***We’re continuing to play the first few episodes of our new show, Darts and Letters. If you like Cited, you’ll like this. So subscribe today.***

You’ve seen hilarious videos of the evangelicals for Trump. You might be inclined to ignore them, mock their excesses, or dismiss their threat. But the evangelical right is a force to be reckoned with, even with Trump on his way out. So, who are these evangelicals? What do they believe?

For years, evangelicals have been plotting a political course, a far-right “theology” that includes Christian nationalism and spiritual warfare. It’s paying off. And we need to understand why it works, and for whom. This is the first in a series of episodes we’ll be releasing that examine the political philosophies of radical right-wing movements.

• First (@8:16), Andre Gagne is a former evangelical, once “saved,” who turned away from the light of the Church to become a professor. He talks about what he found in the church, the power of “narrative theology,” why he left the church, and why so much of the evangelical experience is powerful – and disconcerting.
• Then (@37:24), Chrissy Stroop is an author, activist, and former Christian who has gone from Jesusland to Twitterland. She shares her journey with Gordon, including her creation of #emptythepews, a hashtag that marks the stories of people leaving the church. She warns of the power of fundamentalist enclaves, powerful ecosystems that exist on their own but also reach into the world to draw entrants into them.
• Finally (@1:03:21), Bradley Onishi is a pastor turned professor turned podcaster who Ben Shapiro calls “that religion professor.” He takes on the so-called intellectuals of the far right through his academic research and the podcast he co-hosts with Dan Miller, Straight White American Jesus. Onishi doing his part to keep the discourse honest, a job that is as essential as it is Sisyphean.

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To stay up to date, follow us on Twitter and Facebook. If you’d like to write us, email [email protected] or tweet Gordon directly.

—————————-CREDITS—————————-

This week, Darts and Letters was produced by Jay Cockburn and Gordon Katic. The lead research assistant on this episode was Isabelle Lemelin, with support from David Moscrop, and consulting from Andre Gagne.

Our theme song and music was created by Mike Barber, and our graphic design was created by Dakota Koop.

This episode received support by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research,  which provided us a research grant to look at the concept of “public intellectualism.” Professor Allen Sens at the University of British Columbia is the lead academic advisor. We are also supported by a wider project looking at the rise of far political ideologies – that project is run by Professors Andre Gagne., Ronald Beiner, and A. James McAdams.

This show is produced by Cited Media, which makes other great shows like Cited Podcast and Crackdown.

Darts and Letters is produced in Toronto, which is on the traditional land of Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat Peoples. It is also produced in Vancouver, BC, which is on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.