Episode · Interesting Times · 2025-10-09
Books mentioned on Christian Nationalism vs Clown World | Interesting Times with Ross Douthat
Doug Wilson, Evangelical pastor and self-proclaimed Christian nationalist, has been preaching for decades that America needs to reclaim its Puritan past. But in 2025, he believes he’s “significantly” more influential.
Doug Wilson discussed The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. Ross Douthat discussed Battle for the American Mind by Pete Hegseth and others and God Owes Us Nothing by Leszek Kolakowski.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Handmaid's Tale
The Handmaid's Tale is Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel about a totalitarian society where women's rights are stripped away and a select few are forced into reproductive servitude.
Discussed“That was not a totalitarian hellhole. That was not the Handmaid's Tale. It was a free and prosperous country that I was grateful to God to be growing up in.”
Where to get it
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Battle for the American Mind
Battle for the American Mind by Pete Hegseth and David Goodwin is a prominent book examining education and cultural shifts.
Discussed“They wound up writing the battle for the American mind together. And so Hegseth knew about me from all the stuff I’d done on education.”
Where to get it
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God Owes Us Nothing
Discussed“Have you ever read God owes us nothing by Leszek kolakowski? No it’s a book. He’s a Polish philosopher, but it’s a book about essentially the Calvinist form of Catholicism.”
Where to get it
