Latest news with #NewApostolicReformation
WIRED
12 hours ago
- Politics
- WIRED
The Minnesota Shooting Suspect's Background Suggests Deep Ties to Christian Nationalism
Jun 18, 2025 2:54 PM Experts say that the suspect showed clear ties to forms of so-called charismatic Christianity that views abortion as a sacrifice to demons and seeks the end of secular democracy. The man who prosecutors have charged with assassinating Melissa Hortman, a Democratic Minnesota state representative, and her husband Mark Hortman, once said in a sermon that his religious awakening came when he was 17 years old, working next to a man who 'talked about God all of the time' at a vegetable canning factory. Over the next four decades of alleged shooter Vance Boelter's life, while working in the food industry, local government, and private security, his religious worldview appeared to incorporate fringe theological ideas that are often associated with so-called charismatic Christianity and Christian Nationalism, a movement that's captured the American religious right, has been seen as a key driver behind the January 6 Capitol riot, and currently enjoys an outsized influence on current Trump administration personnel and policy. Charismatic Christianity is a broad movement of evangelical Christians who are associated with belief in modern supernatural experiences, like speaking in tongues, divine healing and prophesy. Independent Charismatic Christians seek to exert influence over all aspects of life, from culture to politics. Independent Charismatic Christianity, which encompasses the 'NAR,' or New Apostolic Reformation, has been described as the bedrock of Christian nationalism. NAR is an extreme Christian supremacist network that aims to dismantle the secular state, which it sees as demonic, and transform its institutions in accordance with Christian law. Experts tell WIRED that there are several links from the suspect's religious background to Christian nationalism that could explain why he allegedly targeted lawmakers and pro-abortion advocates. WIRED has also confirmed that the suspect attended a bible school in Dallas that was attended by several controversial figures from the world of Christian nationalism. 'Vance Boelter, from everything I have read and heard, would clearly be a Christian nationalist,' claims Michael Emerson, the Baker Institute's Chavanne Fellow in religion and public policy at Rice University. 'He found the perspectives and policies of the liberal left egregious, viewing such people and their work as anti-Christian and anti-God. They were harming the vision of a truly Christian identity and nation.' WIRED previously reported that the 57-year-old alleged shooter has been affiliated with at least one evangelical organization, serving for a time as the president of Revoformation Ministries. A version of the ministry's website captured in 2011 carries a biography in which he is said to have been ordained in 1993. According to a tax filing reviewed by WIRED, he ran the ministry with his wife. He moonlighted as a religious pastor part of Pentecostal congregations, and participated in missions preaching around the world, including in Gaza and the West Bank, according to an archived website for Revoformation. He also gave several sermons in the Democratic Republic of Congo in recent years. 'Many churches in America didn't listen to Jesus,' the alleged shooter said in a 2023 sermon in the Democratic Republic of Congo viewed by WIRED. 'And the enemy, the devil, comes through and rips everything apart. The churches are so messed up, they don't know abortion is wrong, many churches.' In other sermons, the alleged shooter talked about the LGBTQ community, saying, 'There's people, especially in America, they don't know what sex they are. They don't know their sexual orientation. They're confused … The enemy has gotten so far into their mind and their soul.' The alleged shooter also said 'God is going to raise up apostles and prophets in America' in one of the sermons. It's that language in particular, experts tell WIRED, that connects him to the world of charismatic Christianity. 'Everything that I've seen indicates that he's charismatic,' says Matthew Taylor, senior scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies in Baltimore and author of The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy . 'The supernatural, talking about the gifts of the holy spirit, while using a very pentecostal style of discourse in his preaching.' Abortion in the independent charismatic Christian movement is often characterized as a demonic practice. Police say the car that the alleged shooter abandoned contained a lengthy hit list of Democratic lawmakers, abortion providers, and outspoken abortion advocates in the state. Charismatic Christians often talk about abortion in terms of 'child sacrifice to demons,' says Taylor. 'I don't think it's hard to see how someone could get radicalized around that language,' he alleges. The alleged shooter's now-deleted Facebook profile also showed that he had 'liked' a page for the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal advocacy organization known for its hardline stances against abortion and LGBTQ rights. 