The quiet force that wants to transform America is already here

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Support our nonprofit journalism]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     October 3, 2024 Hi, I'm Kiera Butler, a senior reporter here at Mother Jones. Before I started reporting on Christian nationalist movements, I’d only heard about the [New Apostolic Reformation]( in passing. For the longest time, I assumed it was a denomination, like Baptists or Presbyterians. What I soon discovered, though, is that there is no single leader of NAR, no annual conference, nor any website with its statements of belief. Rather, the movement is vast and amorphous, a network of various individual prophets and apostles overseeing their own ministries and issuing prophetic declarations as they go along. But even though it’s so hard to pin down, [its symbols are also kind of everywhere](. There’s Justice Alito's house with an "Appeal to Heaven" flag. House Speaker Mike Johnson has one, too! But it wasn’t until I got to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, that I fully understood how this movement has inserted itself into the [fabric of American civic life](. A popular sports event venue hosts far-right Christian conferences. NAR-affiliated churches control the school boards. One local group holds Bible study in public schools; another baptizes students in portable troughs in front of public high schools. This morning, when I logged on to Twitter, I saw this tweet by NAR leader Lance Wallnau, who hosted JD Vance at a recent event in Pennsylvania: Forget the noise from New York, Hollywood, and Washington—those are just the visible peaks of the 7 mountains. The real power lies in your local community, whether it’s your bank, your school, or your business network—this is where Christians need to rise up, pray, and take authority. Like David stepping from the business mountain to the government mountain in a single moment, God positions His people with jurisdictional authority, even at the lowest levels, to bring revival, avert crisis, and influence culture from the inside out. This coming from a guy who has developed a voting strategy to target 19 key counties in swing states. And that’s the thing about this movement: [It’s already here](—and its influence will persist in cities and towns across the country, regardless of who becomes our next president. —Kiera Butler Advertisement [House Subscriptions Ad]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Melania Says She Supports Abortion. I Really Don’t Care, Do U?]( In coming out as staunchly pro-choice, the former first lady both extends the grift and attempts to aid her husband's feigned moderation. BY INAE OH MOTHER JONES MEMBERSHIP UPDATE   DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY You’re a Mother Jones Daily reader, so you know the stakes and you know reporting like ours matters so freaking much in the month ahead (and beyond). About that: We need [the support of our newsletter readers like never before]( to vigorously fight back against the existential threats American democracy and journalism face. We urgently need all hands on deck. We can’t afford to come up short—we have no cushion; we leave it all on the field. Please help with a donation if you can—even just a few bucks helps. A [monthly gift]( would be incredible. [Donate Now]( [Trending] [American hawks are pushing for a big war in the Middle East, again]( BY SOPHIE HURWITZ   [“You have to cooperate”: GOP operative says he was threatened by Steve Bannon]( BY DAN FRIEDMAN   [Jack Smith makes damning new allegations about January 6]( BY DAN FRIEDMAN   [Your phones and computers rely on this remote North Carolina mine. Helene just walloped it.]( BY ADAM CLARK ESTES Advertisement [House Bookshop Ad]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( [Christian nationalists dream of taking over America. This movement is actually doing it.]( The New Apostolic Reformation is "the greatest threat to US democracy you've never heard of." BY KIERA BUTLER Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755