Canadian psychologist and political commentator Dr. Jordan Peterson has co-authored a brief report that claims the Christian phrase “Christ is King” has been hijacked by online extremists. However, the report is full of basic errors.
Thy Name in Vain: How Online Extremists Hijacked ‘Christ is King’ is a 21-page paper authored by Peterson and around a dozen others, and claims that the phrase is being “weaponized” on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter). It alleges that the phrase is being used by “Nazis” and others to promote “hate speech.”
While the report correctly notes Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925, it incorrectly claims the phrase was only used in liturgy and hymns. In fact, Christians have extensively used the phrase “Viva Cristo Rey” or “Long Live Christ the King.” For instance, it was a rallying cry in Mexico in the 1920s when the secularist government was brutally oppressing Catholics.
The phrase finds its ultimate roots in the Crucifixion itself, with Christ’s executioners having nailed a board reading ‘INRI’—short for Iesus Nazarenus, Rex Iudaeorum, meaning ‘Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews’—to the Cross. Christ is also named “King of kings and Lord of lords” in St. Paul’s epistles and the Book of Revelation.
BASIC ERRORS.
The report highlights comments from social media personalities such as Andrew Tate, despite the fact he is a Muslim. Additionally, the document gets basic facts wrong regarding Catholic Church ecclesiology. For instance, it claims Bishop Joseph Strickland, who has also stated “Christ is King” on social media, is “a former Catholic bishop.” However, while Strickland was removed from the diocese of Tyler, Texas, in 2023, he remains a Roman Catholic bishop in good standing with the Church. The removal was purely an administrative measure and not a laicization or excommunication.
Rev. Johnnie Moore, another author of the report, has been ratioed on X by users after posting a video promoting the report. Nearly all of the comments affirm that “Christ is King” or are deeply critical of Moore.
Political commentator Jack Posobiec, also a target of the report, noted that Moore appears to have connections with various Islamic states, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), asking, “What is going on here?”
‼️I need to warn you about something! The term CHRIST IS KING has been a declaration of shared Christian values for generations, but shocking research by @ncri_io at @RutgersU compiled in a report I co-authored with Dr. @jordanbpeterson demonstrates that this iconic phrase is… pic.twitter.com/crYbYwT0BA
— Rev. Johnnie Moore ن (@JohnnieM) March 13, 2025
Jack Montgomery and Will Upton contributed to this report.
