VCY's Americanism - Heresy in Plain Sight

This arrived in my inbox the other day. See additional comments below.....

America 250 in Philadelphia!

October 13-16

Join us on a VCY / Stories in Stones Christian Heritage tour of historic Philadelphia. You will see the sites of the Miracle at Philadelphia in Carpenters Hall when the Declaration of Independence was developed, drafted and debated. Independence Hall where the Constitution was signed. Along the way we will see the Betsy Ross House, The Liberty Bell, Christ Church & the Old Burial Ground, the Ben Franklin Museum, the Revolutionary War Museum and the Philadelphia Society of the Bible.

Our tour will also include the Philadelphia Museum (The Rocky Steps) and one a stop at one of the the famous Philly Steak & Cheese shops. We’ll also head to Lancaster and experience the world-famous Smorgasboards (included in pricing), the Tabernacle experience, and will also include an afternoon presentation at the Sight and Sound Theater in Lancaster for a performance of Joshua!

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Gordon Wood, the 1619 Project, and the Radical Nature of the American Revolution

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/11/28/wood-n28.html

Given Gordon Wood's recent death (1933-2026), I thought it worth revisiting his comments on the 1619 Project - the attempt to cast colonial and Revolutionary War history in terms of attempts to promote and preserve slavery. For those who don't know, 1619 signifies the year slaves were first brought to colonial Virginia.

In other words (according to 1619), the whole reason there was a revolution to begin with was to defend slavery (against Britain's growing anti-slavery advocacy) and in fact British colonization was (to begin with) little more than a platform for profiting from slavery.

A Sordid Tale of Ecumenism and Apostasy: American Christianity and Memorial Day

I happened to catch Paul Batura from Focus on the Family being interviewed in reference to Memorial Day and he insisted that the whole 'Christian Nationalism' charge and scandal was a farce. He knew of no serious Christians who would own that label - which is completely untrue. Russell Vought and many others immediately come to mind. They embrace it and are proud of it.

Dominionist Jurisprudence and the Evangelical Destruction of Gospel Testimony

https://www.propublica.org/article/paul-newby-north-carolina-supreme-court

There are enough stories like this to fill a book shelf. Christians believing they are serving God by wielding power and yet oblivious to their own corruption or willing to explain it away. Ignoring what the Bible says about power, money, ethics, and integrity they wage culture war and seek to transform America's Enlightenment Liberal society into the Kingdom of God. The result is a sham, a counterfeit and yet another occasion in which the name of Christ is besmirched.

Fantasy Historical Revisionism - Loconte's Manipulation of Middle-Earth, Narnia, and the New Testament

For some time I've received recommendations of Joseph Loconte's 'The War for Middle-Earth: JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis Confront the Gathering Storm, 1933-1945'. I was dubious, and so when I was recently in a Barnes and Noble and saw the book, I picked it up and spent some time perusing it. It was what I had feared, a Right-wing attempt to hijack these authors and appropriate them to contemporary political struggle. It immediately reminded my of the kind of skewed historical work produced by Eric Metaxas, most famously with his Bonhoeffer biography which despite being discredited, continues to sell.

A Case of Lamech vs. Caine

https://www.democracynow.org/2026/1/20/minneapolis_minnesota_ice

One need not agree with all that Democracy Now stands for and certainly figures like Al Sharpton rightfully elicit scorn. We need not align ourselves with Renee Good or even the protesters who stormed a Southern Baptist congregation in protest of its ICE pastor. Nevertheless the reporting is pretty stark and damning when it comes to the character and conduct of ICE. I was particularly struck by the exchanges between ICE agents and an Native America/Indian woman with her nephew - harassed for having darker skin. The sheer terror in the woman's voice is disturbing - she's rightly in distress, fearing the ICE agents will kill her nephew.

Trump is a Racist - Why do American Christians Support Him?

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-administration-national-park-service-free-days-juneteenth-mlk-day/

Regardless of whether or not Juneteenth of Martin Luther King Day are perceived as Left-leaning, the bottom line is this - Trump repeatedly and consistently exhibits a hostility to non-White people. This is not to say there aren't Black and Latino fans of Trump. This is not to say he doesn't bring some minorities into his administration. He tolerates them as does the larger GOP.

McKibben Muddies the Already Septic Waters of American Christianity

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2025/nov/23/america-christian-evangelical-discrimination-immigration

I've read so many essays like this in recent years, well meant, making many excellent points but always out of focus, off, and ultimately as problematic as what as being critiqued.

Why Biblical Christianity is Being Abandoned by Conservative Christians

https://ironsharpensironradio.com/2025/11/20/november-19-2025-show-with-dr-david-a-harrell-on-why-america-hates-biblical-christianity/

When I saw that Chris Arnzen was going to cover the topic of Why America Hates Biblical Christianity, I decided to listen. I wondered if his guest would peel back all the layers of ideology, history, and obfuscation and touch on some of the core and foundational problems with the American mindset. Well, that just turned out to be wishful thinking.

PBS:Frontline on the AfD

Last year Frontline ran a documentary on the Alternative for Germany (AfD) which I made a point of watching. Generally I find that PBS does a decent job covering domestic issues and yet like so much of US media is sub-par when it comes to foreign issues. And I remember being less than impressed with the previous coverage of German politics.