'This signals at least a right-wing anti-abortion conviction,' says Taylor. David Carlson, who has known the alleged shooter since fourth grade and described the 57-year-old as his best friend, told reporters that the alleged shooter was a Trump supporter, 'very conservative,' and would be offended if anyone suggested otherwise. (In the aftermath of the shooting, however, far-right influencers including people like Elon Musk sought to blame leftists and the Deep State.) It's likely, according to Taylor, that the alleged shooter's theological ideas were rooted in his time at the Christ for the Nations Institute, a charismatic Bible college in Dallas, Texas he claimed to spend some time at, according to a biography on the archived Revoformation website. Taylor claims that a number of prominent figures in the independent charismatic Christian movement have deep ties to or attended the institute. Dutch Sheets, a NAR pastor who popularized the 'Appeal to Heaven' flag waved by Christian nationalists and rioters on January 6, 2021, graduated from the institute in 1978, and worked as an adjunct professor therein the late 1980s and early 1990s; he later briefly returned as an instructor in 2012. Cindy Jacobs, an avid supporter of Trump who has been described as one of the most influential prophets in America, settled in Dallas in the 1980s, and according to Taylor, was regularly on the institute's campus lecturing or guest-teaching. The suspected shooter was enrolled at the Institute from 1988 to 1990, which means he could have overlapped with some of those figures. When WIRED contacted the Institute, they directed our query to a statement saying it 'unequivocally rejects, denounces, and condemns any and all forms of violence and extremism, be it politically, racially, religiously or otherwise motivated.' The statement also said that they were 'aghast and horrified' that an alumnus of an Institute was a suspect in the Minnesota shootings. 'This is not who we are. This is not what we teach.' Jacobs and Sheets did not respond to requests for comment. Journalist Jeff Sharlet, in an essay published to his Substack called 'Scenes from a Slow Civil War' following the Minnesota shootings, recalls a recent visit to the institute where he saw a quote by the school's founder printed in the lobby: 'Everyone ought to pray at least one violent prayer each day.' (In its statement, the Institute said the slogan had been misinterpreted: 'By 'violent prayer,' they say, the founder 'meant that a Christian's prayer-life should be intense, fervent, and passionate, not passive and lukewarm.) Although independent charismatic Christians don't directly call for adherents to take matters into their own hands, they do see themselves as soldiers in the primordial battle of 'spiritual warfare,' where demonic forces can only be overcome by prayer and carrying out God's will. 'This binary good versus evil worldview transforms democratic politics into a deadly version of the board game Risk, where geographic territory, institutions, and leaders have come under the sway of Satan,' says Robert Jones, president and founder of the Public Religion Research Institute. 'They are not political opponents or neighbors with whom we disagree; they are literally the instruments of evil.' 'The logic is straightforward,' says Emerson. 'If Christian nationalism is to be realized, those of different faiths or no faith do not belong. They either must be converted, silenced, or expelled.' And Taylor notes that, for example, 'the people who participated in J6 were overwhelmingly in [Christian] charismatics; they would say they were doing God's will' because 'God had revealed that Donald Trump was anointed for another term.' The alleged shooter, too, may have seen himself as one of those soldiers. According to a criminal complaint filed Monday, Boelter texted his family after the killings, writing 'Dad went to war last night..I don't wanna say more because I don't wanna implicate anybody.' The suspect was captured late Sunday. In an affidavit filed after the arrest, police say he disguised himself in a rubber mask, wore a police uniform complete with a badge and a taser, and drove a car that had been customized to look like a local police cruiser. In addition to allegedly shooting and killing Hortman and her husband early Saturday morning, he also allegedly shot state senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman. Hoffman and his wife Yvette survived despite being shot multiple times. David Gilbert contributed reporting.
Khaleej Times
09-02-2025
- Politics
- Khaleej Times
Trump's 'God squad' holds increasing sway at White House
Donald Trump said at his inauguration that he had been "saved by God." Now he appears to be returning the favor with an increasingly conservative, religious focus in his second term as US president. The three-times-married billionaire signed an executive order on Friday to open a "Faith Office" at the White House, led by the televangelist Paula White, Trump's so-called spiritual advisor. A day earlier Trump had unveiled a task force under new Attorney General Pam Bondi to root out what he called the "persecution" of Christians in the United States. The Republican has also appointed several cabinet members with links to Christian nationalists, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. All of this comes despite the fact that Trump has long had an ambiguous relationship with religion. Unlike his predecessor Joe Biden, a devout Catholic, Trump rarely appears in Church. He was confirmed into the Presbyterian church but said he was "non-denominational." Then there are the sexual scandals -- and a criminal conviction for in a porn star hush money case -- and the selling of $60 Trump-branded Bibles on the campaign trail. Yet evangelical Christians continued to back him in the 2024 election, just as they did in 2016. During his first term Trump certainly dabbled with religion. He posed with a Bible outside a church near the White House after security forces cleared out "Black Lives Matter" protesters, and had prayer meetings in the Oval Office with evangelicals. But now Trump claimed to have had what amounts to a religious awakening. The 78-year-old said that he had become more religious since he narrowly escaped death when a gunman's bullet hit him in the ear at an election rally in Butler, Pennsylvania last year. "It changed something in me," Trump told a prayer breakfast at the US Capitol on Thursday. "I believed in God, but I feel much more strongly about it." Not that this stopped Trump lashing out at the bishop who gave the sermon at his inauguration service, Mariann Budde, after she called on him to show "mercy" to immigrants and LGBTQ people. But the people Trump has chosen to surround himself in the White House are also telling. A number have ties to the New Apostolic Reformation church -- a Christian nationalist movement that calls for the levers of government and society to come under Christian control. