Jesus and John Wayne:
How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation
EditorDaniel Gerstle
AuthorKristin Kobes Du Mez
CountryUnited States of America
LanguageAmerican English
Genre
  • American evangelicalism
  • Christian nationalism
  • Masculinity and gender
PublisherLiveright Publishing Corporation
Publication date
2020
Pages356
ISBN1-631-49573-9
OCLC1120090251
Websitekristindumez.com/books/jesus-and-john-wayne/

Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation is a book written by Kristin Kobes Du Mez and published by Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W. W. Norton & Company. The book covers the history of American evangelicalism and discusses evangelical views on masculinity.[1][2]

Background

The book was published in 2020. The book has been released in hard cover and paperback. Du Mez grew up in a community of Dutch immigrants located in Sioux Center, Iowa. Her father was a Reformed theologian at Dordt University and her mother was a Dutch immigrant and teacher.[3] Du Mez began writing the book in 2005 when she began teaching at Calvin University. Du Mez was teaching a course on US history and discussing how the American ideal of masculinity has been influenced by politics, economics, and race when two male students introduced her to the John Eldredge book Wild at Heart, which prompted the project. Du Mez later put the project on hold for a few years, and started it again when the Donald Trump Access Hollywood tape was released and evangelicals came to Trump's defense. It was published by the nonreligious Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W. W. Norton & Company.[4]

The title of the book comes from the Gaither Vocal Band song of the same name.[5]

Synopsis

The book begins by addressing a speech that Trump gave at Dordt University in Sioux Center, Iowa, on January 23, 2016. In the speech, Trump said that he could "stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot someone" without losing his constituents' loyalties. Du Mez reflects on how she had attended Dordt and participated in worship teams on the same stage that Trump gave the speech.[3][6]

The book examines white evangelical affinity for Donald Trump. Du Mez explains that white evangelical support for Donald Trump during the 2016 United States presidential election was a continuing trend rather than an exception. The book focuses on the militant masculinity that white evangelicals idealize and how it has manifested in a pattern of abuse among evangelical leaders. Du Mez criticizes mainstream evangelicals such as John Eldredge, John Piper, and James Dobson for advancing the evangelical ideal of militant masculinity.[4]

The book includes a chapter called "Evangelical Mulligans" which discusses the sexual scandals in evangelical circles.[7] It also discusses figures such as Billy Graham and Mark Driscoll.[8]

The book suggests that white evangelical views on masculinity have always been in tension with the figure of a loving Jesus and that of a militant John Wayne.[3]

Reception

The book was initially selling at more than 300 hardcover copies every week and by December was selling more than 900 copies a week. The book was later released in paperback, selling more than 100,000 copies and reaching number four on The New York Times Best Seller list of nonfiction paperbacks by July 2021.[4][9] The book won the 2021 Orwell Award.[10]

Jesus and John Wayne received significant criticism from conservative Christian leaders.[11] Writing from an Australian perspective, Al Stewart suggested that "one great weakness of the book is that every action by evangelicals is seen through the lens firstly of race (whiteness is an explanation for almost everything) and secondly the promotion of patriarchy."[12] Rosaria Butterfield argues that Du Mez's case "depends on pitting the stereotype of the virtuous woman against the dangerous man, attributing authentic, uncorrupted Christianity to the women and corrupt, political motivations to the men."[13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Cox, Tom (July 26, 2020). "Jesus, John Wayne and Justification by Faith in the American Way". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Block Communications. ISSN 1068-624X. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  2. ↑ Riess, Jana (July 22, 2020). "White Evangelicals Courted Trump's Toxic Masculinity for Decades". Religion News Service. Archived from the original on November 4, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 Stroop, Chrissy (June 17, 2020). "'Jesus and John Wayne' Untangles Gender Messages in White Evangelical Circles". The Boston Globe. Boston Globe Media Partners. ISSN 0743-1791. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 Bailey, Sarah Pulliam (July 16, 2021). "How a Book About Evangelicals, Trump and Militant Masculinity Became a Surprise Bestseller". The Washington Post. Nash Holdings. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on February 12, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  5. ↑ Inskeep, Steve (June 23, 2020). "'Jesus and John Wayne' Explores Christian Manhood—and How Belief Can Bolster Trump". NPR. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  6. ↑ Christman, Philip (August 4, 2020). "Kristin Kobes Du Mez's History of the Manly Godly Man: How American Evangelicalism Baptized Male Aggression". The Christian Century. Christian Century Foundation. ISSN 0009-5281. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  7. ↑ Longhurst, John (October 17, 2020). "Writer Offers Theory on U.S. Evangelical Support for Trump". Winnipeg Free Press. FP Publications. ISSN 0828-1785. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  8. ↑ Clutterbuck-Cook, Anna J. (April 1, 2020). "Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation". Library Journal. Media Source Inc. ISSN 0363-0277. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Paperback Nonfiction Books – Best Sellers". The New York Times. June 27, 2021. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  10. ↑ "George Orwell Award". National Council of Teachers of English. 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  11. ↑ Brumley, Jeff (January 26, 2023). "For every critic of Jesus and John Wayne there are many more positive responses Du Mez says". Baptist News Global. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  12. ↑ Stewart, Al (September 23, 2021). "Review: Jesus and John Wayne by Kristin Kobes Du Mez". The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
  13. ↑ Butterfield, Rosaria (2023). Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age. Crossway. p. 178.
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