Brookings resident Carl Kline is an ordained clergyman, part-time teacher and occasional blogger.

I’m trying hard to understand what is called “Christian Nationalism.”

I always thought the United States was founded to be a religiously inclusive country, without any state religion, and proud of it. And those Christians I know, even the conservative ones, are disturbed by a Muslim nation like Iran, where many are not free to follow their own lights without dire consequences. Those same Christians would also likely have a problem with a Jewish state, continuing to commit genocide to clear their land of unwanted Palestinians. Or aren’t we equally disturbed about a secular state, where any religious faith needs to be hidden and practiced underground? Shouldn’t all people everywhere be free to follow their own spiritual path, or none, without government interference?

The initial problem I have with Christian Nationalism is the phrase itself. It’s a misnomer. God or Jesus Christ did not found the United States! There’s no such thing as a nationalism that is Christian. It’s impossible. Christianity is a religion of welcoming the stranger and loving the neighbor. Like Jesus, it doesn’t exclude the leper, the Samaritan, the criminal hanging on the cross or the crucifier. All are accepted, and if necessary, forgiven. I don’t think there’s any evidence Jesus was intent on founding an empire like the Romans or a nation like the Canaanites, but rather a Kingdom that was inclusive of all.

My sister doesn’t usually send me a text on my phone. She did the other day, which suggested something of import. So it surprised me when she wrote, “I’m reading Tim Alberta’s book, ‘The Kingdom, The Power and the Glory.’ Have you read it?” I hadn’t, and when I told her, she responded that I should, as it was “terrifying.” The subtitle is, American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism.

At the same time as my sisters text, a friend had left me several copies of “The Atlantic” magazine. I happened to pick up the January/February issue titled, “If Trump Wins.” It is full of articles reminding us of the former president’s words, deeds and intentions. It concludes with an essay by Tim Alberta titled, “The Church of America: My Father, My Faith and Donald Trump.” It is an essay that should be read by all Americans to better understand why so many evangelical Christians support such a mentally, morally and spiritually unfit person for the Oval Office.

Alberta comes out of a fundamentalist, evangelical background. He’s not prepared to throw every evangelical Christian under the bus. He believes there are two camps. One group looks at the world through the eyes of their faith, “faithful to an eternal covenant.” The other group he believes is, “bowing to earthly idols of nation and influence and fame.” As close to the source as he is, especially identified with his fathers’ ministry, one has to appreciate his understanding of the divide.

For me, the essay began to help me understand the conservative evangelical Christian position better. I decided I had better read the whole book, so I asked about it at the library, only to discover there were five people ahead of me. Apparently the word has gotten out that it’s an important read. I may have to go to Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

I’m not going to dispute the separation Alberta makes into two camps of evangelical Christians. He’s much closer to the reality than I. But I do want to ask a deeper question, as to why so many would-be Christian Nationalists in the evangelical camp, are looking for an authoritarian leader like Donald Trump.

For me, the crux of the issue is fear — fear of change; fear of independent women; fear of people of color; fear of other religions; fear of different sexual orientations; fear of immigrants; fear of loss of power and privilege; fear of uncertainty.

One would think that assurance of a heavenly realm with streets of gold and pearly gates would be shaken by pictures of the Milky Way galaxy, and black holes far off in the cosmos. One would think assurance of male dominance would be shaken by the first chapter of Genesis, where God creates men and women together, as equals. One would think that assurance of white sovereignty would be shaken for Christians, realizing that Jesus Christ was a person of color. One would think that assurance of Christian superiority would be shaken by the recognition we are cousins with Judaism and Islam through father Abraham.

And maybe that’s part of the problem with so much of conservative Christendom today. People don’t think. Faith is not rational. The mind and spirit are separate entities and fear can rule them both. May we remind them, “there is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, for fear has to do with punishment.”