Star-Spangled Jesus: Leaving Christian Nationalism and Finding A True Faith

by April Ajoy

A hilarious and eye-opening account of leaving Christian Nationalism behind to follow Jesus better.   April Ajoy wouldn’t have called herself a Christian Nationalist when she performed her original song “America Say Jesus” on the Jim Bakker show, or when she participated in Jesus Marches across America, or when she posted cringe-worthy videos on YouTube to campaign for Mitt Romney. April just considered herself a good faithful, Republican, and determined to make America a Christian nation once again.   But as her view of the world widened, Ajoy began to see cracks in her steadfast beliefs and recognized the ways her conservative politics and religion were intertwined in her mind. Did God really bless America? Is it actually by His red, white, and blue stripes that we are healed?   Ajoy, TikTok influencer and co-host of the Evangelicalish podcast, shares funny stories from her time deep within Christian nationalism, exploring how aspects of evangelical culture such as purity pledges, product boycotts, Satanic panic, and end-times theology have all been exploited to advance the Christian Nationalist narrative. She also illuminates the ways nationalist thinking has infiltrated our churches and political arenas, shaping not only modern evangelical culture but also American public policy and international relations. Part memoir, part guidebook, part call to action, Star-Spangled Jesus explores how the fight to make America a “Christian nation” has damaged us all and shows how one woman left Christian Nationalism and why America should too. 

Genres: Nonfiction, Religion, Memoir, Audiobook, Politics, Christian, Christianity

272 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2024

Reviews

[Cassandra Hamm · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most important books I’ve read. Some of the aims of Christian Nationalism that April warned about are currently happening (which were not yet happening when she wrote the book). And honestly, it was really encouraging to me because it showed me that that horrible things being promoted right now are not because of Christianity. They are because of Christian Nationalism, which may have infiltrated my faith but is not my faith. Definitely going to be one of my top books of 2025. I will be shouting about it everywhere.

[Hallelujah Brews Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recommend "Star-Spangled Jesus" to anyone interested in Christian nationalism. This book is a helpful introduction to the Christian nationalist movement in America, especially those with an evangelical background. I recommend this book to anyone who thinks the threats of Christian nationalism are being sensationalized. "Star-Spangled Jesus" is a mix of a memoir and a breakdown of April's experience with Christian nationalism, and a challenge to the reader to oppose Christian nationalism and its harmful rhetoric.  

About 2 pages into the book, and I knew I was going to enjoy reading it. April provided a helpful "are you a Christian nationalist" quiz. Hilarious. April has an engaging, honest, impactful writing voice. I can hear her coming through the page. I personally found her humor, jokes, and hyperbole to be an entertaining way to engage in such thoughtfully demanding subject material. Coming from an evangelical background, it was amusing to read this book and realize many of her statements weren't hyperbolic and that she is describing very real concerns from the perspective of a former Christian nationalist. April tells the reader at the start that she copes with humor, and 99% of the time, it lands and makes her point.

It was really troublesome to see so many of the trite Christianese phrases and arguments I grew up with explained in the context of Christian nationalism. April helped me realize just how common the rhetoric of Christian nationalism is in evangelical spaces. I wouldn't describe my upbringing as a Christian nationalist. Yet, so many of the arguments and perspectives April discussed are ones I was taught in Sunday school, in youth groups, at church , etc.  This book was also heart-wrenching to read because I learned how to identify Christian nationalist talking points, and I realize how I've engaged in that same rhetoric in the past.

Throughout it all, April has found hope in the life and words of Jesus. I think this is what inspires me the most. Reminding people of the life and words of Jesus is perhaps the most helpful way to thoughtfully engage with those who are Christian nationalist. Love God, love others. Seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly. 

Thanks Worthty Publishing, for an early digital copy to read and review.

[Julia Slack · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is gonna be a long one, so be prepared.

