In a tale of two conferences, there is the establishment laden CPAC and the Nick Fuentes-driven response to CPAC called AFPAC. Now in its third year, AFPAC has garnered several prominent names infused with figures derided as “Alt-Right.” CPAC boasts a speaker line up of high-profile guests from socialists like Tulsi Gabbard and degenerates like Rick Grenell to more genuine conservatives like Ron DeSantis and Jim Jordan, with everything in between—and I mean everything. Lacking celebrity star power, AFPAC promotes one-trick ponies like Sherriff Joe Arpaio to businessmen like Andrew Torba to Marjorie Taylor Greene. Needless to say, the America First lineup is scrappier.
Included in the speaker lineup was Jesse Lee Peterson, a Los Angeles radio host, author, mentor, activist, and pastor. According to his bio, he grew up under Jim Crow, moved to LA when he was eighteen where he became a radical activist until his life was transformed. He credits God with taking away his anger and leads an organization called BOND which focuses itself on “Rebuilding the Family by Rebuilding the Man.” Peterson has been known to make frequent media appearances on OANN, Fox News, and other outlets, where he often talks about race issues and masculinity. The sodomite organization GLAAD has a page dedicated to his bombastic comments against homosexuality, Pete Buttigieg, and the diversity agenda in America. He described the homosexual movement as trying to turn “a perverted lifestyle a civil rights issue” and “brainwash generations and generations of black people to believe that.”
At AFPAC, his speech begins at the 3:19:00 mark. Peterson begins by describing himself and his mission, touting patriarchal hierarchy along with his ongoing ventures. He emphasizes the dichotomy between good and evil, describing the problems of hatred and anger as spiritual matters in reference to Ephesians 6:12. To applause, Peterson laments the Civil Rights Movement as being detrimental to the black community, as it deemphasized the value on hard work and God at the head in favor of anger in the mold of Jesse Jackson.
Peterson then goes on to decry one having anger as having “Satan as your daddy.” This is a core aspect of his message, but subjective to how one interprets the meaning of anger. While God is slow to anger, He is still a righteous God who will punish unrepentant iniquity (Exodus 34:6). This verse clearly states, “slow to anger” and there are numerous instances of the Lord’s anger burning against the wicked. Although his use of the word anger would more properly align as a synonym for hatred or misguided rage, this distinction is not made, and a listener could reasonably conclude that all anger is sinful based on his words. There is such thing as righteous anger, where one should rightfully be enflamed at wickedness. For someone who presumably counsels anger management, this distinction is necessary, especially to an unfamiliar audience.
He does move on to talking about the illusion of time, where God is in the present, not the past or the future. This contradicts Hebrews 13:8 where “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” He uses this point to illustrate that in each moment we should focus on God and not allow a single thought of anger to interrupt. He alludes to Matthew 6:25-34, where Jesus teaches to not be consumed with earthly concerns like food and clothing but to rely on God’s providence, as He provides for even the birds. This is a passage on worrying and anxiety, not necessarily wrath. The emphasis on the present should not detract from God’s steadfast, eternal faithfulness. In fact, His faithfulness throughout the ages, being the Alpha and Omega, should give hope in the present circumstances. Peterson seems to have a notion that any thought not of God is innately sinful, which is an extreme stance that is baseless in scripture. In the realm of the mind, there is a line between temptation as it relates to thoughts and lust, yet Peterson’s words could be taken to suggest that benign thoughts on mundane matters constitute sin.
Peterson preaches that the cure for anger/hatred is forgiveness of one’s mother. The path to forgiveness is not to be “born of the woman” but “born of the father.” One must forgive their mother as they inherit their sinful tendencies, fears, anger, and insecurities come from her. Peterson also claimed that mothers turn people away from their earthly fathers, thereby turning them away from God. He also suggests that anger is a feminine trait.
This is an incorrect view of Original Sin which Peterson articulates—if it could even be called that. 1 Corinthians 15:20-21 states:
For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
It does not matter that Eve sinned first. Adam was held accountable and through Adam sin entered the world. Masculinity is about accepting accountability for one’s circumstances and actions, not deflecting the blame onto women. Adam was responsible. Whereas Eve was deceived, Adam outright defied God. We as people desire to sin—seeking evil over good. Our rebellion comes from Adam, not Eve. It is theologically incorrect that we must forgive our mothers for “original sin” as Peterson suggests because Original Sin passes through the father which is why Jesus had to be born of a virgin.
It is also important to distinguish that one is reborn in Christ, not reborn into the Father or earthly father as Peterson indicates. Romans 6:3-5 states:
Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection
Baptism symbolizes our rebirth, or regeneration into Christ. Through submersion, we are symbolizing the washing of our sins by the sacrifice of Christ and coming up out of the water in His resurrection. It is a public identification with His sacrifice on the cross and the presence He has in our lives.
Peterson does go on to praise white men for building America, stating that black people are incapable of doing this because of they have adopted Marxist ideologies. He does exemplify his own parents as sharing in the work ethic which built America before condemning the societal animus towards white people. July will mark the 4th annual White History Month, which he promotes.
Crisis of Masculinity
His oedipal obsession with blaming the mother is beta, to use his own words, when the bible clearly ascribes the blame onto Man. Perhaps he is decrying the “Black Matriarchy” and its devastating impact on the black community, but this should not be conflated with Original Sin in any capacity. It is the absence of fathers in black homes which has allowed the matriarchy to take hold. If we are to embrace and promote masculinity in our culture, we must understand that the patriarchal hierarchy holds men accountable, first and foremost, not women. This has always been the case and is without exception. Forgiving our mothers and turning back to our earthly fathers is not how we restore the patriarchy. Just like feminists, Peterson is himself employing a critical lens between men and women, when he should be articulating men to accept and embrace accountability. While men are called to be leaders and heads of their households, this does not make women the bane of all problems and all the sin in the world.
The crisis of masculinity is about men going soft, becoming indoctrinated with feminism, and pacified through vices, the most pervasive of which is pornography. Instead of going through some unbiblical forgiveness ritual with our mothers (which reeks of an Oedipus Complex), we as men must step up to the challenges of our day and act against the depravity in our society. It requires that we undertake difficult, often unpopular decisions that could have earthly consequences. Against his teaching, this would require a righteous degree of anger as properly channeled aggression is what has allowed the great men to build and protect their communities. Failure to do so is and will continue to bring hard times upon us.
Appeal to Peterson
I would advise Jesse Lee Peterson to not play loose with scripture, as all the scripture cited in this article were verses that I connected with his message, not verses directly cited. Peterson has an instinctual authenticity about him which differs from the stereotypical token black conservative mantra. He sounds like the common man, but a pastor must articulate scripture with the utmost care and integrity to its contextual meaning. Perhaps he would do well to find himself a spiritual mentor, one of orthodoxy, to guide him so that he can become a better pastor and build a foundation on sound doctrine. Though this, he can teach real masculinity, not self-help drivel.
