Why Evangelicals Keep Falling for Dictators
They shout about freedom while worshiping power — from Trump to Putin, preachers bless tyrants and call it faith.
Evangelicals who scream about freedom are in abundance: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to wave guns in church if they want. But watch them long enough, and you’ll see the freedom thing is just a mask. When push comes to shove, these self-declared defenders of liberty crawl into bed with authoritarian leaders faster than you can say amen. They’ll trade your freedom for their influence every single time.
White evangelicals have traded the Jesus of the Gospels for a rugged, authoritarian figure who promises dominance rather than discipleship — Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation (2020)
Selling Jesus for Political Muscle
The alliance works like this: authoritarian leaders need moral cover, and evangelicals need political muscle. So they cut a deal. The strongman points to the church and says, “See, I’m holy.” The church points to the strongman and says, “See, God is on our side.” Both sides win—except the people who actually have to live under the rules.
This isn’t some accident. It’s a long, deliberate marriage of convenience. Look around:
In the U.S., white evangelicals back Trump no matter how many porn stars he pays off.
In Brazil, they adored Bolsonaro, a guy who openly longed for a military dictatorship.
In Russia, Orthodox leaders bless Putin like he’s a saint, while he bombs children.
In Africa, preachers cozy up to presidents who jail opponents but fund churches.
The pattern is clear: authoritarian leaders want obedience. Evangelicals preach obedience. Match made in hell.
Jesus the Rebel, Christians the Bootlickers
Jesus got executed by an empire for stirring up trouble. He told the rich to sell their junk, told the powerful they were frauds, and told people not to bow to Caesar. That’s rebellion. That’s fire.
But modern evangelicals bow faster than anyone. They don’t rebel against injustice—they sanctify it. They twist Jesus into a mascot for submission, even when that submission feeds corruption. They turned the rebel carpenter into a cosmic cop.
When you read the Gospels, Jesus doesn’t look like the kind of man who’d hold rallies for politicians. He chased bankers out of temples, not journalists out of press conferences. He didn’t flatter emperors—he embarrassed them. Yet today’s evangelicals act like every dictator with a cross around his neck is heaven’s choice. They replaced Jesus’ fire with fear and his courage with cowardice.
Fear Is the Glue
Fear keeps this unholy marriage alive. Authoritarian leaders need people terrified of enemies—foreigners, feminists, atheists, immigrants, “globalists.” Evangelicals thrive on fear too—hellfire, demons, gay people, Harry Potter, whatever they can find.
When a leader says, “Vote for me or the nation dies,” preachers add, “Vote for him or your soul dies too.” It’s perfect symmetry. Fear becomes both a political and spiritual weapon.
Fear makes people surrender freedom for safety. And that’s the drug both sides sell. Dictators promise safety from chaos; preachers promise safety from hell. It’s the same con in different packaging. They scare people into obedience, then call it faith.
Sex, Guns, and Hypocrisy
Authoritarian alliances come with perks. The strongmen crack down on abortion, ban gay marriage, censor sex ed, and stuff “family values” into classrooms. Evangelicals cheer, even though their own leaders can’t seem to keep their pants zipped.
Every year, another preacher is caught in a scandal—affairs, young boys, secret “therapy sessions.” But hypocrisy isn’t a bug; it’s a feature. They preach morality as a weapon, not as a standard. As long as they get political power, no amount of scandal matters.
The strongman waves a Bible, pretends he’s God’s chosen one, and keeps churches rich with tax breaks. The pastors tell their flocks to vote for him again, no matter how crooked he is. Together they sell a religion of control dressed up as holiness.
Donald Trump didn’t change white evangelicalism; he revealed what it had become — a political movement dressed up as religion — Sarah Posner, Unholy: Why White Evangelicals Worship at the Altar of Donald Trump (2020)
America’s Holy Mess
Nowhere is this marriage more obvious than in America. White evangelicals treat Trump like a biblical hero. They call him King Cyrus—a pagan used by God to protect the faithful. They ignore that Cyrus never hosted a reality show or bragged about assaulting women.
Trump could burn a church, and they’d still call him chosen. Why? Because he gives them what they crave: judges, abortion bans, and political dominance. They see democracy as a threat, because democracy means sharing power with people they hate—Muslims, atheists, feminists, LGBTQ citizens. So they cling to any figure who promises to keep “their” America on top.
That’s why they push Christian nationalism, fight voting rights, and ban books. They don’t want freedom; they want dominance. They mistake ruling others for saving souls.
