By Beth David, Editor
What is White Christian Nationalism? The political ideology has made its way into our local election this cycle, with people here making the same mistake as nationally: confusing this political ideology with Christianity.
White Christian Nationalism (WCN) is not the practice of Christianity, it is a political belief that America should be for White Christian males and everyone else is a second class citizen. It does not believe in the separation of church and state, and seeks to undermine any institution, law or regulation that supports a secular nation.
The website of Americans United for Separation of Church and State explains about WCN: “While they’re sometimes openly aligned with racist movements, their ultimate goal is seen as a branch of white supremacy because it would result in a society governed by conservative white Christian men who would make decisions for everyone else.”
Unfortunately, when people see the word “Christianity,” they often react as though their faith is being attacked, and not a political ideology that is rooted in racism and sexism.
The Neighb News received a couple of off-the-record missives about Select Board candidate, Natalie Mello, who co-led an information session about WCN at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Fairhaven (the Unitarian Memorial Church on Green Street) with the Rev. Maria Uitti McCabe.
Ms. Mello said the session was designed to inform and educate people on what WCN is.
She said she believed the session achieved its goal for the approximately 50 people who attended.
Ms. Mello, who identifies as a white Christian, also said part of the problem is that some people do not understand what the UU church is all about, either.
The UU philosophy believes in teaching about all religions and emphasizes the shared values of various religions. A commitment to social justice is central to Unitarian Universalism.
Ms. Mello was criticized on social media for taking part in the session, including from her Select Board opponent, Rick Trapilo.
Mr. Trapilo sent a statement to the Neighb News, saying that he had seen various explanations by Ms. Mello and rebranding of the meeting.
“I find the messaging confusing and will simply let my fellow Fairhaven residents judge for themselves whether such divisive language further fractures our community,” wrote Mr. Trapilo.
“My candidacy is solely based on my sincere commitment to bringing financial stability to our town and ending the divisions — both within our community and our town’s leadership — that have cost us untold thousands of dollars in legal fees. Enough is enough. We must work together for the future of our town. United we stand; divided we fail,” he wrote.
In a phone interview, the Neighb News asked Mr. Trapilo if he was defending White Christian Nationalism.
“No,” he said emphatically. “Who in their right mind defends something like that?”
He said his complaint was with Ms. Mello’s “backpedaling” and “flip-flopping.”
Ms. Mello said that before she retired, part of her job was to run workshops on anti-racism, and that is why Rev. McCabe tapped her to help.
“It is about the White Christian Naitonalist movement in the United States,” said Ms. Mello. “Not about white Christians or patriotic Christians.”
The original flyer had a picture of a flag that said, “Jesus is my savior, Trump is my president.”
Ms. Mello said that offended some people, so they changed the poster, because it was not about espousing an anti-Trump message, she said.
“We are talking about a very specific political movement that has gained some traction recently,” she said.
Rev. McCabe said the church often holds classes, community conversations, and workshops on anti-racism and other issues facing society. They have nothing do with partisan politics. And White Christian Nationalism is one of those issues.
“These are issues that are part of our lives as spiritual beings,” said Rev. McCabe, adding that she is extremely mindful of the fact that they can become political when people want them to be.
She said she wanted to make it very clear that part of her role as a minister is not to be partisan. The separation of church and state, she said, is “worth having a conversation about.”
“Unfortunately, we live in a climate where issues of faith have become politicized,” she said. “That’s never, never my intent. My intent is to talk about what’s going on in the world.”
When someone pointed out that the original poster was offensive to some for political reasons, they changed the poster, “the moment I heard it caused distress.”
And she invited the person to attend the session.
She noted that she went to a Christian Seminary and many in the Unitarian Universalist congregation in Fairhaven identify as Christian.
Rev. McCabe has been a guest on local radio talking about dismantling racism, which is important for people of faith.
She said the classes and conversations are theological for understanding different kinds of beliefs and how they work in our lives.
“This is all part of what we do here,” she said.
Ms. Mello said she had the option of not helping to conduct the session, or they could have postponed it until after the election. But that was never really an option for her.
“I did the session because it was about me living my faith,” said Ms. Mello.
In the end, the session was successful, according to both Ms. Mello and Rev. McCabe. One person who filled out the evaluation said they would not judge people because of those terms. They learned it was not about attacking white Christians.
“I’m glad I did it,” said Ms. Mello.
To learn more about White Christian Nationalism, visit Americans United for Separation of Church and State at https://www.au.org or watch “God and Country,” available on Prime for streaming (90 minutes).
To learn more about Unitarian Universalism, visit https://www.uua.org. To learn more about the Unitarian Universalist Society of Fairhaven, visit https://www.uufairhaven.org
The WCN session, which was held on March 9, was recorded and will be available on the church’s website soon.
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