As a person that grew up in the church and had similar views to April Ajoy (just not to those extremes), this book resonated very deeply. For the past 7ish years of my life, I have struggled with Christianity and how it is represented by the church. I couldn't understand how the religion of "love and peace" supported harassing women outside of a Planned Parenthood or telling LGBTQ+ children that they were going to hell. I wanted to believe, but the two things didn't compute, and a younger me really struggled with coming to terms with that reality.

This book put into words, much more coherently than I ever could, the "cognitive dissonance" between organized religion Christianity and real faith. I can't say that I'm completely changed and ready to jump back into church and religion, but it reminded me that not every Christian is a Bible-twisting, Democrat-demonizing, bigotry-fueling asshole. Below are just some of my favorite quotes, because nobody wants me to include all of them, even me.

"'Why is the church so pro-life, but when a girl gets pregnant, they just shame her and kick her out? Like, she actually kept the baby, and did the thing they wanted her to do.'"

"I still consider myself pro-life. But pro-all life -- the mothers, children even after they're born, immigrants, the man on death row, people killed by gunfire. All life is sacred, not just the unborn."

"Up until this point, my youth pastors, Sunday School leaders, and Christian teachers had told me WHAT to think. But now I had someone teaching me HOW to think for myself."

"It was like a lightbulb went off and I realized my personal beliefs shouldn't be enforced on others who think differently. I could support a person's legal rights, even if they didn't align with my religious beliefs."

"But the patriarchy keeps men in power, which is key to fundamentalist Christian Nationalism . . . A godly nation should be run by godly men. And pesky feminists wanting a voice and rights are getting in the way of men running their households, their churches, and the country."

"It's hard to demonize people once you're close enough to see the divine in them. And if you can't see God in the LGBTQ+ rainbow, you're not looking."

[Andrew Allbritton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book explains the dangers of Christian Nationalism and dives into its union with evangelicalism and the GOP. It’s written from the perspective of someone who spent decades on the front lines of the Religious Right, but slowly and painfully exiting— and soon vocalizing opposition to— the movement.

There are a few books on this subject written from a purely academic lens, but what makes this book unique is that it comes from a place of personal experience and April Ajoy’s reflections from her time in the movement.

There is a surprising amount of humor and sarcasm in the book, which I’m sure Ajoy’s social media followers will appreciate (she is known for her viral comedy videos touching on the MAGA movement and evangelical hypocrisy). At the same time, it is also very moving and heart-felt. I laughed out loud more than once, and teared up a handful of times.

I highly recommend this read for those wanting to learn more about Christian Nationalism’s impact on evangelicalism and society at large, and how this led to Trump and January 6. This book is especially great for those who want a more enjoyable read on the subject. Five stars.

[Claire Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who grew up Southern Baptist, there was so much of this book that was relatable. April’s humorous anecdotes & personal experiences really put in to perspective how Christian Nationalism can be a sneaky thing.

April does a a great job of explaining how Christian Nationalism got to where it is today & what it is trying to accomplish. This book is a powerful testimony of how a person leave an entire belief system behind to find something better.

[Eilonwy · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I heard a discussion with April Ajoy on the Faithful Politics podcast, I knew I had to read her book.

April was brought up completely immersed in White US evangelical Christianity and its ties to the Republican party. Her family traveled the country and the world so her father could preach. She and her brothers were homeschooled. They watched Christian TV and listened to Christian radio. They occupied an almost perfectly sealed bubble. April really didn't hear anyone question that bubble until she went to Christian college and was exposed to students who had grown up in other denominations. And she didn't really start asking her own questions until she had a job, a spouse, and two kids, and had to face some difficult realities.

This book is great. It's a quick, almost light read. April explains Christian Nationalism simply and clearly without getting bogged down in too much detail. Her stories about her childhood are genuinely funny in their wry self-awareness. The experiences and events that brought her to a complete change of heart as to what interpretation of Jesus she wants to follow are bittersweet and poignant.

