Christian nationalism refers to an ideology that asserts all civic life in the U.S. should be organized according to a particularly conservative and ethnocentric expression of Christianity. Christian nationalism is more than theological or religious beliefs. It includes several cultural assumptions including:
- Strict moral traditionalism focused on sustaining social hierarchies.
- Comfort with authoritarian control—exercised by the “right” people—that includes the threat and use of violence.
- A desire for strict ethno-racial boundaries around who is a “true” American, where non-white and non-natural born citizens are viewed as unworthy of full participation in American civic life. (This is why many label it white Christian nationalism)
Christian nationalism centers and privileges the white, Christian experience. It believes the founders of the U.S. were conservative, white Christian men intent on founding a country where they and others like them could lead and flourish. Now, many Americans believe Christianity played an important role in the founding period or that the founding fathers were religious in one way or another. No reputable historian disputes these claims.
However, Christian nationalism moves well beyond such observations. It views this particular expression of Christianity as the undisputed framework of the U.S. and wants all levels of the government to preserve that framework.
This means that Christian nationalism does not want a government for the people by the people. It wants a government for a particular people, by a particular people. Namely, politically and religiously conservative white American Christians.
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Article URL:
https://time.com/6214724/christian-nationalism-threats-united-states/