God's Angry Men
The Political Legacy of the John Birch Society
by
Carmen Celestini
"Carmen Celestini brilliantly traces the enduring shadow of the John Birch Society across American political and religious life. This is not only a study of the past, but a chilling genealogy of the present -revealing how the rhetoric of free enterprise, divine destiny, and moral panic continues to animate today's populist and evangelical movements."
Amarnath Amarasingam,
Associate Professor of Religion and Political Studies,
Queen's University, Canada
About
Carmen Celestini examines a historical timeline spanning from the 1930s through the early 1990s to demonstrate how the John Birch Society (JBS)—despite being well-known for its conspiracy theories—had a significant impact on the rise of Christian nationalism and libertarianism in the United States.
Focusing on PR campaigns and other forms of media and propaganda from groups like the JBS and the National Association of Manufacturers, Celestini interrogates how communications and interactions between corporations, religious leaders, and wealthy individuals leveraged political and religious rhetoric to mobilize conservative Christians toward the election of a far-right and capitalist Conservative Messiah to the White House. God's Angry Men situates this long-fought argument over the religious roots of the nation within the context of the contemporary "culture wars" and the political legacy of the JBS, revealing how these historic communications can be tied to present-day alt-right groups, the New Christian Right, and the rise of religious authoritarianism in the United States.
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