Reviews tagging 'Transphobia'

Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

18 reviews

risten's review against another edition

informative slow-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Transphobia, Racism, Homophobia, Islamophobia, Rape, Religious bigotry, War, Sexual violence, Abortion, Colonisation, Xenophobia, and Slavery

caffeineuro's review against another edition

challenging dark informative slow-paced

5.0

buckle up for this one- it’s a TOUGH read. multiple instances of wanting to throw the book across the room or scream. very very important research and information- especially in light of our current political environment. 10/10 would recommend. incredible book. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Rape, Transphobia, Colonisation, Sexual assault, and Sexism

The fact that all those disclaimers needed to happen for a book about american christianity…sigh.

erica_palmisano's review

challenging informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Well researched, scrupulously end-noted, and full of insights I hadn't expected, this book is phenomenal. Absolutely a must-read for people in Evangelicalism or coming out of it. Also, important for folks seeking to understand Christian Nationalism and its impact on US Politics.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Sexism, Racism, Misogyny, Xenophobia, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Domestic abuse, Torture, Transphobia, War, Ableism, Abortion, and Colonisation

abutler's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Infidelity, Islamophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Transphobia, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

katyallred's review against another edition

dark informative medium-paced

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Racism, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, and Misogyny

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Xenophobia, Transphobia, Sexual harassment, Rape, Islamophobia, and Gaslighting

Minor: Ableism, Abortion, Pedophilia, and Adult/minor relationship

lovelybookshelf's review against another edition

challenging informative medium-paced

4.5

How do I start? Where do I start? There is so much in this book, and it got more and more infuriating with every page.

In Jesus and John Wayne, Kristin Kobes Du Mez outlines exactly what brought white American evangelicalism to the profound state of corruption we see today, and why it's so easy for people to be carried along with it.

A heads up: This book may be intensely triggering if you have past church trauma or you've been on the receiving end of religious hate. 

Du Mez takes us through the past 75 years of American history, culture, and politics to help us understand what brought us to this point and why. Get ready for a nauseating look into Christian consumer culture, patriarchal gender traditionalism, militarism and fear-mongering, militant white masculinity, submissive femininity, Christian nationalism, and political power plays, all forged along the path of American imperialism.

What I found especially terrifying was how easy it was for evangelicals to take legitimate fears Americans had due to world events, and stoke that anxiety so that they could dive in and be the protector. James Dobson had an enormous influence on inserting evangelicalism into the American military, resulting in the dominionist ideals we see in many politicians today.

She covers the close ties between fundamentalism and evangelicalism, which explains why it's sometimes hard to tell the difference between the two. She helps us see how evangelicals played the long game through their branding, "replacing traditional denominational authorities with the authority of the market and the power of consumer choice." This helped them appeal to a wide audience, winning people over and gaining more followers. This is why you see members of mainline (or even progressive) denominations consuming, for example, books by evangelical authors.

So yeah,  Jesus and John Wayne is a difficult book to read, content-wise. I felt sick to my stomach most of the time. But it's an important read, and if you've ever wondered why there are people who are okay with all of this, you'll gain a whole lot of insight. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Transphobia, and Xenophobia

Minor: Infidelity, Rape, and Sexual assault

sarahholliday's review against another edition

challenging informative

4.25

An impressive analysis of the insidious influence militant masculinity, patriarchy, and white supremacy have had on American evangelicalism and American culture more broadly. The evidence is abundant and the arguments convincing, though I wish de Mez would've drawn explicit connections between these systems and abuse earlier in the work, rather than leaving the bulk of that particular discussion for the final chapter. 

Overall, I loved this much-needed work and want to put it into the hands of everyone I know.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Islamophobia, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Transphobia

Minor: Rape

j_sherrill's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

As someone who has grown up sort of on the fringes of evangelical Christianity in America and as someone who is perplexed by the evangelical obsession with Donald Trump, I felt this was an important book for me to read. I did not expect it to be as challenging as it was. To me, at times this book felt pretty dry and dense and I found myself zoning out. I was just bored at times. In spite of this, I feel like this is an important book for any evangelical Christian to read and it is well worth the time and effort required to read it. 

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia