Ezra's Bookshelf

The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory

by Tim Alberta

Tim Alberta's 'The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory' examines how American evangelicalism became entangled with right-wing nationalism in ways that betray its stated principles. Alberta, a staff writer at The Atlantic and a practicing Christian raised in an evangelical home, brings both insider knowledge and journalistic rigor to his subject. The book traces how a movement that once emphasized spiritual transformation and global mission has become defined by political grievance and cultural warfare. Alberta interviews pastors, activists, and congregants across the country, documenting how political identity has consumed religious identity for many evangelicals. He examines specific controversies, from responses to COVID restrictions to January 6th, that revealed the depth of political capture. Alberta is particularly insightful on the theology that enables this fusion, showing how certain readings of scripture and eschatology make nationalist politics feel not just compatible with but required by faith. The book is neither an outsider's attack nor a defensive apology but a concerned insider's examination of his own tradition's corruption. Readers seeking to understand one of America's most politically consequential religious movements will find an essential and troubling portrait.