“Dad went to war last night” read Vance Boelter's text to his family in the early hours of June 14. This was sent after his shooting rampage aimed at Democratic lawmakers, which left two dead and two critically wounded.
Turns out Boelter is an ordained pastor in a church associated with the New Apostolic Reformation, which sees the world as a spiritual battlefield and whose leaders have preached that political enemies are possessed by demons.
This is not some small fringe movement. Key figures in the Trump administration are adherents. We revisit this apocalyptic evangelical Christian cult and consider its political violence and religious extremism. Interview:
In this emergency episode of ‘Straight White American, Jesus,’ host Brad Onishi discusses the assassination of Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband by a shooter impersonating a police officer.
Brad provides details about the suspect, Vance Boelter, and his background, including his ties to Donald Trump, anti-abortion views, and Christian ministry.
Scholar Matt Taylor explains Boelter’s connections to the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), diving into the history and influence of Christ for the Nations Institute, a significant institution in the independent charismatic Christian world. Their comments contextualize the violent act within the broader landscape of political violence and radicalization in the U.S., highlighting the dire implications of such events.
Matt Taylor, an expert on the New Apostolic Reformation and author of The Violent Took It By Force, joins this episode of SWAJ.
Speaking at an event in San Diego, Taylor discusses the implications of MAGA—a populist authoritarian movement fueled by Christian nationalism—on America’s liberal democracy. The episode emphasizes the need to look beyond American history for comparisons and learn from global instances of populist regimes.
Taylor elaborates on the societal divisions and the potential threats MAGA poses to democracy, while Brad encourages strategic resistance and community mobilization in anticipation of new political challenges.
Brad and Dan analyze Donald Trump’s unconventional town hall in Pennsylvania and his ties to the New Apostolic Reformation.
They explore the emotional and nostalgic appeal of Christian Trumpism, including Trump’s influence on reproductive rights issues within the GOP.
The discussion includes Kamala Harris’s media strategy, the public’s reaction to Trump’s behavior, and the complexities of emotional manipulation in political and religious contexts.
the Million Woman March,
Trump’s self-proclamation as the ‘father of IVF,’ and
Christian nationalists dream of taking over America. This movement is actually doing it.
This is the New Apostolic Reformation, a charismatic evangelical Christian movement led by a loose network of self-appointed prophets and apostles, who claim that God speaks directly to them, often in dreams. And they believe that Christians are called to wage a spiritual battle for control of the US.
In the vanguard of an ascendant Christian nationalist movement, they seek an explicitly Christian command of public schools, social policy, and all levels of the government, including the courts. Some scholars claim that NAR is the fastest-growing spiritual movement in the US. Evangelical writer C. Peter Wagner described it as the most significant shake-up in Protestantism since the Reformation. Its laser focus on starting a spiritual war to Christianize America has led the Southern Poverty Law Center to call NAR “the greatest threat to US democracy that you have never heard of.”
Estimates of Christians influenced by NAR vary widely, from 3 million to 33 million. But the number of adherents isn’t the extent of its influence; its main tenets have moved beyond the confines of churches and into the political mainstream, largely thanks to traveling apostles and prophets who preach at evangelical churches worldwide.
Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Mike Flynn has hosted NAR leaders on his “ReAwaken America” tour, and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has worked with its apostles.
And just in the last two weeks, GOP vice presidential hopeful Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) appeared in Pennsylvania at an event hosted by Lance Wallnau, a Texas business strategist-turned-NAR superstar. Wallnau, who has called Kamala Harris a “Jezebel” and speculated that people on the political left may be controlled by demons, helped develop Project 19, a right-wing political initiative to win 19 key counties in swing states for Trump.
Since 2016, many NAR prophesies have concerned Trump, whom adherents see as having been divinely chosen to lead the country. And now Vance is joining in the fray. Interview:
In this third episode of NARWATCH, Brad sits down with Matt Taylor to discuss the increasingly concerning influence of the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) as the 2024 election approaches. They delve into the dangerous concept of tribunals being used as para-government forces by NAR leaders and its troubling traction among militias. The conversation also explores how NAR has become a significant accelerationist force on the American right, paralleling radical far-right militias, and examines the potential electoral outcomes and their implications for the U.S. government structure and societal stability. The episode concludes with a preview of Matt Taylor’s upcoming essay, ‘The Colonized God,’ addressing the distortions of Christian nationalism.
In NAR Watch Episode 4, the discussion centers around a strategic plan aimed at mobilizing Christians as election workers to influence outcomes in swing states.
Dr. Matthew Taylor shares insights from the Courage Tour and its links to election denial and conspiracy theories, spotlighting figures like Lance Wallnau and the Lion of Judah’s Joshua Caleb Standifer.
The conversation also touches on controversial funding, the role of notable political organizations, and potential legal breaches, all contributing to the broader agenda leading up to the 2024 elections.
This is about the evangelical movement that believes they are new apostles with new revelation, with a mission from God to take over everything. The Bible and Constitution are null and void, superseded by what god tells them personally — to be in control forever. They are the drivers of Christian nationalism and Project 2025.
In this third episode of NARWATCH, Brad sits down with Matt Taylor to discuss the increasingly concerning influence of the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) as the 2024 election approaches. They delve into the dangerous concept of tribunals being used as para-government forces by NAR leaders and its troubling traction among militias.
The conversation also explores how NAR has become a significant accelerationist force on the American right, paralleling radical far-right militias, and examines the potential electoral outcomes and their implications for the U.S. government structure and societal stability.
The episode concludes with a preview of Matt Taylor’s upcoming essay, ‘The Colonized God,’ addressing the distortions of Christian nationalism.