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has been linked to the movement, as has Paula White, who will head up his new Faith Office. White hit the headlines in 2020 when she led a marathon -- and widely mocked -- prayer session to call for Trump to win the US election against Joe Biden. Vance converted to Catholicism in his 30s and appeared at a town hall hosted by a leading figure in the New Apostolic Reformation Church. Former Fox contributor and military veteran Hegseth, meanwhile, belongs to a church affiliated to the right-wing Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC), a Christian nationalist group. The movement wants to reestablish Biblical law, with some of its adherents calling for the repeal of women's right to vote, US media reported. While Trump has not expressed support for such views, he has increasingly adopted positions that have delighted America's religious right. He repeatedly boasted that the Supreme Court justices he picked in his first term helped lead to the 2022 overturning of the nationwide right to abortion. Since his inauguration he has sent a video message to a huge anti-abortion march attended by far-right groups and signed a series of executive orders tackling liberal causes, from diversity to transgender rights and abortion. His prayer breakfast speech at the US Capitol this week was unusually explicit in its call for an increased role for religion. "We have to bring religion back," said Trump. "Let's bring God back into our lives."
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump's 'God squad' holds increasing sway at White House
Donald Trump said at his inauguration that he had been "saved by God." Now he appears to be returning the favor with an increasingly conservative, religious focus in his second term as US president. The three-times-married billionaire signed an executive order on Friday to open a "Faith Office" at the White House, led by the televangelist Paula White, Trump's so-called spiritual advisor. A day earlier Trump had unveiled a task force under new Attorney General Pam Bondi to root out what he called the "persecution" of Christians in the United States. The Republican has also appointed several cabinet members with links to Christian nationalists, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. All of this comes despite the fact that Trump has long had an ambiguous relationship with religion. Unlike his predecessor Joe Biden, a devout Catholic, Trump rarely appears in Church. He was confirmed into the Presbyterian church but said he was "non-denominational." Then there are the sexual scandals -- and a criminal conviction for in a porn star hush money case -- and the selling of $60 Trump-branded Bibles on the campaign trail. Yet evangelical Christians continued to back him in the 2024 election, just as they did in 2016. - 'Changed something' - During his first term Trump certainly dabbled with religion. He posed with a Bible outside a church near the White House after security forces cleared out "Black Lives Matter" protesters, and had prayer meetings in the Oval Office with evangelicals. But now Trump claimed to have had what amounts to a religious awakening. The 78-year-old said that he had become more religious since he narrowly escaped death when a gunman's bullet hit him in the ear at an election rally in Butler, Pennsylvania last year. "It changed something in me," Trump told a prayer breakfast at the US Capitol on Thursday. "I believed in God, but I feel much more strongly about it." Not that this stopped Trump lashing out at the bishop who gave the sermon at his inauguration service, Mariann Budde, after she called on him to show "mercy" to immigrants and LGBTQ people. But the people Trump has chosen to surround himself in the White House are also telling. A number have ties to the New Apostolic Reformation church -- a Christian nationalist movement that calls for the levers of government and society to come under Christian control. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has been linked to the movement, as has Paula White, who will head up his new Faith Office. White hit the headlines in 2020 when she led a marathon -- and widely mocked -- prayer session to call for Trump to win the US election against Joe Biden. Vance converted to Catholicism in his 30s and appeared at a town hall hosted by a leading figure in the New Apostolic Reformation Church. - 'Bring religion back' - Former Fox contributor and military veteran Hegseth, meanwhile, belongs to a church affiliated to the right-wing Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC), a Christian nationalist group. The movement wants to reestablish Biblical law, with some of its adherents calling for the repeal of women's right to vote, US media reported. While Trump has not expressed support for such views, he has increasingly adopted positions that have delighted America's religious right. He repeatedly boasted that the Supreme Court justices he picked in his first term helped lead to the 2022 overturning of the nationwide right to abortion. Since his inauguration he has sent a video message to a huge anti-abortion march attended by far-right groups and signed a series of executive orders tackling liberal causes, from diversity to transgender rights and abortion. His prayer breakfast speech at the US Capitol this week was unusually explicit in its call for an increased role for religion. "We have to bring religion back," said Trump. "Let's bring God back into our lives." dk/st
