The Christian Past That Wasn't: Debunking the Christian Nationalist Myths That Hijack History

"[A] robust treatise. . . . Throckmorton effectively marshals historical evidence to support his claims." --Publishers Weekly

"A timely study. . . . Through clear argument, this book illuminates the founders' intention for church-state separation." --Library Journal

America was not founded as a Christian nation.

Who gains what from myths about the past? Why are many of us susceptible to their power? And how can the truth about a nation's past prevail? In this lively book, Warren Throckmorton, coauthor of Getting Jefferson Right, investigates the gloss that Christian nationalist storytellers put on history and equips readers to debunk seven myths that they propagate.

Working in the tradition of muckraking journalists, Throckmorton, whose fact-checking of David Barton's book The Jefferson Lies convinced the publisher to pull it from the shelves, picks a fight with fables told about the past by those who are trying to erase the separation of church and state. Did the Puritans actually establish a covenant with God, and were all the founders evangelical Christians? Are the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution based on the Bible, and did delegates at the constitutional convention in Philadelphia actually kneel for daily prayers? With keen attention to primary sources, Throckmorton dismantles the myths, piece by historical piece. And he asks: How are the genocide of Indigenous people and enslavement of millions of Africans not definitive repudiations of some righteous Christian past?

It's never been more important to understand why myths about the past wield so much force--and whom those myths empower. White Christian nationalism thrives on origin stories, and Throckmorton equips readers to debunk the false ones. The real heritage of America is neither as a Christian state nor pure secularism; it is a more nuanced story, he says, one of religious tolerance and pluralism. To understand Christian nationalism, we must know the power of myth. To counter it, we must know the facts.

Warren Throckmorton is an author and speaker specializing in psychology and history. Now retired, he worked as a psychology professor at a Christian college and produced, wrote, and hosted the critically acclaimed podcast series Telling Jefferson Lies. His writing has appeared in Salon, Huffington Post, The Daily Beast, Christianity Today, and Religion Dispatches, among others, and he has appeared on CNN, NPR, the Holy Post podcast, and more. Throckmorton is the coauthor with Michael Coulter of Getting Jefferson Right: Fact-Checking Claims About Thomas Jefferson.