‘Christian supremacy’: WH blurs church and state with 9 hour prayer rally

[0:00] All right, so a nine-hour prayer event has become the latest focal point of the Trump [0:03] administration's blurring line between the separation of church and state. The event [0:08] titled Rededicate 250, a national jubilee of prayer, praise, and thanksgiving drew large [0:14] crowds today at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. It is part of the White House's push [0:19] to celebrate America's 250th birthday. Donald Trump made a quick appearance reciting a Bible [0:24] verse and a pre-recorded message, while lawmakers and faith leaders also addressed the crowd. [0:29] America has become morally rotten, completely sick with sin, transgenderism, same-sex marriage, [0:38] opening women's locker rooms. In recent years, we've seen sinister ideologies, so confusion [0:45] and discord among our people that this story can only be understood through the lens [0:50] of our sins. But Father, we reject that. We have always been and still are a nation of prayer, [0:57] and thank God for that. Joining us now is Brad Onishi, co-host of the Straight White American [1:04] Jesus podcast. He's also the author of the upcoming book, American Caesar, how theocrats, [1:09] tech lords are turning America into a monarchy, which is out in stores this September. Brad, [1:14] it's great to have you on the show. Talk to us a little bit about how you see this prayer event. [1:19] Prayer events are not unusual in the United States. And so, you know, I just wanted to get your reading [1:24] of how this event was. Was it more than just a simple prayer gathering? Was there something more [1:30] to it based on what was said and who was there? Well, let's start with what's new and what's not [1:36] new. There have been, as you mentioned, religious events on the National Mall going back a long time. [1:41] And there has been this idea of a dedication of the United States to God. What is new, however, [1:48] is that this kind of event would have the full-throated sponsorship of the federal government and the [1:53] presidential administration. We saw today the appearance of numerous Trump administration [1:59] figures, whether it was Pete Hegseth, whether it was J.D. Vance, Mike Johnson, or Marco Rubio. [2:05] Now, I do think there is something more here. This was billed as a rededication of the country [2:10] to God. And I want to note two things. First, you can't rededicate something to God that was never [2:17] dedicated to God in the first place. At the 1787 Constitutional Convention, there was a few [2:22] delegates who wanted to bring in clergy and have prayers at the convention and so on. And that [2:27] motion was never taken up. What we got from that convention was a constitution that gave the [2:31] authority in this country to we, the people. Now, it doesn't mean that there weren't founding fathers [2:36] who were people of faith. It doesn't mean that religion and Christianity have not played [2:40] an influential and important role in our country's history. It means, however, that this country was [2:45] never dedicated to God in the ways that they say. And in not being dedicated to God, the authority was [2:52] always given to us. And so, for me, there's something more here in trying to take away the [2:57] authority of the people and put it in the hands of a narrow conception of the divine so that the [3:02] people who represent that God can take the power from us. [3:05] Brad, I'm sure you're familiar with the work of Matthew Taylor. He studies much of the same [3:11] movements that you do. He made a kind of field guide for reporters who would be covering this [3:19] Rededicate 250 event. And part of it, he wrote, you know, it's one piece of a broader effort inside [3:25] and outside the Trump administration to use federal power to Christianize, or as they would have it, [3:30] re-Christianize the nation. What do you think it says that, I guess, Taylor felt he had to create a [3:38] kind of guide for reporters to even talk about this? I mean, reporters cover this administration [3:42] and these figures all the time. They frankly should know more about the radical religious factions that [3:51] have been organizing for quite a long while for this moment. So what do you think it says that he [3:56] had to release something like this to help people just understand what they were seeing? [4:00] Well, I think what Matt Taylor has done in his work for a long time is help to decode [4:04] what to many appear to be a diverse set of religious actors in the Trump administration [4:09] and orbit, many of whom are somewhat confusing to the outsider, many of whom are hard to understand [4:16] and who use messages and symbols and flags that are just, in many ways, not legible to the uninitiated. [4:23] But I think the really important piece about Matt's article was the idea that the idea of re-Christianizing [4:30] the United States is not, A, based in history, and B, it's based in an attempt to motivate a present [4:36] and a future in which a certain type of Christian, not all American Christians, a certain type that aligns [4:43] with the Trump administration and MAGA nation, well, they are the ones who are the real Americans [4:49] and the real people of faith. What Matt points out, I think rightly, is that we've gone past Christian nationalism [4:55] to a form of Christian supremacy that says, unless you align with this kind of religion [5:02] and with this government's understanding of religion, well, then you're not a real American [5:06] and you're not a real person of faith, and you need to understand yourself as outside the mainstream [5:10] of our history, of our present, and our future. And I think that's what makes it incredibly dangerous. [5:16] Brad, Pew Research Center recently had a really interesting poll, I thought, [5:21] about the role of religion in U.S. life. They found that 61% of Americans thought that [5:29] religion is losing influence in U.S. life, and 37%, you know, about a third, a little over a third, [5:38] say religion in the U.S. is gaining influence in U.S. life. How would you answer that question? [5:44] Well, I think I would answer that question that it's both. I think in many ways, one of the things [5:49] that motivates an event like today is that there is a sense that Christians who fall under the label [5:56] of MAGA Trumpism are the minority in this country. And so when you are the minority, you are always [6:03] preaching a gospel and telling a story that this country needs more religion. It needs more faith. [6:08] It needs to be rededicated back to God. And what they mean by that is this country needs to be [6:12] rededicated to the one narrow myopic vision we have of God, and everything else is understood to be [6:18] sinful or wayward or something else. In addition, I would say that the idea that religion is gaining [6:24] more influence in this country comes from the fact that many of us, the majority of us as Americans, [6:31] whether people of faith, people of no faith, people of minoritized religion, we see how this [6:37] administration is imposing religion by way of events like this one. And it's doing so in a way that seems [6:45] to constrict the authority of we the people in the favor of an administration that wants all of the [6:50] authority in the name of God. If you represent God and God is the one who leads the country, then you [6:57] can speak for God over the voice of the people. And I think that's what many people are noticing. [7:03] Brad Onishi, thanks for your time tonight. [7:05] Thank you.