This book taught me a lot about evangelical Christianity that I never knew before. It showed me why Christian Nationalists so desperately believe that the US must become a "Christian" nation. It's helping me frame my personal opposition to Christian Nationalism (I do not want to live in a theocracy, especially a theocracy led by people who are fine with the horrors being committed by our current so-called "Christian" administration under Project 2025) in terms of empathy rather than condemnation (even if that wing of Christians is determined that "empathy is a sin"). Some of these folks really do fear for their own souls if they can't convert everyone else or at least force us all to live in a way that they believe will please God and gain favor and protection for our country.

Highly recommended.

[Eliana]

This is a really great book. Listening to it definitely enhanced the experience, because April is a great storyteller and it brings a lot of life to her book. She described so many experiences I related to (like having visceral rapture anxiety and not being able to tell anyone, or how christian nationalism has to try and kill your sense of empathy to make you a good soldier) and in a way, that made it weirdly comforting to read even after such an awful election. I enjoyed this a lot and recommend it to anyone, whether you do or don't have experience with christian nationalism, whether you are or aren't an evangelical.

[Brice Karickhoff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was written by a woman who grew up in the throes of Christian Nationalism.

"What is Christian Nationalism?” you might ask! Well defining and confronting this ideology is really the point of the whole book.

If you asked me, “Brice, do you agree with Christian Nationalism”, my answer would be an emphatic “no”. I think that the way we have conflated Christianity, conservatism, and American exceptionalism has muddied our view of all three, drawn unnecessary boundary lines, created false hopes, and permitted sin patterns in the name of Jesus. Political allegiances have always led christians to accept unbiblical ideas and reject biblical ideas. 

Ironically, if you asked the author of this book if I was a Christian Nationalist, she would probably say yes, as she has major problems with any Christian who holds any remotely non-progressive stance.

In fact, one of my biggest objections to this book was the way it lumped together ideas that most Christians would agree are biblically rooted with ideas that are clearly false and sinful all into one big umbrella of “not-progressive-thus-evil Christian Nationalism”. White supremacy, complementarianism, a desire to proselytize, a traditional view of marriage, promoting hate crimes against trans people, pro-life, fascism, national pride, storming the capital, a belief in two genders, a belief in judgement and hell. The author just throws that all together as if it’s all just as hateful and unjustifiable. Needless to say, I disagree. Personally, there are ideas on that list I like and dislike. God forbid we have some nuance. 

On the whole, I think this book is, more than anything, an excellent case study on why discourse is so difficult. Humans have an insatiable desire to ascribe to a system of ideas that answers all their questions and comforts them with the belief that they are GOOD because they believe THESE things not THOSE things that BAD people believe. Then we somehow convince ourselves that despite the fact that our beliefs conveniently meet our desire for answers and moralism, we certainly did arrive at these beliefs because they are true, not because we WANT them to be true.

As far as I can tell, the author moved from one incredibly conservative totalizing worldview to another incredibly progressive totalizing worldview. I struggle to see how she misses the blatant similarities between how she thought when she was a Christian Nationalist and how she thinks now. 

“We are the good guys because we know what’s true. They are the bad guys because they are deceived by lies. We have nothing to learn from them and they need to be more like us.”

That’s exactly what Christian Nationalists are rightly notorious for saying. And it’s also what all of the most progressive people I know and read (including this author) can’t stop saying.

To give a little credit where it’s due, the author does not slide into the abyss of past-loathing that many others do. She has a complicated relationship with her late father. Also, while she is completely unaware of any present sin or incorrect beliefs, she is very vulnerable about past sin and incorrect beliefs, which requires some humility. 

All of that being said, I think my biggest takeaway from this book is just how tragic it is when someone is raised in the church and is taught terrible theology. The Christian beliefs Ajoy ran from are almost unrecognizable to me. It hurts me to hear what she was taught and how it was put into practice around her. 

This book will certainly offend any Christian to the right of Ajoy, from the most orthodox protestant to the most ardent nationalist, but the proper response is not to fire back aggressively. I think the proper response it to take steps so that nobody else could spend the first 20 years of their life in Church and come away believing that the defining features of Christianity are Patriotism and Patriarchy.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

April Ajoy goes through her time as an evangelical and shows how many evangelicals fall into the alt-right, ultra-patriotic side of politics.

