Though it’s seldom mentioned by name, it’s one of the major forces in Texas politics today: dominion theology, or dominionism. What began as a fringe evangelical sect in the 1970s has seen its influence mushroom — so much so that sociologist Sara Diamond has called dominionism “the central unifying ideology for the Christian Right.” (Italics hers.) That’s especially true here in Texas, where dominionist beliefs have, over the last decade, become part and parcel of right-wing politics at the highest levels of government…. Dominionism fundamentally opposes America’s venerable tradition of church-state separation — in fact, dominionists deny the Founders ever intended that separation in the first place. According to Frederick Clarkson, senior fellow for religious liberty at the non-profit social justice think tank Political Research Associates, dominionists believe that Christians “have a biblical mandate to control all earthly institutions — including government — until the second coming of Jesus.” And that should worry all Texans — Christians and non-Christians alike.
If there’s one thing the American Taliban is ready, willing, and beyond able to hold forth about at considerable volume and length, it’s “religious freedom”- theirs, of course. They could care less about yours- or anyone else who hasn’t pledged fealty to their narrow moral/theological/ideological agenda. Possessed of the unshakable, holier-than-thou conviction that their God should be our government and control all aspects of our lives, they recognize no contradiction or hypocrisy in attempting to install their intolerant, authoritarian “faith” as the law of the land.
This is the basis of Christian dominionism, a belief system which holds the rights and beliefs of (the right kind of) Christians to be primary to be superior to all other laws and traditions. They believe that they- and ONLY they- know the One, True, and ONLY correct version of God, who turns out to be an ill-tempered, cantankerous grouch as likely to smite humanity as He is to embrace it.
Dominionism is home to a particularly virulent and objectionable strain of miserable, melancholic authoritarians who some wags view as more than anything desperately in need of getting laid. These shining, (not so) compassionate models of Christian love and charity could (and probably do) suck the joy out of a child’s Christmas morning. It’s not about compassion or leading a Christ-like life. It’s about power, control, and dismantling the wall separating Church from State.
Worse than that, their concern about “religious freedom” (theirs, not yours) has nothing to do with the teachings of Jesus Christ and/or their fear that the “secular world” is invested in abrogating that freedom. It has everything to do with their belief that they have the absolute right to force all Americans to live under their narrow, self-interested diktat. A convincing argument could be made that religious freedom indeed faces a clear and present danger…from Christians.
Dominionism comes in “soft” and “hard” varieties. “Hard” dominionism (sometimes called Christian Reconstructionism), as Clarkson describes it, explicitly seeks to replace secular government, and the U.S. Constitution, with a system based on Old Testament law.
The father of hard dominionism, the late Presbyterian theologian R.J. Rushdoony, called for his followers to “take back government … and put it in the hands of Christians.”
Ultimately, dominionism has nothing to do with glorifying God or honoring the teachings of Jesus Christ. It’s about seizing political power in order that “Christians” will installed in positions of power, calling the shots and controlling the lives of Americans.
Dominionists believe that God commands them to seize control over all aspects of public and private life, and to set standards that all- True Believers or not- must adhere to without question or hesitation. It’s a mindset straight out of The Handmaid’s Tale- the authoritarianism of 1984 conflated with the Puritan Ethic. It’s about power and control camouflaged with the trappings of Christianity.
(Somewhere warm and breezy, Jesus weeps softly into his Dos Equis….)
Rushdoony’s legacy has been carried on by his son-in-law, Tyler-based economist Gary North, an unapologetic theocrat who in 1982 called for Christians to “get busy in constructing a Bible-based social, political, and religious order which finally denies the religious liberty of the enemies of God.”
That “a Bible-based social, political, and religious order which finally denies the religious liberty of the enemies of God” is as arrogant as it is dismissive of the rights of those who believe differently seems difficult to argue with. It’s a thinly-veiled strategy for creating religious tyranny (Remember, when THEY do it, it’s “religious tyranny.” When WE do it, it’s “following God’s will.”)
North openly advocates for a system which “denies the religious liberty” of those considered “enemies of God.” There seems little doubt but that North intends to be among those determining who is to be declared an “enemy of God.” Or that such a definition would have little to do with the Gospel or spreading the love of Jesus Christ. The Lord and Savior North and other dominionists claim to revere preached love, tolerance, acceptance, and inclusion. North and his co-religionists believe those Christ-like qualities are best expressed via denying religious liberty and destroying those they declare to be “enemies of God.”
As for what Thomas Jefferson famously called America’s “wall of separation between Church & State,” [Rafael] Cruz claimed in a 2016 sermon that it was meant to be a “one-way wall” — preventing government from interfering in religion but allowing the Church to exercise dominion over government…. The dominionist goal of having Christianity shape law and policy amounts to the very governmental establishment of religion that the First Amendment explicitly prohibits. It would also appear to violate the Texas Bill of Rights, which states that “no preference shall ever be given by law to any religious society or mode of worship.”
Of course, dominionists insist that none of this matters, because the Founders intended to create a “Christian nation.”
Of course, there’s little doubt but that “allowing the Church to exercise dominion over government” means allowing THEIR church to exercise dominion. It would be difficult to find a more transparent, thoroughly self-interested agenda.
Dominionism is little more than a thinly-veined exercise in installing religious tyranny via the use of Christianity to legitimize a “Bible-based” dictatorship. There are places where this sort of intolerant authoritarian mindset exists today- places like Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Pakistan- and which amply demonstrates the perils of erasing the separation of Church and State.
The most dangerous and virulent strain of dominionism is
Seven Mountains Dominionism, which holds that Christians must take control of seven “mountains,” or areas of life: family, religion, education, media, entertainment, business and government. Speaking at the Texas GOP Convention in Dallas in May, Rafael Cruz claimed that God inspired the Founders to produce the Constitution, and declared that “biblical values” have made America the greatest country on earth. He encouraged Christian pastors to run for public office at every level and called upon all Christians to exercise their “sacred responsibility” to vote for candidates who uphold biblical values.
Adherents of Seven Mountains Dominionism reject the separation of Church and State, believing the Founding Fathers never intended for God to be “excluded” from Government. Evidently, none of these folks majored in American History…or they simply (and not surprisingly) choose to ignore any history not supportive of their narrow, self-interested agenda. These folks take “spiritual warfare” literally.
Sinclair Lewis once said, “When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” He may not have been referring directly to dominionism, but his words still hold true. The most serious threat to the religious liberty of Christians may well be other Christians.
