In this episode, Matt is joined by journalist Talia Lavin to discuss her book, Wild Faith: How the Christian Right is Taking Over America, one of the most fascinating and unique books published on the Christian right during the Trump-era. Lavin takes her subjects seriously, but not uncritically, and especially focuses on the wrecked and ruined lives left in the wake of conservative evangelicalism’s more conspiratorial and authoritarian elements, from the Satanic Panic to James Dobson’s parenting manual on how to discipline a “strong-willed child” into compliance. Along the way, they talk about the triumph of QAnon, End Times theology, the importance of the New Apostolic Reformation, and more—all with an eye toward how these religious views and practices help explain conservative evangelicals’ overwhelming support for Donald Trump.
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- The Jargon of Decoloniality, by Neil Larsen – September 2022
- Project 2025. The Far-Right Playbook for American Authoritarianism, by GPAHE
- Name-calling in Myanmar: on people, by Andrew Selth – 28 February 2025
- Tigray war: Modern geographies of mass violence and the invisibilization of populations, by Teklehaymanot Weldemichel – 24 February 2025