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Trump Advancing New Apostolic Reformation’s Christian Nationalist Seven Mountains Mandate [1]

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Date: 2025-02-14

Over the past several decades, the Christian Right has been written off, declared dead, mocked and misunderestimated by the mainstream press, religious scholars and religious leaders. Democratic Party officials have never completely understood the movement, having had an unexceptional response to the Christian Right. Well, there should be no misunderestimating the power of the Christian Right these days! And in the forefront of this powerful political movement is the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR).

You don’t believe me? Take a look at the religio-politics of members of Donald Trump’s second administration and you’ll find cabinet members and other Trumpian officials with close relationships, to and ideological synchronicity with the NAR.

Advocates of the New Apostolic Reformation’s Seven Mountains Mandate are on the precipice of what might be the biggest Christian Nationalists takeover of the national government in the nation’s history. Recently, Paula White-Cain, who is often associated with elements of the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), though she is not formally recognized as a leader within the movement, was appointed to head the White House Faith Office. White-Cain joins vice president J.D. Vance, House Speaker Mike Johnson and several other individuals associated with the Trump administration that are linked to, and are ideologically-adjacent to, the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR). Former Fox contributor and newly confirmed Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, “belongs to a church affiliated to the right-wing Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC0, a Christian nationalist group,” AFP’s Danny Kemp recently reported.

We’ve discussed this once fringe movement several times over the past few years (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/9/27/2273270/-JD-Vance-Embracing-New-Apostolic-Reformation-s-Lance-Wallnau-who-labels-Harris-a-Jezebel) and (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/8/7/2261354/-Trumpy-Christian-Nationalist-Courage-Tour-Attacks-Demonic-Strongholds-Recruits-Election-Officials).

In the run-up to last year’s presidential election, New Apostolic Reformation soldiers were out beating the bushes for Donald Trump. Their so-called Courage Tour brought thousands of people into revival tent-like meetings and focused on getting the vote out in marginal counties in a handful of swing states (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/5/23/2242287/-Christian-Right-s-New-Apostolic-Reformation-Chasing-Christian-Voters-in-Battleground-States)

On the religious right beat for several decades, veteran journalist Frederick Clarkson explored the origins, the inner workings and identified the networks of the NAR, all the while maintaining that “the movement has grown exponentially in the U.S. and around the world,” in a September 2022 Religion Dispatches piece titled Christian Right Denialism Is More Dangerous Than Ever: A Reporter’s Guide to the New Apostolic Reformation” ((https://religiondispatches.org/christian-right-denialism-is-more-dangerous-than-ever-a-reporters-guide-to-the-new-apostolic-reformation/).

What is the Seven Mountains Mandate? Simply put it is the attempt by Christian Nationalists to rule over different aspects of culture: religion, politics, education, family, business, arts and entertainment, and media.

The seven mountains identified by the movement are:

Religion – Represents the spiritual beliefs and institutions that shape moral and ethical worldviews. Christians should take leadership roles in churches and ministries to spread biblical principles. Family – Emphasis on the importance of traditional family structures based on biblical values; opposing abortion and LGBTQ+ rights, and advocate for policies that reinforce heterosexual marriage and parental authority. Education – Promote Christian influence in schools and universities, instill biblical teachings and counter secular or progressive ideologies. Advocate for school prayer, homeschooling, and Christian curricula in public education. Government – Encourage Christians to take positions of power in government to legislate according to biblical principles; support Christian nationalism and policies that reflect conservative Christian values. Media – Shape public discourse by promoting Christian perspectives in journalism, entertainment, and social media. Arts & Entertainment – Emphasize Christians influencing film, music, and other forms of entertainment. Business – Gain influence in the marketplace, using wealth to fund ministries and promote ethical business practices based on biblical principles.

According to Theology professor André Gagné, author of American Evangelicals for Trump: Dominion, Spiritual Warfare, and the End Times, “The Seven Mountain Mandate is not a theology, it's more of a strategic marketing tool to mobilize people. If Christians are to rule … that's what I call the political theology of power. But how do you mobilize people to act upon that idea? You come up with a mobilizing strategy and that strategy is the Seven Mountain Mandate.”

“The goal,” Gagné told Salon’s Paul Rosenberg, “is to have Christians in influential positions — maybe at the top of those mountains — to influence the culture of each of the sectors of society. And when you do that you will exercise dominion. This is how you bring about God's kingdom.”

While “spiritual warfare” – exorcism, the casting out of demons, battling demonic powers and demonic networks – is not being kicked to the curb, seizing raw political power is now on the agenda. And while Trump likely doesn’t care about, or is even aware of NAR’s ultimate goals, and co-president Elon Musk is not known as a man of religion, leaders of the NAR are pressing forward with its Seven Mountains Mandate.

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