From Tehran to Tulsa: Christian Nationalism and the Theocratic Blueprint in American Education

To join me on stage for Midday with Cassandra around 1 PM EDT weekdays, use this link: https://studio.restream.io/edo-xdco-unr

To join me on stage for The Path Forward at 6 PM EDT weekdays, use this link: https://studio.restream.io/edy-bdnb-csp

Remember, I strongly encourage and seek out view-point diversity. We gain nothing by regurgitating echo-chamber content. I actually prefer to listen to those who oppose my right to live freely, openly, and honestly in the country for which I served. I also prefer to engage in discussions, and even research, that is founded upon the idea that to be successful over the long term, we need to design such things using a balanced adversarial approach.

What does the Islamic Republic of Iran, a Shia theocracy born from the revolutionary ideology of Ayatollah Khomeini, have in common with a state school board in the American heartland? On the surface, very little. Yet, if we look past the profound differences in culture and religion and instead focus on the mechanics of power, we find an unsettling parallel in the impulse to fuse a single religious-ideological worldview with the machinery of the state.

Khomeinism, as a model of governance, is built on a non-negotiable foundation: the state exists to enforce a specific interpretation of religious law and morality. It is guided by a clerical body, the Guardian Council, which acts as the ultimate arbiter of truth, ensuring all laws and state functions align with its version of Shia Islam. A key pillar of this system is the control of education, which is used to indoctrinate the youth, purge "corrupting" foreign influences—a concept termed "Westoxification"—and create a citizenry loyal to the theocratic vision. The goal is not just a nation of believers, but a state apparatus that enforces and perpetuates that belief.

Now, consider the rising tide of Christian Nationalism in the United States. While its proponents would reject any comparison to a foreign theocracy, the structural parallels are worth examining. Christian Nationalism is not merely Christianity or patriotism. It is a political ideology that asserts America is, and must remain, a "Christian nation" in a specific, narrow sense. It argues that the nation's laws should be based on its interpretation of Christian morality and that the state should actively promote this worldview.

Here, we find the same dangerous impulses. The concept of a divine mandate that supersedes secular, democratic law echoes the role of clerical authority. The frantic warnings against "wokeism," "secular humanism," and "cultural Marxism" function precisely as the warnings against "Westoxification" do in Iran—as a means to identify and purge an internal enemy and a corrupting external influence.

This is no longer a theoretical danger. We are seeing this theocratic blueprint being put into practice, and ground zero is our public education system.

A stark case study is unfolding in Oklahoma. The State Department of Education (OSDE), led by State Superintendent Ryan Walters, has announced a partnership with PragerU, a conservative non-profit, to create an assessment test for teachers. This isn't a test of pedagogical skill or subject matter expertise in the traditional sense. It is an ideological litmus test. The assessment will evaluate teachers on their adherence to concepts like American exceptionalism and "the fundamental biological differences between boys and girls." The explicit purpose is to filter out educators from so-called "woke states" whose views do not align with Oklahoma's "America First" educational vision.

In this scenario, the OSDE is acting as its own Guardian Council. It is positioning itself as the arbiter of acceptable thought, charged with protecting the state's children from "corrupting" ideas. The teacher assessment is its primary tool of enforcement, ensuring that only those who subscribe to the state-sanctioned orthodoxy are allowed to teach.

PragerU's curriculum, which has also been approved for classroom use in states like Florida and Arizona, serves as the movement's state-sanctioned textbook. Its content, which often presents a revisionist view of American history and questions scientific consensus on issues like climate change, provides the "correct" narrative. By injecting these materials directly into schools, the state is no longer a neutral arbiter of education but an active participant in ideological indoctrination. The goal is to create a new generation of citizens molded by a singular, state-approved worldview.

Supporters defend these moves as a necessary restoration of patriotism and traditional values. But this defense misses the profound danger of the method. When a government body partners with an explicitly ideological organization to control not just what is taught, but who is allowed to teach it, it crosses a critical line. It begins to mirror the very systems from which America's founding principles of religious freedom and separation of church and state were meant to protect us.

The United States is not a theocracy. But in the actions of the Oklahoma school board, we see the echo of one. We see the blueprint for how a free society can begin to slide toward a system of state-enforced ideological purity. The fight over PragerU in our schools is not just another skirmish in the culture wars; it is a battle for the secular character of our public institutions and the intellectual freedom of the next generation.