Donald Trump’s movement of Christian Nationalism aims to force the United States to the violent colonial days of Puritan extremism. Ben Zeisloft, a fervent supporter of Trump , made the following declaration a few days ago:
“We need to restore true blasphemy laws. For centuries the entire Western world had statutes that prohibited the brazen public blaspheming of the Triune God. Now most of the Western world has the same types of laws, except to protect sodomy and other forms of perversion. We need the former and not the latter.”
Next, Zeisloft cited a specific law from colonial times that he wants to see re-enacted: The Act Against Atheism and Blasphemy from the Massachusetts Bay Colony of 1697. This law mandated severe punishments for those accused of atheism and blasphemy, including public torture and execution. Zeisloft’s endorsement of such draconian measures highlights a desire to return to an era where religious conformity was enforced through fear and violence, stripping away the fundamental freedoms that form the bedrock of modern American society. By advocating for the revival of such a brutal and oppressive law, Zeisloft reveals the extreme lengths to which the Christian Nationalism movement is willing to go to impose its religious ideals on the USA.
The podcast Stop Christian Nationalism explains that Donald Trump has begun to glamorize the Puritan theocracies of colonial times, claiming that the Puritans came to America for “freedom”.
The truth is that the Puritan “City on a Hill” was no freedom-loving utopia. The Puritans enacted a regime of cruel authoritarianism that was explicitly opposed to democracy. Puritan leader John Winthrop wrote:
“If we should change from a mixed aristocratic to mere democracy, first we should have no warrant in scripture for it: for there was no such government in Israel. We should hereby voluntarily abase ourselves and deprive ourselves of that dignity, which the providence of God has put upon us, which is a manifest breach of the Fifth Commandment, for a democracy is, amongst civil nations, accounted the meanest and worst of all forms of government.”
The Text Of The Act Against Atheism and Blasphemy, 1697
“Be it declared and enacted by the Lieutenant Governor, Council and Representatives, convened in General Court of Assembly, and it is enacted by the Authority of the same, that if any person shall presume willfully to blaspheme the holy Name of God; Father, Son, or Holy Ghost; either by denying, cursing or reproaching the true God; his Creation or Government of the World: or by denying, cursing, or reproaching the holy Word of God; that is, the canonical Scriptures contained in the Books of the Old and New Testament; namely Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Samuel, Samuel, Kings, Kings, Chronicles, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, The Song of Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkak, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, Corinthians, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, Peter, Peter, John, John, John, Jude, Revelation: Every one so offending shall be punished by imprisonment, not exceeding six months, and until they find sureties for the good behavior; by fitting in the pillory; by whipping; boring through the tongue, with a red hot iron; or setting upon the gallows with a rope about their neck; at the discretion of the Court.”
When people tell you that Christian Nationalism is about freedom, remember that Christian Nationalists are seeking to bring back The Act Against Atheism and Blasphemy of 1697.
They want to make blasphemy and atheism punishable by prison and public torture. They want a death sentence as punishment for criticizing Christianity or refusing to believe in Jesus in the United States of America.
That’s not what freedom looks like.