Lobbyists Who Pose as Pastors and the Ministries that Attempt to Cover-up Their Crimes

https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2025/attorney-general-james-announces-conviction-new-york-political-party-leader

https://wng.org/sift/family-policy-director-jailed-for-campaign-finance-errors-1753457727

https://www.thelcn.com/news/livingston-county-conservative-party-chairman-pleads-guilty-to-stealing-party-funds/article_605fd85f-fad5-4b51-b6e9-85f96180f749.html

Jason McGuire is a regular fixture on the Family Life Network (FLN). Based in Bath, New York, the Evangelical radio station covers an area from the eastern border of Ohio to the Catskill Mountains - from Lake Ontario all down through Northern and Central Pennsylvania. The station is ubiquitous - at times it seems to dominate the airwaves with multiple frequencies overlapping and drowning out other signals. It's odd though because whether one is wandering through Buffalo, Johnstown, State College, Scranton, or Binghamton - one does not feel a strong Christian presence. Sometimes I wonder, who is listening to this? Of course FLN's watered down pop culture Christianity with its cheap grace gospel doesn't lend itself to a strong witness. The tattooed vaping girl with the green hair standing outside a Sheetz gas station/convenience store may in fact be an FLN-type Evangelical who attends church a half-dozen times a year, has been assured of salvation, and yet doesn't know the Scriptures, and cannot even begin to explain or elaborate the faith apart from some emotional expressions.

This kind of Christianity is also dominant on college campuses. My son attends a Bible study wherein many of the Christians present will admit they haven't even made it through the New Testament. Obviously, they know next to nothing about Christian doctrine and the understanding of Church history doesn't extend beyond the last decade.

Is this even Christianity at all?

Exhortations for the Nationalist Youth Wing

https://theaquilareport.com/a-word-to-the-young-men-who-are-called-christian-nationalists/

I was very pleased to read this piece by Tom Hervey. He rightly takes some contemporary Dominionists to task, assailing their postmillennial errors, and their delusions regarding Christendom-so called.

Mohler and the Kirk Memorial: The Revival that Wasn't

https://wng.org/opinions/this-is-like-an-old-time-revival-isnt-it-1758521481

Mohler celebrates the supposed revival taking place in connection to the death of Charlie Kirk. He favourably quotes Trump to that end. An old time revival? What exactly does that mean?

Unreal and Heinous Hypocrisy: A PCA Pseudo-Scandal

https://theaquilareport.com/its-been-five-years-and-the-time-is-right-an-earnest-appeal-to-the-authors-of-2020s-heinous-killings-statement-at-byfaith/

Generally speaking I have appreciated Tom Hervey's commentaries that have appeared at The Aquila Report - I even bought his book of essays on Amazon. I'm sorry to say this was an exception. He excoriates those in the PCA that in 2020 condemned the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd and these same Presbyterians even described them as heinous.

Evangelicals and Misquoting the Bible in Public

https://religionunplugged.com/news/link-relcanonical-hrefhttps/the-department-of-homeland-security-quoting-the-bible-on-instagram%E2%80%9D%20/%3E%20%E2%80%9D

It's a shame, but Evangelicals in their persistent misguided zeal love any public quotation or reference to the Bible - even when it is being tortured, manipulated, and abused by politicians or celebrities. They think that somehow they've scored some kind of culture war victory because someone used Scripture - usually to justify something they're doing that has nothing to do with the verses in question.

The Christian Right in Europe, Book Recommendations, and a Case of Confused Worldview

https://cne.news/article/4772-seven-books-to-sharpen-your-christian-worldview

The article's set-up leads me to believe that once again the evocation of 'worldview' is not in the sense of a comprehensive and coherent system of thought but rather the rubber-stamping of an agenda. As such, it is in keeping with its frequent use within American Evangelicalism.

Decadence, The Fall of Empires, and the Blind Guides Promoting Christian Mammonism

https://virgilwalker.substack.com/p/from-rome-to-rainbow-flags-when-empires

Walker is right in a sense but he largely misses the point. Perversion is a symptom of decadence which is part of a larger complex of events and cultural shifts that signals collapse.

NATO Spending, Spanish Resistance, and Using Militarism to Enrich the Investor Class and Destroy Social Services

https://www.democracynow.org/2025/6/26/president_donald_trump_nato_iran

I was pleased to find this story touching on some larger questions that the mainstream media tends to downplay or ignore. The question of increased military budgets and militarism go hand in hand with the cutting of social services and tax cuts - some of the key economic planks of Trumpism.

The Counterfeit Zion Academy

https://www.patriotacademy.com/the-patriot-experience/

I am sorry to report that I have found this filth being promoted on Christian websites. If you click the 'about us' tab you'll find they believe they're promoting a Biblical Worldview.

Lindsey Graham Wants to Bomb Iran - Again

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/01/19/graham-military-action-iran-nuclear-program-00199181

This story has almost been lost in the flurry of events over the past month but the issue is still live and the bomb-loving Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is still pressing for a strike on Iran.