Doug Wilson and Pete Hegseth's Domineering Brand of "Christianity" - With Amy Hawk
Join us as Pat Kahnke and Amy Hawk dive into the controversial teachings of Christian nationalist leader Doug Wilson (Moscow, Idaho), exploring his “church network” ties, his public interview with CNN, and what it really means for faith, culture & power.
In this episode we cover:
Why we’re paying closer attention to Doug Wilson — from fringe pastor to movement figure.
His representation of the “good eggs” analogy and what it signals about his worldview.
How his interview with CNN frames “clown world,” drag‑queen story hours, abortion, and America ruled by Christ.
The deeper concerns around domination, obedience, legalism, and authoritarianism in the churches Wilson leads.
A preview of our upcoming guest interview with Tia Levings (author of A Well‑Trained Life: My Journey Out of a Patriarchal Church) and what we can learn from her story.
Why it matters: This conversation isn’t just about one church or one pastor. It’s about how religious authority, cultural power, and gender dynamics play out in real life.
Link to the Report from Doug Wilson's organization about his handling of the difficult situation we talked about: https://heidelblog.net/crec-presiding-ministers-report-on-the-sitler-and-wright-sex-abuse-cases/
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The Dangerous Movement Behind Pete Hegseth's Authoritarian Faith (with Amy Hawk)
Pete Hegseth, Doug Wilson & the Rise of Religious Nationalism | Conversation with Amy Hawk
Is America’s defense leadership aligning with an authoritarian Christian nationalist project? Pat Kahnke and author Amy Hawk unpack Pete Hegseth’s rhetoric (“FAFO,” “Department of War”), his Moscow-Idaho connections, and Doug Wilson’s “All of Christ for All of Life.”
Topics We Cover Hegseth’s speech to generals: machismo, “war-fighters,” and the “enemy within” “Personnel is policy” and why it matters for civilian control of the military Doug Wilson’s Moscow movement: institutions, slogans, and authoritarian theology “All of Christ for All of Life” and culture-war governance Household headship, voting debates, and the rhetoric around “heritage Americans” Why this is not fringe anymore—and why Christians and non-Christians should care
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"Charlie Kirk, Political Violence, and the Christian Witness" with Tihomir Kukolja
Tihomir Kukolja and Pat Kahnke discuss a Christian response to political violence in light of the Charlie Kirk shooting. We explore patterns of political violence, Christian nationalism, and the spiritual responsibility of truth-telling in these divisive times. Drawing from Tihomir’s experience during the Yugoslav wars in the Balkans - and the parallels he sees today in the U.S. - we unpack how rhetoric can spiral out of control, and what it might look like for Christians to respond with love, justice, and courage.
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Is Our Gospel Big Enough to Handle RACE? Dr. Karen Johnson on "Ordinary Heroes of Racial Justice"
Is our gospel big enough to handle race? In this episode of the Culture, Faith, and Politics podcast, Pat Kahnke sits down with Dr. Karen Johnson, historian and professor at Wheaton College, to talk about her new book, Ordinary Heroes of Racial Justice.
Dr. Johnson’s scholarship explores how Christians have both shaped and resisted racial injustice in America. Together, we unpack stories of ordinary believers who stood against systemic racism, examine how evangelicals often struggle to see structures and systems, and wrestle with the question of whether personal salvation alone can carry the weight of Jesus’ gospel of the kingdom.
Along the way, we explore topics like:
Why many white evangelicals reduce racism to individual prejudice while Black evangelicals emphasize systems.
How redlining and housing policies continue to shape American life.
The fractured history of the “social gospel” vs. “personal salvation” — and why the Bible won’t let us separate justice from righteousness.
What it means to “do history” with love, humility, and awe.
This is a conversation for anyone wondering how faith intersects with race, justice, and American history — and for those tired of being told that seeking justice means you’ve sacrificed the gospel.
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“The Unlikely Alliance Between Mormonism and Christian Nationalism” with Dr. Benjamin Park
Why are so many Latter-day Saints embracing Christian nationalism—an ideology that once rejected them outright?
In this episode, Pat Kahnke sits down with historian Dr. Benjamin Park to unpack the surprising—and troubling—history of how Mormonism became entangled with Christian nationalism and right-wing politics in America.
From the Kingdom of Nauvoo to the Cold War era, from Glenn Beck’s obsession with The 5000 Year Leap to Trump-era culture wars, we explore how a once-persecuted religious minority became a core part of the religious right. We also discuss dissenters, myths about the Constitution, and why LDS support for Donald Trump is rising, even as the church leadership stays (mostly) silent.
Pat Kahnke is the author of the book ”MAGA Seduction: Resisting the Debasement of the Christian Conscience,” which was published before the 2020 election. He was an evangelical church planter and pastor for twenty years before retiring from church ministry in 2016. Planted a church in the inner city of St. Paul, MN - part of the Baptist General Conference (Converge) and Alliance for Renewal Churches. A lifelong conservative Republican until the party left him in 2016. Now a political independent, he has written off the Republican party until it completes 40 years in the wilderness for its capitulation to the MAGA movement.
This podcast contains political and social commentary related to issues at the intersection of culture, faith, and politics.
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