Unlike pre-millennialists who await an imminent rapture, post-millennialist Doug Wilson believes Christians must build a prosperous, global Christian order for at least a thousand years *before* Jesus returns. This theological framework transforms the faith from a passive waiting game into an active, long-term political and cultural project to "make the world a better place."
Doug Wilson defines Christian nationalism as a direct response to the perceived collapse of secular governance. He argues that a society without a "transcendent grounding" for its morality inevitably disintegrates, citing current cultural shifts as evidence. The movement's goal is to re-establish a public confession of dependence on God to restore social order.
Pastor Doug Wilson supports the First Amendment's formal separation of church and state, opposing a national or even state-level established church. However, he argues that separating the state from *morality* is impossible. Since any law reflects a moral stance, he insists the key political question is *which* morality—and by extension which religion—will provide the state's foundation.
Doug Wilson follows a key interpretive rule: the Old Testament applies today unless the New Testament specifically says it doesn't. This "applies unless revoked" view contrasts with the more common evangelical stance that the Old Testament *doesn't* apply unless the New Testament *reaffirms* it. This principle has vast implications for his views on law and society.
Rather than seeking immediate revolution, Christian nationalist Doug Wilson outlines an incremental, long-term strategy. He distinguishes between an ideal "Presbyterian utopia" 500 years from now and the current pragmatic need to solve bigger problems. This patient approach, rooted in peaceful persuasion and cultural change, means controversial goals like religious tests for office are not a present focus.
Wilson distinguishes "biblical absolutism" from literalism. He argues for a "natural" reading that respects each book's literary genre—interpreting history as history, poetry as poetry, and apocalyptic literature as symbolic. This allows him to uphold the Bible's authority without, for example, looking for a literal doorknob on Jesus when he says, "I am the door."
Theologian Doug Wilson argues that biblical prophecies of cosmic collapse—like the sun going dark—are not about the future end of the world. As a "preterist," he views this "decreation language" as a standard Old Testament metaphor for the fall of a nation, asserting Jesus used it to predict the historical destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.