Christianity Today argues rejecting evangelicalism will not restore democracy

Robert Jones grew up in Southern Baptist churches in Mississippi and earned a master of divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary before shifting to a liberal form of Christianity. His new book claims that beliefs in biblical authority and the need for personal salvation foster support for strict immigration policies and political conservatism among white evangelicals. Surveys from his Public Religion Research Institute show white evangelicals favor border barriers at higher rates than other Americans and that frequent churchgoers among them back certain deportation measures more strongly than infrequent attenders. The article notes that similar patterns appear in views on diversity efforts and voting records, with regular Bible readers expressing concerns about government policies at elevated levels. Yet the piece points out that evangelicals once backed pathways to citizenship through groups like the National Association of Evangelicals and a 2023 Southern Baptist Convention resolution that urged family unity and legal status for long-term residents. This summer the same convention adopted a new stance favoring enforcement and opposing amnesty, a move the writer attributes to regional political influences rather than core teachings. The argument concludes that historic commitments on issues like abortion explain ongoing Republican ties more than any inherent link between evangelical practices and authoritarian tendencies. By separating doctrine from surrounding culture, the response holds that church communities can still shape lives toward compassion without requiring a full break from evangelical roots. Daniel Williams presents this as a reason to keep engaging within those traditions instead of treating supporters of current policies as outside the faith.