The current hysteria over Christian Nationalism seems to stem from author Stephen Wolfe’s 2022 book, The Case For Christian Nationalism. From an Orthodox Christian perspective, Wolfe’s ideology is a complete mess. It is a mishmash of postmillennial Reformed eschatology (perfect society so Christ can return), Calvinistic examples of governance in Massachusetts and Geneva, combined with his own meandering thoughts that are often dark and totalitarian. Bafflingly, Wolfe manages to write 488 pages, dedicated to the intersection of Christian Faith and governance, without using any Orthodox or Roman Catholic historical examples or social teaching.

1,600+ years of Christian governance, for Wolfe, simply does not exist.

Had Fr John chosen to go after real “Christian Nationalism”, as espoused by Wolfe, he would not have had to rely only on American Founding Fathers for philosophical support. Fr John could have used actual Orthodox sources. For example, while the Orthodox Church does want civil government to maintain decency and good order, Orthodox Christians recognize the severe limits of civil law. Civil law can’t save souls, perfect humanity, or “redeem nations”. Our beliefs in the limits of civil law are explained in the Bases of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church https://orthodoxreflections.com/is-there-a-christian-nationalist-threat-to-america-and-orthodoxy/