Extremism and the Path Back to Peace with Elizabeth Neumann

The appropriation of Christian images and language by extremists who advocate violence has become a shocking feature of our time. Surveys show alarming numbers of people who self-identify as religious expressing openness to political violence. Against such a distortion of Christian witness, how can we faithfully live out our calling to be people of peace?

Today’s episode features our recent conversation with national security expert Elizabeth Neumann, who offers insight and a sobering perspective on how radicalization has taken root among us and what we can do:

“Find ways to check your in-group assumptions about their narratives. Particularly when the narratives involve others.” – Elizabeth Neumann

This podcast is an edited version of an online conversation recorded in October of 2024. Watch the full video of the conversation here, and learn more about Elizabeth Neumann.

Authors and books mentioned in the conversation:
Kingdom of Rage: the Rise of Christian Extremism and the Path Back to Peace, by Elizabeth Neumann

Related Trinity Forum Readings:
Children of Light and Children of Darkness, by Reinhold Niebuhr
Politics, Morality, and Civility,  by Vaclav Havel
The Origins of Totalitarianism, by Hannah Arendt
The Federalist Papers
A Practical View of Real Christianity, by William Wilberforce
Who Stands Fast? by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Related Conversations:
Hope Beyond Tribalism with James Mumford
Faith, Fear & Conspiracy with David French
The Fall, the Founding and the Future of American Democracy
How to Be a Patriotic Christian

To listen to this or any of our episodes in full, visit ttf.org/podcast and to help make content like this possible, join the Trinity Forum Society

Special thanks to Ned Bustard for our podcast artwork.