When The Wolves Came
Over the last decade, large swaths of evangelicals in the U.S. have embraced an extremist politics that threatens to turn our democracy into a theocracy. Through the eyes of one pastor in Phoenix, WHEN THE WOLVES CAME shows how some evangelicals are banding together to fight back – and how their efforts can fit into a bigger movement to defend democracy in the U.S. Hosted by Dr. Ruth Braunstein, When The Wolves Came: Evangelicals Resisting Extremism is a six-part audio documentary launching March 4 that follows this story. About Dr. Braunstein: Ruth Braunstein is an award-winning sociologist who studies religion, politics, and money. She is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Connecticut, where she leads the Meanings of Democracy Lab, which researches the growing resistance to Christian Nationalism. As part of this work, she created and hosts the audio documentary When the Wolves Came: Evangelicals Resisting Extremism. Her forthcoming book, My Tax Dollars: The Morality of Taxpaying in America, explores how taxpaying has become a moral battleground in public life. WhenTheWolvesCame.org
Episodes
Christian nationalism has divided white evangelical churches; one Phoenix pastor and some unlikely allies are at the forefront of a growing resistance.
Extremist politics have upended the evangelical world. Over the course of 6 episodes, Sociologist Ruth Braunstein examines the efforts of the insiders who are resisting white Christian nationalism.
When The Wolves Came launches March 4.
About Dr. Braunstein:
Pastor Caleb Campbell leads an evangelical church in Phoenix. After Trump’s first election, Caleb became alarmed at rising religious extremism in evangelical spaces. And he should know: before he returned to the church, Pastor Caleb was a neo-Nazi skinhead.
Show Notes:
Learn more about American’s attitudes about Christian nationalism: Support for Christian Nationalism in All 50 States: Findings from PRRI’s 2024 American ...
Political divisions within Pastor Caleb’s church and at a leading Christian magazine reveal how predominantly white evangelical spaces became hothouses for Christian nationalism. Republican politics, militant masculinity and QAnon conspiracy theories all contribute to its spread.
Show Notes:
Learn more: The Persistence of QAnon in the Post-Trump Era: An Analysis of Who Believes the Conspiracies | PRRI
Episode Guests:
C...
COVID-19 church closures, a summer of Black Lives Matter protests, and a tense Presidential election all fan the flames of white Christian nationalism. Two churches in Phoenix react in wildly different ways, with dramatic results.
Content warning: this episode includes a depiction of police violence that might be disturbing to some listeners.
Show Notes:
Learn more: Religious Change in America | PRRI
Episode ...
Evangelical leaders horrified by the extremism in their churches wonder: Is it better to break ties with people who you believe are dangerously wrong – or try to lead them out of the dark? Pastor Caleb comes up with a surprising plan.
Show Notes
Episode Guests:
Caleb E. Campbell is a pastor at Desert Springs Bible Church in Phoenix, Arizona, and the author of Disarming Leviathan: Loving Your Christian Nat...
We attend a Christian nationalist event shortly before the 2024 election and talk to an extremism expert about how to prevent radicalization. One QAnon believer changes his tune with the help of Pastor Caleb and his church.
Show Notes:
Learn more: Multi-faith Neighbors Network Peacemakers Toolkit and Disarming Leviathan
Episode Guests:
Caleb E. Campbell is a pastor at Desert Springs Bible Church in Phoenix, Arizona, an...
The new Trump Administration may openly embrace white Christian nationalism, but Pastor Caleb and other evangelical resistors are gaining momentum. They’re connecting to a bigger pro-democracy movement where faith groups and secular groups are uneasily allied against theocracy.
Show Notes:
Learn more and Follow Ruth Braunstein’s Substack.
Episode Guests:
Caleb E. Campbell is a pastor at Desert Springs Bible Church in P...
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