Journalist Tim Alberta grew up in a conservative, republican, evangelical church, where his father was the pastor. He wanted to know why so many evangelical Christians had become extremists, and ardent supporters of Trump. Over the past 4 years, he traveled to churches around the country, reporting on pastors and congregants who backed Trump, and those who felt forced out of their church because they couldn't support him. His new book is The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
On the Ted radio hour, linguist Ann Curzan says she gets a lot of complaints about people using the pronoun they to refer to one person.
I sometimes get into arguments with people.
Where they will say to me, but.
It can't be singular.
And I will say, but it is.
The history behind words causing a lot of debate.
That's on the Ted radio hour from NPR.
This is FRESH AIR.
I'm Terry Gross.
How did evangelicals become Donald Trump's most unflinching advocates?
That question plagued Tim Alberta as a journalist and as a self described son of a white conservative republican pastor in a white, conservative republican church in a white, conservative republican town.
Alberta describes evangelicalism as the most polarizing and the least understood tradition that is also more politically relevant and domestically disruptive than all the others combined.
To answer his own question about why many evangelicals support Trump, Alberta reported from evangelical churches around the country, ranging from megachurches to half filled small churches and the church he grew up in in a suburb of Detroit.
He also reported from christian colleges and religious advocacy organizations.
He writes about how Trump has polarized the church in his new book, the Kingdom, the Power and the American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism.
Alberta is a staff writer for the Atlantic and former chief political correspondent for Politico.
His previous book is the bestseller American on the front lines of the Republican Civil War and the rise of President Trump.
Tim Alberta, welcome to Fresh Air.
I'd like you to describe the split you're seeing now among evangelicals.
Sure.