Disciples of White Jesus - by Angela Denker (Hardcover)

About the Book

A comprehensive look at the rise in radicalization among young white men in America, especially focused on the role of right-wing Christianity in the increase of religious-based hatred and violence. A must-read for parents, grandparents, educators, faith leaders, and anyone who wants to forge a new masculine identity grounded in love.

Book Synopsis

White boys and men are dangerous.

White boys and men are struggling.

Both of these statements are staggeringly true in America today. By far, most large-scale mass shooters are white men. White men also die by suicide more often than any other demographic. In this sensitive, searing, and unsparing look at American boyhood, journalist, mother, and pastor Angela Denker investigates the sometimes-tragic stories of boyhood across the United States.

Disciples of White Jesus is a comprehensive look at the rise in radicalization among young white men in America, especially focused on the role of right-wing Christianity in the increase of religious-based hatred and violence. Denker goes deep into the online rabbit holes of right-wing Christian influencers and conservative Christian ideology to understand how the preaching of ""traditional gender roles"" and ""submission of women"" has led to anger, outrage, loneliness, depression, and limiting identities for young white Christian men across America.

Casting her journalist's eye across the US, Denker retraces the steps of a racist South Carolina mass shooter and a Phoenix skinhead turned Evangelical pastor, interviews middle school teachers and coaches in the Midwest, and introduces us to young men across the country who will both confirm and confound our ideas about American boyhood--stories about boys and men who are forging new identities grounded in kindness, grace, respect, and even joy. A must-read for parents, grandparents, educators, coaches, faith leaders, researchers, and all who care about the state of American families, boys themselves, and the safety of American society at large.

Review Quotes

"A shifting American culture is pushing white Christian boys toward radicalization, isolation, and violence, according to this persuasive treatise...Denker makes a passionate case for teaching white boys more accurate, far-reaching histories of American racism, and instructing them in how to be more in touch with their emotions. She enlivens her analysis with intriguing research. The result is a sincere and thorough excavation of a pressing social problem." --Publishers Weekly

"This is a book about identity--its loss, its malformation, and the struggle to forge new ones. With the tenderness of a mother and the insight of a scholar, Denker pulls us off the path of easy outrage and leads us to look more closely at the inner lives of white boys and men. For those of us who seek a healthier church, community, and nation, Disciples of White Jesus is timely and essential reading." --Jemar Tisby, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of The Color of Compromise and The Spirit of Justice; professor of history at Simmons College of Kentucky

"As an expert on influencers and the mom of a boy, I know how desperately we all need this book. Angela Denker lays out clearly the insidious dangers facing white boys and young men in America, but she didn't leave me in despair. Instead, Disciples of White Jesus gave me hope of a better future for us all, for white boys and men, and for those of us who love them." --Jo Piazza, bestselling author and host of the Under the Influence podcast

"Readers should not be fooled by Denker's storytelling ease and graceful prose into thinking this is simply another anodyne book about child-rearing. Her arguments about the sources and the persistence of racism, misogyny, and what she calls 'brutish masculinity' are powerful and, sadly, all too relevant. More important, she offers a way out--the examples of godly men who are working to subvert this toxic culture." --Randall Balmer, author of Saving Faith

"In a moment of chaos and ever-present danger, Denker has emerged as a vital and necessary voice. Her explorations into religious extremism and the mounting heresies of authoritarianism are invaluable. With Disciples of White Jesus, we see another volume in that work, but also something new and even more impressive and pressing. For anyone wanting to understand what we are facing, and what we must ultimately face, I cannot recommend Denker or this masterpiece any more highly." --Jared Yates Sexton, author of The Man They Wanted Me to Be and American Rule

"This frank, bold book unflinchingly examines ways white boys and men are becoming radicalized within some forms of American Christian faith. Denker shows how Christian nationalist theology warps sons into celebrating dominance and grows them into men who revel in violence that lashes out widely--and often destroys the boys themselves in the process. This tale is told in the compassionate voice of a mother and pastor, who wraps it all in the piercing reporting of a veteran journalist." --Sarah Stankorb, author of Disobedient Women