By Michael J. Hicks
special to The Indiana Citizen
January 13, 2025
The most difficult issues for an economic columnist to write about are those where personal opinions are formed by moral considerations, not empirics. For example, no matter one’s perspective, abortion has a moral component that typically transcends economic considerations. So, I rarely write on the subject because I won’t change anyone’s mind, or offer a perspective that can alter their opinion.
The rise of Christian nationalism is profoundly different. Adherence to Christian nationalism is not a moral position. It is about raw political power and flawed theology that risks shaking the very foundation of our Republic. Christian nationalism has three problems: it is un-American, anti-Christian and will weaken our economy.
It is clear that our Founding Fathers viewed religious pluralism as necessary for the survival of our Republic. George Washington made his position on the matter clear in his famous letter to a Jewish Congregation in Rhode Island. The commander of a victorious Revolutionary Army filled with Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Muslims and non-believers could hardly have sought to deny them rights in the nation they built.
Thomas Jefferson began writing religious protections into law before the first amendment was crafted. He wrote that “neither Pagan nor Mahometan (Muslim) nor Jew ought to be excluded from the civil rights of the commonwealth because of his religion.” And proclaimed in legislation he wrote that “civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions.”
Our Bill of Rights makes clear that there is not, nor can ever be, a state religion or religious test for public office. Yet, a growing cadre of Christian nationalists scoff at our Constitution. Micah Beckwith, who today as the incoming lieutenant governor takes an oath before God to defend our Constitution, has already said he intends to staff his advisory team with those who share his “Christian” principles.
Make no mistake, his language is clearly aimed at his followers who wish to see a more Christian nation, regardless of the limits our Constitution places on such an endeavor. This is more than run of the mill un-American behavior, it is consciously anti-American.
According to Andrew Whitehead’s book “American Idolatry,” Christian nationalism risks weakening the Christian church and betrays the lessons of the Gospels. This book, by an openly Christian sociology professor at Indiana University, should be read aloud in every congregation in our state.
I am a far less learned scholar of scripture than Professor Whitehead, but I hold a harsher view – Christian nationalism focuses on harnessing the power of government to advance Christianity in America. Implicit in this is a theologically bizarre conclusion that God requires the power of state and local government to establish His dominion on earth. I know of no Christian theology that claims the living God needs to lean upon say, the state office of tourism development, or rural affairs to extend his dominion on earth. At its core, Christian nationalism relies upon a theology of a weak and powerless God. That is anti-Christian.
The horrid Christian nationalism ideology also risks weakening our economy and institutions, in three key ways.
First, Christian nationalists hate the government, and think badly about those who serve it – particularly those who share a different faith. While it is common to criticize government during an election, the nature of those criticisms has deep implications after an election. It is entirely realistic for many in state government to wonder whether their religious beliefs will prove a career limitation with a Christian nationalist leading their organization. And to be clear, Christian nationalists are openly hostile to Catholics, suspicious of Methodists, Lutherans and Episcopalians. This is not just a problem for Hindus, Muslims or atheists.
There’s no need to believe me on these matters. Gov. Mike Braun’s government reorganization plan – which will sail through a sympathetic legislature – strips most power away from Micah Beckwith for this very reason.
The second problem with Christian nationalism is that it risks stunting job growth. To be clear, over the past few decades, there is only limited evidence that state level policies on “culture war” issues play a major role in job growth. After all, there are two sides to every culture war. But, there is growing evidence that big “culture war” fights do harm business growth and job creation. This makes sense, because businesses value predictability and stability.
There are two great examples of this phenomenon. Following the ill-fated Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) battle of 2015, Indiana managed to continue sluggish job growth and business growth. But between 2015 and the COVID recession, Indiana raised its business incentives by 75 percent, growing three times faster than the rest of the nation. That period marked the biggest handout of state tax dollars in history, but was accompanied by growth far slower than the nation as a whole. RFRA was an expensive error.
Florida’s legal attacks on Disney and other “woke” companies may have been entertaining, but the state’s economy paid the price. Following this large scale, business focused culture war campaign, Florida’s new business starts dropped dramatically. Monthly growth rates have now declined into the negative range for the longest period in recent decades. Employment growth has been in decline for more than two years as well.
The third problem is Indiana’s romance with Christian nationalism is sure to be costly in terms of disrupting state government and damaging efforts to grow employment. But the real problem is the effect on brain drain.
Indiana is in the midst of what is possibly the most economically damaging period of outmigration in state history. This is because net migration from Indiana is concentrated among the best educated young people. A 2017 study by U.S. Senate Republicans reported Indiana’s ‘brain drain’ was among the worst seven states nationwide – worse than West Virginia. Since then, the environment has worsened substantially. College enrollment in Indiana is in rapid, historically unequalled decline with more Hoosiers heading to out-of-state colleges than ever before.
The last thing a healthy and prosperous Indiana needs is anything that would repel young people wishing to make a life in our state. A Christian nationalist agenda that is hostile to Muslims, Hindus, Catholics, Episcopalians, Methodists and Lutherans is a recipe for a more sluggish and moribund economy.
And just to be clear, a more sluggish economy is a feature, not a bug of the Christian nationalist movement. They seek an ideologically pure, small-sect Christian state, where students are consigned religious schools from pre-Kindergarten through college. They want a poorer, less educated population, that is easier to control. They want a public workforce that sits quietly in the pews of one or two different denominations.
This is economically damaging to Indiana, deeply anti-Christian and un-American. It must be rejected by Hoosiers.
Michael J. Hicks is the George and Frances Ball distinguished professor of economics and the director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at Ball State University. His research interest is in state and local public finance and the effect of public policy on the location, composition, and size of economic activity.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Indiana Citizen or any other affiliated organization.