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Protarianism is a Christian denomination and way of life that embraces a primitive understanding of the faith. We believe in a simpler understanding of the Bible, one at odds with modern Christianity. Because of that, we reject pagan and philosophical distortions of the faith most people associate with mainstream churches such as a multi-person deity who torments his children forever in hell or spiritual planes of existence after death.
As Protarians, we believe Christians are meant to live with each other in tribes—groups of people who share a common ethnicity, faith, language, and many other things. We believe the language of the Bible specifically instructs against multiculturalism and calls us to live among our own, a desire for people and place we consider sacred. We believe all people should be able to live in this way, no matter their ethnicity or faith.
Other audio recordings documenting & discussing the Protarian movement available here: Recordings
Protarianism is both a Christian denomination and way of life that celebrates the hierarchical nature of God’s Creation. Protarians don’t just go to the same church—we share common social and political beliefs and organize ourselves together in what are called tribes. You might think of us like a modern version of the Amish—a distinct group of people, but with electricity and minivans. We have our own beliefs and customs which are probably a bit different than other Christians around us. Some of it will be familiar to you. Other parts, maybe not so much.
Although our culture or traditions may feel old-fashioned, Protarianism is a new denomination, started in part as an attempt to preserve the way humans once lived—a time when children played outside instead of staring at digital screens. A time when neighbors depended upon each other rather than Amazon deliveries. A time when men built things and women kept them fed.
We’re big on tribes. We believe tribes are the best way to weather the persecution those who hold to biblical Christianity will likely face in the future. That’s because tribes have unity on many important issues most churches won’t even talk about. Modern churches might focus on believing the same religious doctrine, but usually not much more. We focus on unity far beyond Christian beliefs and as a result, consider “church” to be a natural expression of worship and fellowship emanating from healthy tribes. Protarian churches are likely small clusters of families—from the same tribe— who meet together in each other’s homes every week. There might be larger gatherings in a proper church-like building once a month or so where everybody can sing and worship together.
Before delving into the specifics of the Protarian faith, it may help to understand some foundational principles that guide our thinking. We’ve given them fancy names and use capital letters to make them look important, but they’re really just a way of organizing our thoughts on how we want to live and how we understand the world and the Christian faith. These five foundations are:
There are two groups of things in which we differ from most other Christian denominations: the faith-specific beliefs—meaning the way we practice our Christian faith, and the tribe-specific beliefs—the attitudes and customs which affect the way we live and interact with others.
A few tribe-specific differences:
We celebrate hierarchy and order, which means we believe inequality between all things to be a naturally occurring phenomenon intended by God. That means we celebrate gender differences, for instance. We celebrate the natural order of Creation and thank God he made women and men so different. As a result, we promote a strong patriarchal hierarchy and work to get rid of modern feminist influence. We reject anything outside of heterosexual relationships as normal or acceptable.
We acknowledge we have enemies—other people who are evil and/or intend us harm. We reject all violence done in the name of spreading our faith or beliefs but at the same time, reject all pacifism should we be required to defend our faith or our people. We reject the belief that multiculturalism is a good thing. We reject transhumanism in all its forms. That means we reject virtual worlds, hallucinogenic drugs, and DNA- or mRNA-altering pharmaceutical products. We reject vaccines. We discourage social media and believe it cannot replace real human interaction. We encourage what we call the tribal economy—less globalism and more neighbors. We reject cryptocurrencies not only because we believe them to advance the transhumanist movement, but because they’re a tool for global, rather than local, economies.
Not quite the Amish, but there’s enough there to make us significantly different than the average Christian. That isn’t a full list of our beliefs or practices, but it should give you some idea about where we’re at. Here is a full list of our Tribe Beliefs
Some faith-specific differences:
We hold to an intense, literal understanding of the first commandment: You shall have no other gods before me. Because of that, we reject everything that would deify anything other than God the Father as he’s described within scripture. This means we do not think of Jesus Christ as an angel, God, or any other deity, but a very special human being uniquely gifted by our Creator. This means we acknowledge the Holy Spirit as the power of God himself, not a separate deity. This also means we do not believe humans are deities destined to live forever in heaven or hell through an immortal soul. We believe death is the complete and total end of life for humans—except for the fact resurrection and eternal life have been made possible through the death and resurrection of Jesus, our Messiah. We believe God desires all might choose to receive this gift. We acknowledge it is likely some will not.
We believe in the future kingdom of God—not something happening right now. We believe this will take place on earth, not in some far away celestial realm. We accept the Bible isn’t crystal clear about the details of the end times. Jesus said not even he or the angels in heaven knew “about the day or hour” when those things would happen. Because of that, we don’t make predictions about the timing of apocalyptic events. We anticipate and look forward to these things, but don’t pretend to know exactly how or when they will play out.
On a similar note, we don’t believe in secret knowledge or Biblical mysteries only enlightened Christians might be able to comprehend. We believe God is good and loving in a way humans can easily understand and believe the Bible clearly explains this. Because of that, we don’t place too much importance on creeds, catechisms, and other statements of faith—we believe the Bible is sufficiently clear on important matters.
There are a few others, but that’s a quick summary of the things which make us different than Catholics, Protestants, and other common Christian denominations. Although we may know each other online for now, we are moving towards each other in such a way we can live together in tribes—protecting and providing for other members in a meaningful existence uncommon in a typical modern church setting. This might even occur through health insurance or food co-ops—anything that will help us help each other, should the need arise.
Here is a full list of our Faith Beliefs
While other denominations might send missionaries to Africa or Asia to start churches, Protarians consider helping people find their tribe—or starting a new tribe—to be our primary mission work. If you’re a Christian (of any denomination) and interested in the Biblical model for tribes, you can read “The Tribal Instinct,” available in print here or through Amazon in print, digital, and audiobook versions.
Feel free to get in touch if you’re looking to find a people and place for your family to call home—we may be able to help.
Protarians are focused on unity wherever possible. This means spiritually, socially, politically, even ethnically. We believe multiculturalism can sometimes be a purposeful attempt to cause racial tension and seek to avoid it. We believe our concept of tribes as an organizational tool is Biblical and more important than national affiliation. We believe our understanding of the Christian faith is based on an honest literal reading of scripture—with none of the typical man-made doctrines to get in the way. Of course, every church or denomination would say the same thing: “We represent the true church as God intended it.” You've likely heard that before. We’re not without error, of course. It is almost certain we’ve gotten something (or things) wrong somewhere, and we’re always looking out for it—praying for humility to help us understand where we may have gotten off the rails.
That’s the basic Protarian description. We’re happy, tribe-focused Christians who take the Bible at its word. You might think of us like hobbits—a simple people who want to live amongst others who are similar to us. Otherwise, we’d prefer to just be left alone. With our focus on unity, we’re not looking to grow but shrink. We’d prefer fewer members, not more. If you think this is something you and your family may be interested in learning more about, feel free to get in touch.