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Ideology

The Genealogy of Theocratic Capture: From Rushdoony to Project 2025

Historical precedent
Case Dossier IDE-DOM-001
STATUS
Historical precedent
SEVERITY
High
DATE
2024-10-26
DOMAIN
Ideology
CAPTURE VECTOR
Theological dominionism
TAGS
dominionism christian-nationalism seven-mountain-mandate nar rushdoony heritage-foundation project-2025
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Tracing the 50-year evolution of the Christian Right from the fringes of 'Reconstructionism' to the center of power. This file documents how the 1986 'Manifesto of the Christian Church' and the 'Seven Mountain Mandate' provided the theological and tactical blueprint for Project 2025.

Summary

The modern authoritarian assault on American democracy is not merely political; it is the culmination of a decades-long theological project. ProPublica’s analysis reveals a direct lineage from the extremist “Christian Reconstructionism” of R.J. Rushdoony in the 1970s—which advocated for a society governed strictly by biblical law—to the “Seven Mountain Mandate” popular today. This file documents the “long game” of infiltrating democratic institutions to establish a theocratic order, a strategy that has moved from the backstage of a 1980 Dallas arena to the drafting rooms of Project 2025.

The Genealogy of Capture

1. The Intellectual Root: Reconstructionism (1970s)

The movement began with R.J. Rushdoony, whose writings argued that all aspects of society must conform to Old Testament law (including public executions for homosexuality). At a 1980 Reagan campaign briefing, Moral Majority co-founder Robert Billings privately acknowledged Rushdoony’s influence: “If it weren’t for his books, none of us would be here.”

2. The Tactical Blueprint: The 1986 Manifesto

In July 1986, the Coalition on Revival issued the “Manifesto of the Christian Church” at the Lincoln Memorial. It explicitly called for Christians to “rebuild civilization on the principles of the Bible” and infiltrate all systems of power. This document operationalized “Dominionism”—the belief that Christians are mandated by God to rule over society—foreshadowing current attacks on public education and reproductive rights.

3. The Modern Vehicle: The Seven Mountain Mandate

In the 2010s, the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) popularized the “Seven Mountain Mandate,” a strategy to conquer seven spheres of influence: family, religion, government, arts, business, education, and media. Influencer Lance Wallnau validated Donald Trump as a “Cyrus” figure—a flawed vessel chosen by God to restore Christian power—justifying unconditional support for the leader regardless of his personal conduct.

Analysis

The convergence of these movements with the Heritage Foundation (founded by Paul Weyrich, a key architect of the Christian Right) resulted in Project 2025. The current assault on the “administrative state” is indistinguishable from the Reconstructionist goal of dismantling secular governance.

  • The Through-Line: The “Appeal to Heaven” flag flown by NAR leaders on January 6, 2021, and by Speaker Mike Johnson today symbolizes the mainstreaming of this insurrectionist theology.
  • Operationalizing Theology: Groups like Ziklag now function as the financial engine, funding efforts to “take down the education system” and mobilize voters to act as “spies in the camp” of democracy.
  • The Bondi Memo (2025): Executes the anti-pluralist goals of the manifesto through administrative law.
  • The Voucher Shell Game (2025): Operationalizes the goal of funding religious education with public money, a core tenet of Rushdoony’s anti-public school philosophy.