Religion and Right-wing Populism in Western Europe and North America in the 21st century

Lead Research Organisation: University of Cambridge
Department Name: Politics and International Studies

Abstract

From the carrying of crosses and the singing of hymns at rallies to a new rhetoric centred on the defence of "the Christian occident" against "radical Islam" and "godless Liberalism": National populists on both sides of the Atlantic are making increasing use of Christian symbols and language. Many observers are quick to take such behaviour at face value and resurrect concepts like the "Clash of Civilisation" or new "Culture Wars" between Christianity, Islam and Secularism. On closer inspection, however, the relationship between the new right and Christianity is much more nuanced. In the U.S. for instance, Donald Trump is perceived to be the least religious GOP candidate in recent history and has been met with significant opposition from evangelical clergy. In Europe supporters of right-wing populism tend to be dis-proportionally irreligious, and Church attendance remains a strong predictor for not voting right-wing populist. This dissertation seeks to comprehend this ambiguous relationship by exploring right-wing populists' motives to employ religion and religious communities' responses. Drawing on exclusive elite interviews with national populist leaders, senior Church officials and competitor party representatives, it finds that national populist movements chiefly employ Christian symbols and language as a cultural identity marker in order to mobilise voters around new identity cleavages that are replacing traditional class, economic or moral cleavages. However, doing so they often remain distanced from Christian doctrine and instead seek to combine Christian identity markers with secular policy stances, suggesting a secularisation of Christian symbols and a loss of the Church(es)' religious authority rather than a resurgence of religion in western societies.

Publications

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Studentship Projects

Project Reference Relationship Related To Start End Student Name
ES/P000738/1 01/10/2017 30/09/2027
1964014 Studentship ES/P000738/1 01/10/2017 30/09/2020 Tobias Cremer
 
Description From the carrying of crosses and the singing of hymns at rallies to a new rhetoric centred on the defence of "the Christian occident" against "radical Islam" and "godless Liberalism": National populists on both sides of the Atlantic are making increasing use of Christian symbols and language. Many observers are quick to take such behaviour at face value and resurrect concepts like the "Clash of Civilisation" or new "Culture Wars" between Christianity, Islam and Secularism. On closer inspection, however, the relationship between the new right and Christianity is much more nuanced. In the U.S. for instance, Donald Trump is perceived to be the least religious GOP candidate in recent history and has been met with significant opposition from evangelical clergy. In Europe supporters of right-wing populism tend to be dis-proportionally irreligious, and Church attendance remains a strong predictors for not voting right-wing populist. This dissertation seeks to comprehend this ambiguous relationship by exploring right-wing populists' motives to employ religion and religious communities' responses. Drawing on over one hundred exclusive elite interviews with national populist leaders, senior Church officials and
competitor party representatives in Germany, France and the United States it finds that national populist movements chiefly employ Christian symbols and language as a cultural
identity marker in order to mobilise voters around new identity cleavages that are replacing traditional class, economic or moral cleavages. However, doing so they often remain distanced from Christian doctrine and instead seek to combine Christian identity markers with secular policy stances, suggesting a secularisation of Christian symbols
and a loss of the Church(es)' religious authority rather than a resurgence of religion in western societies. The empirical finding that this strategy is most successful amongst irreligious or non-practicing voters, whilst practicing Christians remain comparatively "immune", suggests thereby that the reaction of the Churches may yet have significant impact on right-wing populists' electoral success either legitimising or debunking such a hijacking of religion.
Exploitation Route The research outcomes can be useful in many ways for policy makers, faith leaders, community leaders and diplomats, who are trying to understand the social roots of national populism in western democracies, the role of religion in this context and the different ways in which the elite actors in the Churches and political parties can shape these developments and do so in different countries. In fact, the research project specifically analyses, compares and assesses the advantages and disadvantages of different strategies and approaches employed by Church leaders and politicians in Germany, France and the United States,
Sectors Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Government, Democracy and Justice,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections,Security and Diplomacy
 
Description - Multi-day training session for senior German clergy in Germany on how to react to the rise of national populism publicly and within their faith communities - Shorter training sessions for senior clergy in the UK and the US - Presentation to senior diplomats engaged with religion and diplomacy at the Foreign and Commonwealth office - Training session for Cumberland Lodge's Emerging International Leaders programme on Freedom of Religion or Belief - Contributions in several BBC documentaries on the rise of the far right and the role of religion
First Year Of Impact 2017
Sector Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections,Security and Diplomacy
Impact Types Cultural,Societal,Policy & public services