I think the eyes are so important. I believe the eyes are the soul, I truly do. The Eyes of Tammy Faye, 2000
Tammy Faye is the first lady of religious broadcasting. Together with her husband Jim Bakker she pioneered the electric church. From the ’60s through the mid-80s they built not one but three religious networks. ibid.
In the mid-’80s their world came crashing down. ibid.
Generating millions of dollars in revenue. ibid.
The instant success of The 700 Club and The Jim & Tammy Show helped turn the Christian Broadcast Network from a local station into a full fledged network. ibid.
Jim and Tammy’s gospel of fun was for one and all. ibid.
Recording over 40 albums. ibid.
Jim had a secret … Jessica Hahn. ibid.
‘I had to have Ativan with me at all times.’ ibid. Tammy
In 1989 Jim Bakker went on trial for fraud. ibid.
What you’re going to see in Hell House is a reality check … To warn them of the coming danger of what our culture is facing. Hell House, opening commentary, 2001
This is Hell House: they dramatise gang rape, incurable disease, suicide and abortion. ibid. news report
Hell House X The Walking Dead Tickets $7. ibid. advertising
We deal with family violence, we deal with suicide, we deal with abortion, we deal with drugs, we deal with alcohol, drunkenness, drunks … ibid. Hell House leaders’ meeting
Christian: He’s coming back for his Church.
Theroux: For Christians?
Christian: Yes, his born again believers.
Theroux: Do you think this is going to happen in your lifetime?
Christian: Yes.
Theroux: So like in the next five or ten years?
Christian: Obviously I’m anxious to quicken in the next five or ten minutes. Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends s1e1: Born Again Christians, BBC 1998
Dallas, Texas, a city of four million souls. Three million born again. With my own soul up for grabs I was heading into the heart of God’s country. A diamond in the buckle of the Bible Belt. ibid.
I heard about a band of hardcore Christians called The Family founded 30 years ago as The Children of God. The Family live a Christian lifestyle so intensively they’ve often been accused of being a cult. ibid.
It didn’t take long before Ann Lee fell under the spirit and started Speaking in Tongues. ibid.
America is fighting for its soul. The Obama era has alienated and angered a growing number of evangelical Christians. I’ve spent nearly six months following two of the country’s most radical Christian hate groups. Hannah Livingstone, America’s Hate Preachers, BBC 2018
Pastor Steven Anderson’s sermon The Sinful Nation of France was widely condemned … one of America’s most notorious hate preachers. ibid.
American law allows anyone to express racial and religious hatred in any religious space. ibid.
The preachers were willing to shout at anyone who didn’t appear to find their model of Christian behaviour. ibid.
Over the last few decades these radical religious broadcasters, who have essentially taken control of the airwaves, have built a parallel information and entertainment service that is piped into tens of millions of American homes as a way of essentially indoctrinating listeners and viewers with this very frightening ideology. Chris Hedges, The Christian Right and the Evangelical Political Movement, 2005
If you look at the ideology that pervades this movement, and the term we use for it is dominionism … And dominionists believe that they have been tasked by God to create the Christian society through violence … essentially an ideology of exclusion and of hatred. It is a totalitarian ideology. It is not religious in any way. These people quote, as they did at this convention, selectively and with gross distortions from the Gospels. ibid.
They have built a vision of America that is radically – and a vision of this – and latched onto a religious movement or awakening that is radically different from previous awakenings … This one is very, very different. It is about taking control of secular society. ibid.
And this is an America where people like you and me have no place. And you don’t have to take my word for it, turn on Christian broadcasting, listen to Christian radio. Listen to what they say about people like us. It’s not a matter that we have an opinion they disagree with. It’s not a matter of them de-legitimizing us, which they are. It’s a matter of them demonizing us, of talking us – describing us as militant secular humanists, moral relativists, both of which terms I would not use to describe myself, as a kind of counter-militant ideology that is anti-Christian and that essentially propelled by Satan that they must destroy … And that’s what these people are about. ibid.
While many talk about the growth of the alt right movement under Trump, there is a much less discussed and much better organised sector of the far right that has attained significant power: the Christian right. During his campaign Trump took care to appeal to his evangelical constituency. Abby Martin & Chris Hedges: The Empire Files: Trump, Fascism & The Christian Rights, Youtube 25.17, 2017
Chris Hedges: American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America. ibid.
‘I think that the Christian right is a far more dangerous movement than the alt right.’ ibid. Chris Hedges
We are the people that brought Donald Trump to power. And he pushes our agenda. ’Til Kingdom Come: Trump, Faith & Money, Pastor Boyd Bingham IV, Binghamtown Baptist Church, BBC 2021
I heard about the bombings, and they were bombing even near children. When we see all of these things happening to the nation of Israel, it should give us all hope … Our redemption will be coming. ibid. WMIK radio, Tomasa Rausner
There’s a spiritual obligation of a Christian to Israel. ibid. Bingham
Israel, their people the Jews, are better than all of us. ibid. Bingham to children
Today, Christians are the largest supporters of humanitarian projects in Israel through the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. ibid. Ms Eckstein, International Fellowship
$129 million is donated annually by Evangelical Christians to the Fellowship. ibid. caption
On May 14th 2018, the day of the embassy move, 58 Palestinians were killed and 2,771 were injured during mass protests. ibid
Whenever I counsel someone who feels called to be an evangelist, I always urge them to guard their time and not feel like they have to do everything. Billy Graham
TV Evangelist: I am not going to do faith healing. I am going to do faith plumbing. Alexie Sayle’s Stuff s2e5, BBC 1989
A powerful minority is on the rise with a particular vision of America. It’s one of the oldest and influential currents in US politics. But in a country deeply divided the Christian right has found a new voice. It claims Christianity is under attack and that God belongs in government. America: Faith on the Front Line, BBC 2022
Known to many as Christian nationalism. And the far right is taking it to the extreme. ibid.
‘We are the Christian Taliban. This is the era of Christian nationalism.’ ibid.
This film focuses on events that took place during Donald Trump’s presidency from 2017 to 2021. Storyville: Praying for Armageddon, BBC 2024
The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. ibid. Joel 2:31
There must be a climax to his war of evil versus good. ibid. Christian biker
Armageddon: What are the dangers of having people that have this kind of doomsday mindset …? ibid. interviewer to critic
Are you listening, Iran? Are you listening, Russia? God is going to wipe you out! ibid. preacher
Our land now seems alive with demonic powers. ibid.
Christian Nationalism: A political movement that believes America was founded as a ‘Christian Nation’ privileging Christianity over all other faiths. Masquerading as religion, this ideology exploits scripture and sacred symbols to achieve extremist objectives. Bad Faith, captions, 2024
Christian nationalism is nationalism. It has nothing to do with Christianity. It’s about power in politics. ibid. Steve Schmidt
That we as a country have a special relationship with God. ibid. man in the know
They may have their Trump but they don’t have their Jesus. ibid. Reverend William Barber
Christian nationalism has been an effective political tool for centuries. The Ku Klux Klan emerged post Civil War to challenge emancipation. ibid. narrator
At its peak in 1924, the Klan claimed 8 million members. The vast majority were white evangelicals. ibid. caption
Paul Weyrich was a dangerous combination of religious zealot and savvy Republican operative. He realised that if could organise an army of angry Christians into a powerful voting bloc, he could completely transform America. ibid. narrator
The Moral Majority: It was a political creation from the political right. ibid. comments
So the GOP became God’s Own Party. ibid.
Their whole worldview was to increase income disparity as a gesture of God’s will. ibid. Anne Nelson
Jim Crow 2.0 Has Got To Go. ibid. protest banner