NOTE: This piece was originally published at our Substack newsletter A Public Witness.
When writing a book, a nerve-racking moment comes when finally sharing it with others to read. It may seem brilliant, engaging, and even funny to me, but I don’t get to be the real judge of any of that. So there’s that moment of self-doubt right after sending it to respected experts in hopes they will read it and offer an endorsement. Relief then comes when they send back kind words and are willing to put their name out as an endorser of the book.
So with The Bible According to Christian Nationalists coming out soon, I’m honored to share these prepublication endorsements from those who read the book earlier this summer. Now, you don’t have to take my word for it. Trust these experts on why you should pre-order the book today!
Dr. Obery M. Hendricks, Jr.
Bible scholar at Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary and author of Christians Against Christianity: How Right-Wing Evangelicals Are Destroying Our Nation and Our Faith:
“Brian Kaylor’s brilliant, witty, gratifyingly accessible tour de force exposes the insidious, often mind-boggling ways Christian Nationalists use the Bible to mislead the unsuspecting to support a president who is the walking embodiment of everything the Bible condemns. The Bible According to Christian Nationalists is an absolute must-read for everyone who seeks to fully understand the danger of the Christian Nationalist agenda for the future of American democracy — and basic decency.”
Dr. Drew J. Strait
Associate professor of New Testament and Christian origins at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary and author of Strange Worship: Six Steps for Challenging Christian Nationalism:
“At last — a book that critically examines how biblical interpretation fuels Christian Nationalism. The Bible According to Christian Nationalists is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand and confront the theological foundations of this political moment.”
Rev. Angela Denker
ELCA Lutheran minister, journalist, and author of Disciples of White Jesus: The Radicalization of American Boyhood:
“As a Lutheran pastor, I’ve long heard claims that only right-wing Christians and churches are truly Bible-based.’ But as Brian Kaylor shows in this groundbreaking book, it’s actually Christian Nationalists who distort the claims of scripture and make Jesus into a caricature. With good humor and painstaking attention to detail, Kaylor breaks down their fraudulent claims and points to the context-driven and Jesus-centered truth of the passages they claim give permission for violence and hatred against all those who disagree with them. A must-read handbook for faith leaders, churchgoers, and politicians alike.”
Rev. Caleb E. Campbell
Evangelical pastor in Phoenix and author of Disarming Leviathan: Loving Your Christian Nationalist Neighbor:
“Pastors and teachers are called to rightly handle the word of truth — but what happens when scripture is twisted to stoke division and serve partisan agendas? In The Bible According to Christian Nationalists, Brian Kaylor offers a clear, well-researched guide for those who take the Bible seriously and want to resist its misuse for political power. This is an essential resource for preaching, teaching, and shepherding in today’s polarized and spiritually disoriented climate.”
Rev. Beau Underwood
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) pastor in Indianapolis and coauthor of Baptizing America: How Mainline Protestants Helped Build Christian Nationalism:
“This is Brian’s second-best book! After collaborating with Brian to write Baptizing America, I was eager to learn from him by reading The Bible According to Christian Nationalists. He’s one of the smartest, most insightful observers I know when it comes to understanding the role religion plays in our public life. We live in perilous times. Brian is a skilled interpreter as to what’s really going on.”
The Bible According to Christian Nationalists officially releases Oct. 7, but pre-orders will likely ship even before then. I hope you will preorder the book today since such sales are important signals to bookstores to carry a new title. It’s already available to order at Bookshop, Chalice Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target, and elsewhere.
We live in a time when our sacred texts are being exploited and twisted to justify unchristlike actions. We must push back against the weaponization of the Bible!
As a public witness,
Brian Kaylor
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