Mike Godwin, a well-known attorney, is credited with formulating the principle that as online discussions progress, the likelihood of someone making a reference to Nazis or Hitler approaches certainty. Robert P. Jones, in his latest publication, grappled with this notion as he examined demographic trends in the United States, the escalation of Christian nationalism, and Donald Trump’s rhetoric surrounding racial purity. Ultimately, he arrived at a striking conclusion: “This is our 1933,” he asserts.
In his book, titled Backslide: Reclaiming a Faith and a Nation After the Christian Turn Against Democracy, Jones draws parallels between the ascent of the Nazi Party and the complicity of the German populace, including Christians and their churches. He references Martin Niemöller, a Lutheran pastor who was imprisoned for his opposition to Hitler and is known for his poignant poem, “First They Came.” Jones highlights that Niemöller did not initially resist the Nazis during the first four years of their rule, later expressing regret for the silence of himself and the Protestant church at that time.
The analogy resurfaces in the book’s epilogue, where Jones reflects, “Just as God asked Niemöller where he was between 1933 and 1937, God will ask us where we were between 2025 and 2028. Just as Germans who supported Hitler and the Nazi Party after 1933 knew what they were endorsing, so too do Christians backing Trump and the MAGA movement understand their complicity in these actions.”
In his office located in downtown Washington, Jones, who is the founder and president of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), argues that American democracy is experiencing a significant regression, which he believes is exacerbated by a “backsliding” white Christianity, particularly evident in Trump’s campaign rhetoric.
Jones criticizes Trump’s dehumanizing language regarding immigrants, likening them to “vermin” and invoking themes of racial purity by suggesting that they are “poisoning the blood of our country.” He questions the implications of such statements, asking, “If they’re poisoning the blood, what constitutes pure blood? We know the historical implications of that narrative.”
The former president has often referenced ideas of genetic heritage. For instance, during a 2020 speech to a predominantly white audience in Minnesota, he proclaimed, “You have good genes, you know that, right? A lot of it is about the genes, isn’t it? You think we’re so different? You have good genes in Minnesota.”
The normalization of such rhetoric poses a recurring threat, according to Jones. “If we want to avoid a future where law enforcement operates as a thuggish force, kidnapping individuals from the streets and killing citizens, now is the time to raise our voices,” he warned.
Jones also draws on the work of historian and philosopher Hannah Arendt, particularly her 1950 Commentary magazine article, “The Aftermath of Nazi Rule,” which reflects on the inability of many educated Germans to recognize the truth of their situation in the postwar period.
Having grown up as a Southern Baptist in Jackson, Mississippi, and immersed in church life, Jones holds a master of divinity degree and has authored several notable works, including The End of White Christian America (2016), White Too Long (2020), and The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy and the Path to a Shared American Future (2023). He intentionally chose the title Backslide for his latest book.
In political science, the term “democratic backsliding” refers to the gradual erosion of democratic principles, judicial independence, and voting rights. Jones acknowledges, however, that this term has deeper theological roots. “In the evangelical circles I was raised in, ‘backslide’ was a commonly used term that referred to the fear of losing one’s faith,” he explains, tracing its origins back to the 16th-century Protestant reformer John Knox.
According to Jones, white American Christianity has engaged in a significant betrayal by prioritizing political power over its spiritual foundations. By endorsing anti-democratic practices, these Christian institutions have become central to the country’s drift toward autocracy.
To analyze how this key religious tradition reached such a moral crossroads, Jones examines demographic data. When Barack Obama was elected in 2008, white Christians represented 54% of the US population. By 2014, that number had decreased to 47%, and today, they comprise only 41% of the population.
The decline is even sharper among white evangelicals, once a cornerstone of conservative politics. At the beginning of the 21st century, they made up a quarter of the American populace; now, they account for approximately 13%. The Southern Baptist Convention, the largest evangelical denomination in the country, has seen a loss of over 3 million members since its peak in 2006.
Confronted with diminishing numbers and cultural marginalization, white evangelicalism has opted for existential anxiety rather than spiritual renewal, creating a conducive environment for Trump’s populism. “Trump often speaks of the art of the deal, and there seems to be a significant quid pro quo arrangement between the diminishing white evangelical demographic and Trump,” Jones notes. “His appeal rested less on policy and more on anti-immigrant sentiments: he promised to restore an America that mirrored their demographic and to return power to Christian institutions.”
“On the campaign trail, he explicitly stated: this is a quid pro quo deal. Give me your votes, and I’ll ensure you won’t have to vote again; I’ll arrange it so that you won’t need to vote again,” Jones recalls.
This transactional relationship marks a stark contrast to the religious right of the late 20th century, which often masked its political aspirations with moral rhetoric. “Those moral arguments are largely absent today,” Jones remarks, comparing the current movement to the Moral Majority led by Jerry Falwell or the “Values Voters” gatherings from the George W. Bush era. “What we see now is a starkly anti-democratic Christian nationalism operating under a different banner.”
