Why the Woke Right is not Christian
Neil Shenvi recently posted a thread on Twitter (I refuse to call it “X”) that described some of the characteristics and beliefs of what he called the “dissident right”; a more common label for some in that tribe is the “woke right.” Those two terms aren’t necessarily synonymous, but the thread fits both.
What is the woke right? Like “Christian nationalism,” a consensus definition is hard to pin down. But Shenvi’s analysis is useful, and it makes obvious how unchristian this movement is. Here are five points from his thread, and how each point is the opposite of Christianity:
The dissident right wants to ‘destroy the Left’
Not just defeat politically and culturally, but “eradicate.”
Jesus Himself rebuked this violent and hateful attitude in Luke 9 when disciples James and John — the “sons of thunder” — asked the Lord whether they should call down fire to consume Samaritans who had rejected them, like Elijah did against the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings 18 (a story sometimes invoked by the woke right). Jesus replied, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.”
As the body of Christ, that should be our mindset as well. Out of love for our enemies (which Jesus taught as well), we want them to be saved like we are.
Related articles:
‘This concern overrides all others’
The only thing that sentence should ever be said of is the gospel. Our commission from the Lord is to preach the good news of forgiveness of sins and eternal life. That is the purpose of the church’s existence on earth, at all costs.
Starting in the New Testament, countless Christians all over the world have sacrificed everything, including their freedom and their lives, to point others toward salvation in Jesus Christ. This is our overwhelming priority, and everything else we do in life must serve and submit to this calling.
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We are in ‘an existential war’
Christians have been granted the free gift of eternal life, and nothing can ever take that away from us. Nothing can separate us from God’s love in Christ (Romans 8:38-39). Therefore, in no way is our existence ever threatened.
Now, the quote was in the context of America’s existence, and even if it’s true in that sense, it’s not our job to preserve the existence of America. We’re citizens and ambassadors of the kingdom of heaven first. We’re aliens and sojourners in this world. Hebrews 13:14 — “For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come” — shows us that this world will not continue as it is; Christ will strike the nations when He returns (Psalm 2:8-9, Revelation 19:15), and someday we’ll inhabit a new heavens and new earth.
If anyone’s threatening the existence of the nation, it’s the Lord Himself.
Related: Church and nation: A guide to Christian political theology
Wielding power to crush our enemies
Since our goal is not to crush our enemies (point no. 1), it should not be our overriding ambition to attain worldly power.
The New Testament church turned the world upside down with no help from Caesar, just persecution. They didn’t even set foot in the halls of government unless they were under arrest. They didn’t need political power because they had the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit and the word of God, which are infinitely stronger than all the nations the earth has ever seen combined.
A Christian plumber has more power than a pagan president. This makes our lust for it absurd, especially considering that it’s only ever corrupted the church. Some in this camp would be fine with tyranny as long as they’re the tyrants, and history bears that out.
God doesn’t need the mighty; He wants the weak and lowly, because it’s through them that His power is magnified and He is glorified (1 Corinthians 1:26-31).
Related: We want power and winning. God wants losers.
‘No enemies to the right’
This strategy flies in the face of what Jesus, the apostles and prophets taught and practiced. Over and over, their ministries — which often took the form of rebukes and warnings of condemnation — targeted their own people and their own nation first and foremost. Jesus didn’t flip the Romans’ tables, and His followers never rebelled against their foreign oppressors.
NETTR is a fundamental misunderstanding of humanity; the only true division in this world is not between left and right, but between the saved and the lost — those who’ve been born again, and those who haven’t. It’s anthropological heresy.
Related: Jesus punched right, and so should Christians
Our answer to tribalism should be the same as the angel’s when Joshua asked him whose side he was on: “No” (Joshua 5:13-14). The gospel is for all parties and all tribes in all nations, and we’re no less in need of it than our enemies. There’s only one lake of fire.
Many in this movement claim the name of Christ, but it’s hard to think of a set of beliefs — and not just what’s here, as I haven’t even touched on their racism — that’s more antithetical to Christianity.
Picture a vast chasm with people on facing cliffs — on one side is the church of Jesus Christ, His redeemed people; on the other side, far off in the distance, is the Woke Right, standing side by side with the Left they so despise. They have much in common, merely separate tentacles of the same beast.
