else got it wrong? It’s simple. You just invented a God, that agrees with you.
Laurie says
PROVE YOURS HELEN!