I think I was confused about what this book wanted to be. It wasn't exactly a memoir. It wasn't exactly a deep dive into alt-right evangelicalism. It wasn't really a research or investigative piece. I think it needed to fall more into one of those categories for me to enjoy it more. I like April's voice and I've enjoyed other media she has created but I think the book tried to do too many things. Overall, the information was good and the anecdotes were interesting. I just wanted it to be approached differently.

[Alyssa Roat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for American Christians. “Star Spangled Jesus” is the more humorous, personal, easy-reading cousin of “Jesus and John Wayne.” These are my two must-read titles of 2025.

[Cara Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Think: Christian Nationalism for Dummies, with a side of humor and personality. Highly suggest starting with this, then finishing up with Bradley Onishi’s Preparing for War.

[Gena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't remember why I checked out this book, but I started reading it because it was the only one I had in Libby. When I started it, I just kept thinking, "Why am I even reading this book? I don't need to read another book like this." By the time I was halfway through, I was glad I did.

Having moved away from "home" and everyone (except Brandy 😊) and thing I knew at 22, I spent decades going through the process Ajoy experienced over only a few years; there wasn't one moment or issue for me that started a snowball of change in worldview like Ajoy describes. And I went through the process kind of as an outsider, since we were living and moving everywhere, while Ajoy found herself an insider. There's still so much of my story in Ajoy's, namely that as you begin to look at the Bible yourself and actually base your worldview on what it says--not based on what peers, the media, or even leaders or pastors say--the further you may find yourself from the Evangelical "church" and especially Republican policies. Near the end of chapter 14, Ajoy says, "The more I learned, the more nuanced the issue became. Sure, I could have researched it myself at any point prior to this, but I had no reason to doubt my Christian leaders. You don't know what you don't know." Humans are incredibly nuanced, and thus are issues involving them. And the older I get the more it becomes obvious you don't know what you don't know 😄 If your entire world is evangelical and you only rely on what you hear around you and don't sincerely study the Bible with an open heart, you will never know.
(Shout out to the AG professor from chapter 15 who told her questioning people was ok and to study the Bible for herself.)

Ajoy is a journalist by trade, and she does a great job discussing issues from multiple perspectives. She also treats some "sensitive" issues discussed here with respect, even when she disagrees with them. And holy cow is she funny. I laughed out loud often.

What this book does incredibly well is present Evangelical beliefs and then explain how Christian nationalism exploits those beliefs. I agree with almost all the Evangelical beliefs, and the discussion of how the beliefs are exploited, thus differentiating Evangelicalism from Christian nationalism, is why I'm glad I read this book.

In the introduction, Ajoy discusses who might need to read this book and provides a (hilarious) quiz to help you determine if you might be a Christian nationalist. I think many Evangelicals may benefit reading this book. As she explains, "Christian nationalism hides in plain sight as regular old American Christianity. Conservative Christianity and today's Christian nationalism have become pretty hard to separate, but they are not the same thing." Even if you're sure you're not a Christian nationalist, it can be beneficial for you, as it was for me, to be able to clearly see and articulate the differences.

Ajoy shares her own personal beliefs on some topics, but she doesn't on others. There are some things I agree with her personally, some things I disagree with, and some I'm not actually sure if we agree or disagree. Regardless of her personal beliefs, and whether or not I agree with them, she is spot on about the danger (and sadness) of the exploitation of beliefs by Christian nationalists and our need to "put Christ back in Christianity."

[Kallie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very funny, loving, and relatable book about slowly realizing the harm Christian nationalism does and deconstructing that tangled patriotic faith. I've followed April for a while on social media and have only known her post-deconstruction, but my upbringing was very similar to hers as far as beliefs go, so it's affirming to see another person on the same path.