Yahoo
26-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A Weekend Reading List
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here. Our editors compiled a list of seven absorbing reads for your weekend. Spend time with stories about the secretive world of extreme fishing, new approaches to aging, and more. Your Reading List The Army of God Comes Out of the Shadows By Stephanie McCrummen Tens of millions of American Christians are embracing a charismatic movement known as the New Apostolic Reformation, which seeks to destroy the secular state. America Needs to Radically Rethink What It Means to Be Old By Jonathan Rauch As 100-year lifespans become more common, the time has come for a new approach to school, work, and retirement. Inside the Dangerous, Secretive World of Extreme Fishing By Tyler Austin Harper Why I swim out into rough seas 80 nights a year to hunt for striped bass Americans Need to Party More By Ellen Cushing We're not doing it as much as we used to. You can be the change we need. Read These Six Books—Just Trust Us By Tajja Isen Each title richly rewards readers who come in with little prior knowledge. Is Moderate Drinking Okay? By Derek Thompson 'Every drink takes five minutes off your life.' Maybe the thought scares you. Personally, I find comfort in it. The Agony of Texting With Men By Matthew Schnipper Many guys are bad at messaging their friends back—and it might be making them more lonely. The Week Ahead Season 2 of The Recruit, an action series about a young CIA lawyer who becomes embroiled in an international conflict (streaming on Netflix on Thursday) Dog Man, an animated film in the Captain Underpants universe about a police officer who is fused with his dog in a lifesaving surgery (in theaters Friday) The Sirens' Call, a book by the MSNBC host Chris Hayes about how attention became the world's most endangered resource (out Tuesday) More in Culture 'Dear James': My sad, sad friend talks only about herself. The Oscars have left the mainstream moviegoer behind. David Lynch captured the appeal of the unknown. A horrifying true story, told through mundane details Dave Chappelle's sincere plea on Saturday Night Live Catch Up on MAGA is starting to crack. The attack on birthright citizenship is a big test for the Constitution. 'January 6ers got out of prison—and came to my neighborhood.' Photo Album Take a look at these photos of the week, featuring the U.S. vice president's son on Inauguration Day, two Thai actors who registered their marriage after Thailand's same-sex-marrige law went into effect, and more. When you buy a book using a link in this newsletter, we receive a commission. Thank you for supporting The Atlantic. Article originally published at The Atlantic
Atlantic
26-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Atlantic
A Weekend Reading List
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here. Our editors compiled a list of seven absorbing reads for your weekend. Spend time with stories about the secretive world of extreme fishing, new approaches to aging, and more. Your Reading List The Army of God Comes Out of the Shadows By Stephanie McCrummen Tens of millions of American Christians are embracing a charismatic movement known as the New Apostolic Reformation, which seeks to destroy the secular state. America Needs to Radically Rethink What It Means to Be Old By Jonathan Rauch As 100-year lifespans become more common, the time has come for a new approach to school, work, and retirement. Inside the Dangerous, Secretive World of Extreme Fishing By Tyler Austin Harper Why I swim out into rough seas 80 nights a year to hunt for striped bass Americans Need to Party More By Ellen Cushing We're not doing it as much as we used to. You can be the change we need. Read These Six Books—Just Trust Us By Tajja Isen Each title richly rewards readers who come in with little prior knowledge. Is Moderate Drinking Okay? By Derek Thompson 'Every drink takes five minutes off your life.' Maybe the thought scares you. Personally, I find comfort in it. The Agony of Texting With Men By Matthew Schnipper Many guys are bad at messaging their friends back—and it might be making them more lonely. The Week Ahead Season 2 of The Recruit, an action series about a young CIA lawyer who becomes embroiled in an international conflict (streaming on Netflix on Thursday) Dog Man, an animated film in the Captain Underpants universe about a police officer who is fused with his dog in a lifesaving surgery (in theaters Friday) The Sirens' Call, a book by the MSNBC host Chris Hayes about how attention became the world's most endangered resource (out Tuesday) More in Culture 'Dear James': My sad, sad friend talks only about herself. The Oscars have left the mainstream moviegoer behind. David Lynch captured the appeal of the unknown. A horrifying true story, told through mundane details Catch Up on The Atlantic MAGA is starting to crack. The attack on birthright citizenship is a big test for the Constitution. 'January 6ers got out of prison—and came to my neighborhood.' Photo Album Take a look at these photos of the week, featuring the U.S. vice president's son on Inauguration Day, two Thai actors who registered their marriage after Thailand's same-sex-marrige law went into effect, and more.
