![]() Meanwhile, Chris Miller was under scrutiny for displaying the logo of the anti-government Three Percenter movement on his truck, which was seen parked at the insurrection. As for Mary Miller, her profile states, “In her spare time, Mary teaches Sunday School and Vacation Bible School.” When I wrote about the Millers, she was being widely criticized for declaring, at a pro-Trump rally the day before the insurrection, that “Hitler was right” about the importance of indoctrinating youth. According to LancasterOnline, the Christian nationalist, Trump-backed candidate has been attending campaign events “with a non-professional, armed security team” consisting of members of Lifegate, an evangelical church “whose leaders have spoken openly about electing Christians to office to advance biblical principles in government.” The report adds that one member of Mastriano’s private security entourage is Scott Nagle, “who until recently was listed as a regional leader for the Oath Keepers, a militia group founded in 2009.”Īlong similar lines, in the immediate aftermath of January 6, I reported on the involvement of Illinois Representative Mary Miller and her husband, Illinois State Representative Chris Miller, with Oakland Christian Church, whose website lists him as an elder. I was reminded of this the other day as I read a new report on Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano. If you mess with them or our 1st amendment right to worship God – you’ll meet Jesus one way or another. These are all ex-military, ex-police, private security & most importantly LOVERS OF JESUS & freedom. THANK YOU to our security team (half pictured) tonight in Portland □□□□ One of his tweets at the time, featuring a photo of Feucht and his security team, read: In my commentary I drew particular attention to Feucht’s enthusiastic recruiting of the far-right street brawlers who plague the Pacific Northwest to form a private security team for his event. While there’s been significant media coverage of individual cases of close ties between candidates, militia groups, and churches lately, the broader pattern deserves more scrutiny.Ī little over a year ago, I wrote about charismatic evangelical Sean Feucht bringing one of his anti-vax, anti-mask “Let Us Worship” concerts to my adopted hometown of Portland, Oregon, which is often a flashpoint for clashes between anti-fascist protestors and fascist groups, including the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer. How many local churches are providing direct electoral support to far-right-wing Christian candidates for political office? How many of these churches have members who participated in the Januinsurrection, radicalized in part by their pastors’ extreme preaching? How many have members who are prepared to commit further political violence? We don’t know the answers to these questions, but what we do know about the ties between some Christian nationalist churches, far-right political candidates, and members of white supremacist and “patriot” militia groups is enough to underscore the importance of the question.
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