[Hannah Lovik · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I came to think differently and question what I had been taught because the life I experienced and the knowledge I learned pushed me beyond what Christian nationalism taught me... There was no atheist professor brainwashing me, I just lived my life, expanded my knowledge of the world, and came to see that things didn't add up."

What a poignant, timely, and unfortunately exceptionally relatable listen for me! I learned about April through her TikToks and loved her sense of humor and view of the world. I was really excited to read this book and I was not disappointed at all. April is painfully real, hilarious, and rehashed a lot of the same things I have had to reconcile with my faith and the world I was brought up in. Would highly recommend to anyone looking to learn more about conservative Christianity/Christian nationalism, especially via the personal experience of a woman like April. Here's to putting the "Christ" back in Christianity; the greatest of these is love.

[Malia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I actually agree with several of the sentiments in this book. But I can’t stand her awful, sarcastic, judgy tone she uses for the people she used to stand in agreement with.
There are also several things I completely disagree with her about. I’m at 50 percent of this book, and really don’t know if I want to finish it.
She seems like such a bitter person who has admittedly made such a huge about-face in deconstructing her beliefs without an explanation as to why she is NOW so sure of her beliefs being right and enlightened, when she tells over and over that she used to feel just as strongly in the opposite direction.

[Dylan Teut · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you can read this before you vote in the 2024 election, please try to do so.
If you can't get a copy, read it after. Think about what you've read and think about our solemn responsibility to make sure power is transferred peacefully, we uphold that which the constitution requires, and we keep our republic as our founding fathers saw it.
"A republic, if you can keep it....."

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic book that is part memoir and part analysis of Christian Nationalism.

Unfortunately, it already feels a bit dated with the reelection of Trump. I mean, there’s so much more horrible stuff she could have written about!

This week I listened to a local church sermon from prior to the election where the pastor was pontificating on how the church is moral and must vote family values…which apparently meant voting for the convicted felon and adjudicated rapist? Who chose a dude who probably trafficked children as attorney general?

Its disgusting. But it continues to prove April’s point. Christian Nationalism is evil. I imagine in 20 or 30 years white evangelicals will act like it has always been seen that way while they conveniently forget most of them supported it.

I’m glad I’ve never supported it. Hopefully April can help convince more how evil it is.

[Michael Cuevas · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I'm hesitant to believe this book will change many minds, Ajoy writes with humility and humor in this half memoir, half (lighter) analysis of Christian Nationalism.

It may just be because of my familiarity with white evangelical culture that this book didn't necessarily reveal any new sides of Christian Nationalism, but if you weren't already familiar, I imagine this book would be a good place to start.

Ajoy's jokes and anecdotes were sometimes uncomfortably relatable and cringe inducing (in a good way) and her conclusion was heartfelt and encouraging. The far-right/Christian-nationalist pipeline in American churches is scary!

3.5/5

[Esther · Rating 5 out of 5]

April Ajoy has a gift for talking about heavy things with the appropriate amount of humor to keep it from getting too heavy. I read this mostly because I wanted to learn about her story of coming out of Christian Nationalism. But this is more than just a memoir. Ajoy gives a lot of history and information. I expected for this book to trigger a lot of anger, but reading/listening to it was healing to my soul.

[Sara Milligan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Required reading, especially if you grew up in any version of American church culture. This was a funny, reasonable, and relatable reflection on learning to see and reject the problematic parts of Christian Nationalist dogma. Props to Ajoy for not shying away from citing her own participation in them, too.

If you feel any ounce of cognitive dissonance when weighing current "Christian" politics against the gospel, give this a go!!

[Annalise · Rating 4 out of 5]

The memoir aspects of this book are excellent and I feel they may initiate breakthrough for uncertain people reading this. I did find the evidence part a bit dry and it didn't add anything new to the conversation. It dragged the pace down a bit and filled areas where April could have gone until further detail.

[Annie K · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m currently coping by trying to understand what the actual fuck is going on with some people in this country. This was a helpful insight into one facet of the situation.

