Crossroads Podcast: When Do ‘Religious Communities’ Become Controversial?

Is it controversial for American cultural conservatives to build themselves a small community in the hills outside of Nashville? Yes it is, among critics to the left (sort of) of them.

Is it controversial for Muslims to build themselves a large community near Dallas? Yes it is, among critics to the right (sort of) of them.

The bottom line: Religious communities can be controversial — especially among people who disagree with, or even fear, their beliefs. But the issue news consumers need journalists to cover is what kind of “religious community” is at the heart of controversies that makes headlines. This subject was the hook for this week’s “Crossroads” podcast.

Consider, for example, the new RidgeRunner community near Whitleyville in Jackson County, Tennessee, northeast of Nashville. Here is the expansive double-decker headline atop a complex Religion News Service feature: 

In Appalachia, a developer hopes to offer refuge to conservative Christians fleeing blue states

The venture, which has involved several prominent conservative voices, has drawn the concern of locals who don't want to see Christian nationalism take over their community.

Why is this such a complex story? 

Primarily because of two individuals who are involved in the project. One of them talked to Bob Smietana of RNS, while the other did not. Here is some background info on the developer of this project.

A graduate of Catholic University and Harvard Law School, Abbotoy lived for a few years in Boston before practicing corporate law in Houston and Dallas. … He’s now managing director of New Founding, which invests in “American ideals and a positive national vision” — of which RidgeRunner is a project — and the executive director of American Reformer, a digital publication that seeks to “promote a vigorous Christian approach to the cultural challenges of our day.”

As Forbes recently put it, New Founding is part of a growing movement of “anti-woke” venture capitalists hoping “to remake society with a largely MAGA, tech-driven, Christian worldview.”

Note that Abbotoy has an interesting educational background, to say the least. When talking to RNS, he stressed: 

Standing on one of the farm’s ridgetops, Abbotoy said he’s not a Christian nationalist, adding, “that’s not my project.” He also said he is not going to let anyone tell him who his friends or his customers ought to be.

“I’ve got customers that are more right-wing than me. I’m not going to talk bad about them,” he said. “I like them. They’re my friends. And I don’t screen their religious or political views any more than I would anybody else.”

Federal fair housing law prohibits that anyway, Abbotoy noted, but the presence of a church on the property will be a signal as to the kind of close-knit community he hopes to build here. Folks are also drawn to Jackson County, he said, because of its Bible Belt culture.

What kind of “religious community” will this be? 

During the podcast, host Todd Wilken and I discussed three different kinds of “religious communities” that tend to show up in headlines. 

— Formal religious orders that build monasteries, convents and retreat centers. In most cases these are closed communities that follow highly detailed religious traditions and laws.

For an example, consider this expansive headline from The Assembly website: “Voices in the Wilderness — A religious order following a lifestyle St. Francis of Assisi established in 1223 is building a new home in the woods of Western North Carolina. Not everyone is happy to see them.”

Who isn’t happy about this growing circle of friars? That would be national and global Catholic leaders who oppose the traditional Latin Mass. What about the reactions of folks in towns nearby? I thought it was interesting that the brothers recently did a chant concert — in a nearby Baptist church.

— Religious believers who move into existing towns or neighborhoods, building networks of support around religious sanctuaries, schools or both.

For example, clusters of Orthodox Jews live close to one another for a simple reason — traditions that shape their use of technology on the Sabbath. In other words, they walk to a nearby synagogue. Frequently, this real-estate reality (location, location, location) leads to the creation of schools, stores, markets, restaurants and other support institutions. 

The key is that they don’t start these communities from scratch, legally speaking. Other people already live there. Do these intense clusters of believers affect the lives of citizens outside their tradition? Yes, to some degree. By the way, Rod Dreher’s much-discussed bestseller, “The Benedict Option,” included some Christian communities that use a similar approach. 

— Leaders who purchase land and, from the ground up, create new communities — such as the RidgeRunner community in central Tennessee. Is this a “religious” community, per se? This RNS passage points to the central controversy in this case.

The proposed church — or at least its pastor, Andrew Isker — has been a source of controversy among locals. Isker, a podcaster and author, relocated from Minnesota to Tennessee to start Whitleyville Reformation Church, which currently is meeting on an invite-only basis during its start-up phase. The congregation plans to build on the RidgeRunner property.

Isker, co-author of “Christian Nationalism: A Biblical Guide For Taking Dominion and Discipling Nations,” with Gab founder Andrew Torba, as well as the author of “The Boniface Option: A Strategy For Christian Counteroffensive in a Post-Christian Nation,” is known for promoting the idea that Christians should dominate American culture and for his criticism of Jews and other non-Christians.

In this case, the term “Christian nationalism” is right there in the title of a book linked to a religious leader in this community, along with the loaded term “Dominion.” Also note the use of a “Boniface Option,” as a stark contrast to “Benedict Option.”

Isker declined to be interviewed by RNS. However, this feature could have featured highly relevant quotations linked to online debates about stark differences between the work of Isker and Dreher. That would have helped readers grasp some dividing lines among religious conservatives.

The podcast also discussed another controversial religious community in the news, as illustrated by this KERA (NPR affiliate) headline: “EPIC City — What to know about the North Texas Muslim community Gov. Greg Abbott opposes.”

This is an ambitious project to say the least: 

The 402-acre development would be in unincorporated Collin and Hunt counties roughly 40 miles northeast of Dallas near the city of Josephine, and would include a new mosque, more than 1,000 single and multi-family homes, a K-12 faith-based school, senior housing, an outreach center, commercial developments, sports facilities, and a community college.

Critics immediately asked a question that has shadowed Islamic believers from 9/11 to the Islamic State, with waves of headlines in between: To what degree would life in this giant community be shaped by Sharia law?

Also, would the powerful and rich nations that have done so much to spread the powerful Wahhabi school of Islam play a role, even behind the scenes, in funding this project or, perhaps, its central mosque?

That leads us to material that, in its own way, echoes the reassurances provided by the leader of the much smaller and less ambitions RidgeRunner development in the Tennessee hills.

Erin Ragsdale, a representative for Community Capital Partners, said … anyone is welcome in EPIC City and that it’s not exclusive to the Muslim community — a message the group has been emphasizing for months.

“Anybody who wants to buy a piece of land in this proposed masterplan community can buy one,” Ragsdale said. “To build a house, to open a business, to build a school, to build a church, it is open to everyone, and their vision is to build an inclusive community for everyone.”

Ragsdale said she believes reactions from the community may have looked different if the plans for the development were centered around a Christian place of worship.

Ragsdale added that the community is "proud to be Texans” — and Americans.

In this tense political age, journalists need to ask questions — in all of these cases — about the religious liberty rights, in the form of freedom of association, of the believers who plan to live and worship in these unique communities.

At the same time, critics have the right to ask hard questions, as well. Is it safe to assume that RidgeRunner supporters are automatically Christian nationalists? Also, is it safe to assume that EPIC City critics are also Christian nationalists? 

Enjoy the podcast and, please, pass it on to others.