Helen Paynter - Faith, the Far Right and the Politics of Fear (N357)
Nomad Podcast
Nomad
4.7 • 689 Ratings
🗓️ 24 November 2025
⏱️ 88 minutes
🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
As far-right movements gain visibility in Britain and beyond, many are drawing on Christian language, symbols and stories to justify exclusion and division. What happens when the gospel of love is co-opted by the politics of fear?
In this conversation, theologian and Baptist minister Helen Paynter explores how theology, scripture and nationalism are becoming dangerously entangled. She reflects on why parts of the church are vulnerable to far-right narratives, how faith can be weaponised, and what it means to resist with wisdom, compassion and courage.
Following the interview, Nomad hosts Tim Nash and Nick Thorley reflect on anger, numbness, purity spirals and the quiet work of resisting despair, and ask what it might look like to keep telling a better story when the old one keeps getting twisted.
Interview starts at 15m 29s
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The |
| 0:07.0 | The Welcome back to Nomad Podcast. I'm Tim Nash, and this is Nick Thorley. |
| 0:41.1 | Hello there. If I put myself in the mind of the beloved listener, what I sense them saying, Nick, is, sure, an interview with Helen Painter about Christianity and the far right sounds interesting, but what I'm really interested in right now is the goings-on in Nick's life. So, Nick, |
| 0:55.8 | what are you being up to? Well, thanks, Tim, for asking me that question, which is very affirming, |
| 1:01.2 | and they're encouraging. Thank you. It may not be true, but on the surface, it's affirming and |
| 1:05.7 | it's quite nice to think that that people are wondering. They probably are, to be fair. |
| 1:09.4 | I've got three things for you, Tim. |
| 1:11.1 | Only three? Yeah. |
| 1:13.0 | Be sure. Yeah. They're good, though. Firstly, in a year that has brought us such incredible albums |
| 1:20.0 | as Mahash Mahana, Father Jamestie, Romance by Fontaine's DC, Sable Fable by Bonnever, |
| 1:27.1 | and The Clearing by Wolf Alice, who I will be seeing in a matter |
| 1:30.7 | of weeks. |
| 1:32.6 | Now, Tim, as if that wasn't enough, you'd sort of think, yeah, that's enough. |
| 1:36.6 | But no, now comes an album of breathtaking beauty, exhilaration, and poise. |
| 1:47.5 | It is, Everybody Scream by Florence and the Machine. |
| 1:54.2 | I've not listened to it. It's amazing. And Tim, do you know, she quotes Julian of Norwich in one of the songs. Did you know that? |
| 1:58.4 | Did you know that? Because I haven't heard the album, but I did hear Lauren Leuverne interview. |
| 2:02.0 | What's a great interview. And they talked quite a bit about Julian of Norris, didn't they? |
| 2:07.2 | Listening to Lauren Levin, interview Florence Welch, is just beautiful. |
| 2:12.9 | Because two women who've both had really difficult illnesses and been in hospital and have stared mortality in the face and are just talking about the mystics and the divine and early |
| 2:21.3 | pagan spirituality in this country. I just want to like weep with them, like with joy and |
| 2:28.3 | gratitude for their openness. And she's like, Lauren Levin in those situations is kind of like a pastor, like therapist, like older sister. |
... |
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