I’m devastated to hear, yet again, that there’s no such thing as an ‘Initiate Deconstruction’ button that I can go push in people’s hearts and minds that immediately stops them from causing harm, but it’s also encouraging to be reminded that every conversation that creates a crack in someone’s hatred is a helpful step in the right direction.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been following April Ajoy ever since I came across her deconstruction video on social media and immediately resonated as I'd been going through my own deconstruction right at that time. She illustrates the process well where the expectations of one's faith does not line up with the morality that the faith had formed. The part that got me the most (I was visibly, audibly crying at it) was her experience in the summer of 2020. I wish I'd had the courage to do what she did but I was too afraid of blowback coming from my job at the time or from the people in the community I worked with for my job.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

April touches on the blurred lines of evangelicalism and Christian Nationalism in a way that is witty, nuanced, introspective, honest, empathetic, and timely. She calls out absurdities, hypocrisy, and harm in this mindset, while openly (and often comically) discussing her former role in it. She comes from first hand experience as someone who grew up a pastor’s kid, and was a Christian Nationalist before knowing that’s what it was. That is, until Evangelical Christians aligned themselves unapologetically with Donald Trump, and April was unwittingly thrown into deconstruction - of her faith, her politics, and the very core beliefs that had always defined her. Her cognitive dissonance was put in the spotlight, and she could no longer ignore it.
April uses care to avoid demonizing Christian Evangelicals or painting them as a monolith, while still discussing the dangers of Christian Nationalism. At the core of this journey, she was guided by the heart of Jesus.
Rachel Held Evans would have blurbed this book.

[Deidra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read if you've ever been evangelical, are evangelical, or ever knew an evangelical. I knew this would be funny, but I didn't expect it to be so educational. April's story so closely mirrors my own, I've actually started to wonder if she's been stalking and spying on me my whole life. In all seriousness: April represents what true Jesus follower should look like. (Except maybe the JNCO jeans...Jesus has his limits).

[Brittany Zeoli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to read this book because I am also a Christian who has become deeply frustrated by the church. I feel that Christians are manipulated and pandered to by politicians and in return Christians make idols out of politicians.

I think April does a good job of pointing out a lot of the issues with the Christian nationalist base and the end goals, but I think her arguments could have been a lot stronger. I also think it’s very brave to share your experience, but again I think some of the validity of the issues are somewhat lost because her change of heart could be construed as “this happened to me so now I think this way”. There is enough power in pointing out that a lot of Christian behavior is very un-Christlike and using the words and teachings of Jesus to establish why.

Overall, this book makes good points and April shares a lot of her journey but I felt like it was repetitive at times and could have been more concise.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure about this book at first but I found myself absolutely shrieking in my car at some points as this book basically talked through being a church kid in the 90s/00s. I appreciated April's empathy towards people living with this mindset and think that it would be a good book for anyone trying to understand Christian nationalist rationales or views. For me it was a lot of throwback to the fearmongering and patriotism or die way that I was raised. I wish this book had more practical advice at the end about how to talk to people in this world view, but it was still an interesting read

[Phillip · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came to this book from one called "Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation" by Kristin Kobes Du Mez. Overall, I think that book did a much better job talking about the history of Christian Nationalism and its impacts on the United States. If this book is a college essay, that is more of a thesis-level type writing.

That may come down to this being partially a memoir instead of a straight "dry" historical recounting, but if you're interested in a factual recounting, that book may be more up your alley, as it was for me.

[Charis Wiggins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a great biography/insider view of Christian Nationalism. I hate to say that much of it was uncomfortably relatable. My own journey through deconstruction to a stronger faith mirrored April’s in almost every way.

“No one chooses to [deconstruct their faith]. It just happens. One day you wake up and the years of little things that never made sense rise to the surface.”

[Danny Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative and alarming, yet somehow also entertaining and maybe even a little hopeful. Gives a good foundation for some of the intrinsic differences in our polarized society.