Did MAGA Take the Deal Jesus Refused? | Jonathan Rauch

Jonathan Rauch is a lifelong atheist who once expected declining religious influence to make America more tolerant, rational, and peaceful.

Instead, he watched politics become a substitute religion, supplying identity, belonging, moral certainty, and a perpetual struggle between good and evil. His unexpected conclusion: liberal democracy needs Christianity.

In this conversation, Rauch explains the argument behind Cross Purposes: Christianity’s Broken Bargain with Democracy. He says Donald Trump offered white evangelicals power in exchange for loyalty, a bargain Rauch compares with the temptation Jesus rejected in Matthew 4. Accepting that bargain, he argues, weakened both Christian witness and American democracy.

What does democracy need from Christianity? Rauch connects three teachings of Jesus with three requirements of Madisonian government:

• Do not be ruled by fear. Citizens must be able to lose elections without believing the country has ended.
• Recognize every person’s equal dignity. Political opponents remain civic equals with the same rights.
• Forgive rather than destroy your enemies. Winning cannot become permission to eliminate the opposition.

Eric and Jonathan also discuss signs of Christian renewal, civic theology, Latter-day Saint peacemaking, the rise of post-liberalism, and what its critics of liberal democracy would put in its place.

The conversation eventually turns to artificial intelligence, parenting, education, books, and human meaning. If AI can summarize our books and write our essays, why undertake the difficult work of thinking? What should we teach children when nobody can confidently predict which jobs will survive?

Questions explored

• Why does a lifelong atheist believe democracy needs Christianity?
• When does politics begin functioning like religion?
• What bargain did Donald Trump offer white evangelicals?
• How do the teachings of Jesus align with James Madison’s democracy?
• Can Christianity separate itself from MAGA politics?
• What is post-liberalism, and what would replace liberal democracy?
• Why might philosophy and religious traditions matter more as AI improves?
• Why are intellectual and moral humility so difficult and so necessary?

About Jonathan Rauch

Jonathan Rauch is a senior fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution, a contributing writer at The Atlantic, and the author of nine books, including Cross Purposes, The Constitution of Knowledge, The Happiness Curve, and Kindly Inquisitors.

Episode Links

• Cross Purposes: Christianity’s Broken Bargain with Democracy: Visit yalebooks.yale.edu
• Explore Jonathan Rauch’s books: Browse on Amazon
• Jonathan Rauch at the Brookings Institution: Visit brookings.edu
• Read Jonathan’s work at The Atlantic: Visit theatlantic.com

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