In this episode, Barney & Austin stage a head-to-head on whether Christian nationalism is a good thing or not!

It’s time to gather the insights from our past episodes together and see which argument is strongest. Barney takes the “pro-Christian Nationalism” side and Austin takes the “anti-Christian Nationalism” position. Who is going to win?

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: views expressed in this episode do not necessarily represent the real views of the speakers.Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue (University of Notre Dame Press, 2007).
• Alasdair MacIntyre, Three Rival Versions of Moral Enquiry (University of Notre Dame Press, 1994).
• Luke Bretherton, Christianity and Contemporary Politics (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010).
• Hugo Rahner, Church and State in Early Christianity (Ignatius Press, 1992).
• N. T. Wright and Michael Bird, Jesus and the Powers (Zondervan, 2024).
• Pope Leo XIII, Rerum Novarum.

• Ha-Joon Chang, 23 Things They Don’t Tell You about Capitalism (Bloomsbury, 2012).

Thanks to Jamie Maule for the post-production!

Is Christian nationalism the proper term for what is happening in Russia? What is unique about Putin's claims of civilizational superiority compared with western nations? What does orthodox theology offer into this mix that is distinct from Catholic or Protestant theologies? We talk with Cyril Hovorun to consider these and other questions in the next installment in our series on Christian nationalism.

Stretchy definitions of ‘Nationalism’ can be a useful political tool, says Nick Spencer, senior fellow at Theos Think Tank. People can give a ‘thin’ definition while their actions suggest something ‘thicker’ and more like 19th century definitions. But all Christians want their country run according to Christian values, and no government can avoid having a coercive dimension. Nick gives us a vision of Christian engagement in politics that navigates through the tricky waters of coercion vs. persuasion and offers some much-needed wisdom in the conversation.