The “freedom of religion” they scream about? It’s really the freedom to rule others by their religion.
The Global Prayer for Power
This rot isn’t uniquely American. Around the world, religion keeps crawling into the dictator’s lap.
In Russia, the Orthodox Church kisses Putin’s ring and blesses his wars as “holy.” In Uganda, preachers support brutal anti-gay laws while their Western evangelical allies nod in approval. In the Philippines, churches helped justify Duterte’s death squads. In Brazil, pastors filled stadiums for Bolsonaro, a man who said he’d rather have a dead son than a gay one.
Everywhere the formula repeats: religion gives moral cover, dictatorship gives political power. Together, they strangle democracy.
Religious institutions have long provided legitimacy for authoritarian regimes under the pretense of moral order— Jeffrey Haynes, Christianity and Authoritarianism: Political Alliances from Franco to Trump (2023)
History Repeats Itself Because People Forget
We’ve seen this before. The Church blessed Franco in Spain, Mussolini in Italy, and Hitler in Germany. Bishops prayed for Nazi victory while trains rolled toward death camps. They called it “defending order.”
They always use the same excuse: “We’re preserving morality.” But what they’re preserving is their seat at the table. Every time, the result is disaster. When faith becomes a political tool, it stops being faith—it becomes propaganda.
Evangelicals today are walking that same path, pretending they can control the monster they’ve fed. History says otherwise. Once the strongman has used them, he doesn’t need them. Franco turned on the priests. So did Hitler. So did every tyrant blessed by the pulpit.
But they never learn. They think this time God’s really on their side.
Why They’ll Never Stop
Evangelical leaders won’t abandon this alliance because it feeds their hunger—for money, attention, and self-importance. They get to pretend they’re martyrs while sitting next to power. They call it “influence” but it’s addiction.
They’ve turned politics into worship and worship into theater. They talk about “saving souls” but spend more time campaigning than praying. Their sermons sound like press conferences, their churches like campaign rallies.
They won’t stop because the system rewards them. Dictators love obedient pastors. Congregations love simple enemies. Everyone gets their dopamine fix. Meanwhile, freedom dies quietly in the background.
The People in the Pews
The real scandal isn’t just the pastors or politicians—it’s the believers who nod along. Millions of ordinary Christians sit in pews and cheer when their preacher says the dictator is chosen by God. They confuse patriotism with holiness and hate with faith.
They chant “Jesus is King” while voting for men who act like kings. They post Bible verses about love, then clap for cruelty. They believe obedience is virtue because it feels safe.
The truth is, democracy needs courage. It needs people who question power, not worship it. But courage is scary. So they trade it for comfort and call that faith.
What Real Faith Would Look Like
Real Christianity would look a lot different. It would stand with the oppressed, not the powerful. It would call out lies, not repeat them. It would remind people that Jesus was executed by the state—not crowned by it.
Faith should question authority, not lick its boots. But that version of Christianity doesn’t fill megachurches or win elections. The fake version does. The one that blesses billionaires, blames minorities, and builds walls.
The gospel they preach isn’t good news—it’s propaganda for power.
Last Thoughts
Every time evangelicals back a dictator, they crucify democracy in Jesus’ name. They say it’s about morals, but it’s really about control. They claim to defend freedom while dismantling it piece by piece.
The tragedy isn’t just that preachers lie. It’s that millions believe them. They don’t see that the Jesus they claim to love would be standing on the other side of the riot police.
So next time you see a preacher blessing a politician, remember: this is how freedom dies—one prayer at a time.
Sources and Further Reading
Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation (2020)
Robert P. Jones, White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity (2020)
Katherine Stewart, The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism (2019)
Sarah Posner, Unholy: Why White Evangelicals Worship at the Altar of Donald Trump (2020)
Anthea Butler, White Evangelical Racism: The Politics of Morality in America (2021)
Jeffrey Haynes, Christianity and Authoritarianism: Political Alliances from Franco to Trump (2023)Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, The Politics of Secularism in International Relations (2008)
Why White Evangelicals Worship At The Altar Of Trump
https://www.npr.org/2020/07/08/888944480/why-white-evangelicals-worship-at-the-altar-of-trumpTracing the Rise of Christian Nationalism, From Trump to the Ala. Supreme Court
https://www.npr.org/2024/02/29/1234843874/tracing-the-rise-of-christian-nationalism-from-trump-to-the-ala-supreme-courtReligion and Authoritarianism – Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics
https://oxfordre.com/politics/