A Virtual Roundtable on the Threat of Christian Nationalism, Part 1 of 4 by Robert P. Jones
A Virtual Roundtable on the Threat of Christian Nationalism, Part 1 of 4 by Robert P. Jones
A conversation with Kristin Du Mez, Jemar Tisby, and Robert P. Jones
A Virtual Roundtable on the Threat of Christian Nationalism, Part 1 of 4 by Robert P. Jones
For the next two weeks, we’re going to try something new. In addition to my normal posts, we’ll host a virtual roundtable discussion on the threat of white Christian nationalism to our democracy and our churches.
This is part one of the four-part virtual roundtable featuring
, , and me, . I will be writing parts 1 and 4 here at . Jemar will be writing part 2 at his Substack, ; and Kristin will be writing part 3 at her Substack, .The idea for this series was born when the three of us came together earlier this week in Washington, DC, for a panel to discuss the findings of the new PRRI/Brookings Christian Nationalism Survey, which was released at the Brookings Institution. We were inspired by that event to try an experiment: to extend the rich discussion that began there to our respective Substack communities.
To kick things off, this inaugural post contains my take on the most compelling insights from the new survey. I’m also including below the video of my live presentation of the key findings at The Brookings Institution launch event (which had over 100 in the room and over 1,500 tuned in online). Stayed tuned for responses by Jemar and Kristin over the next two weeks.
A Christian Nation? Understanding the Threat of Christian Nationalism to American Democracy and Culture
A vocal and engaged minority has commandeered one of our major religious traditions and one of our political parties.
Christian nationalism is a new term for a worldview that has been with us since the founding of our country — the idea that America is destined to be a promised land for European Christians. While most Americans today embrace pluralism and reject this anti-democratic claim, two thirds of white evangelical Protestants and most Republicans remain animated by this vision of a white Christian America.
-Robert P. Jones, President and Founder, PRRI
A major national survey conducted jointly by Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), where I serve as president and founder, and the Brookings Institution sheds new light on the threat Christian nationalism poses to American democracy, reveals the drivers of support for this worldview, and explores how these beliefs intersect with other ideologies on the right such as anti-Black racism, anti-immigrant views, antisemitism, anti-Muslim attitudes, and patriarchal gender roles.
To better understand the scope of the threat, PRRI and Brookings surveyed more than 6,000 Americans to create a new measure of Christian nationalism. Respondents were categorized as Christian nationalism adherents, sympathizers, skeptics, or rejecters based on their responses to a battery of five questions about the role of Christians and Christian values in the United States.
Evangelical identity, church attendance strongly connected to Christian nationalism across racial lines
White evangelical Protestants are significantly more supportive of Christian nationalism than any other group. Nearly two-thirds of white evangelical Protestants qualify as either Christian nationalism adherents (29%) or sympathizers (35%). This is a marked contrast from the 1 in 10 Americans as a whole who adhere to the tenets of Christian nationalism and the 19% who are sympathetic.
Notably, evangelical identity is positively correlated with holding Christian nationalist views across racial and ethnic lines. White (29%), Hispanic (25%), and Black (20%) Christians who identify as born-again or evangelical are each about five times as likely to be Christian nationalism adherents as members of the same racial or ethnic groups who identify as Christian but not evangelical (6% of white non-evangelicals, 4% of Black non-evangelicals, and 4% of Hispanic non-evangelicals).
At the other end of the spectrum, more than three-quarters of Hispanic Catholics, Jews, other non-Christian religious Americans (including Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and any other religion), and religiously unaffiliated Americans qualify as either Christian nationalism skeptics or rejecters.
Moreover, Americans who lean toward supporting Christian nationalism are not, as some have alleged, Christian in name only. Christian nationalism adherents are nearly twice as likely as Americans overall to report attending religious services at least a few times a month (54% vs. 28%).
Link between Republican party affiliation and holding Christian nationalist views
Christian nationalist views have disproportionately taken root in one of our political parties, generating an asymmetrical polarization. While most Republicans qualify as either Christian nationalism adherents (21%) or sympathizers (33%), at least three-quarters of both independents (46% skeptics and 29% rejecters) and Democrats (36% skeptics and 47% rejecters) lean toward rejecting Christian nationalism. Republicans are about four times as likely as Democrats (5%) or independents (6%) to be adherents of Christian nationalism.
Support for Donald Trump is also highly correlated with support for Christian nationalism. Less than a third of Americans hold a favorable view of the former president, yet more than 7 in 10 (71%) Christian nationalism adherents view him favorably.
Christian nationalism linked to appetite for political, personal violence and authoritarianism
Adherents of Christian nationalism are nearly seven times as likely as rejecters to agree that “true patriots might have to resort to violence to save our country” (40% vs. 16%).
Among supporters of such political violence, 12% said they have personally threatened to use or actually used a gun, knife, or other weapon on someone in the last few years. Among all Christian nationalism adherents, 7% say they have threatened to use or actually used a weapon on someone, compared to just 2% of Christian nationalism rejecters.
Further, Christian nationalism supporters display significantly more fondness for authoritarianism. While only about 3 in 10 Americans (28%) agree that “because things have gotten so far off track in this country, we need a leader who is willing to break some rules if that’s what it takes to set thing right,” half of Christian nationalism adherents and nearly 4 in 10 sympathizers (38%) support the idea of an authoritarian leader.
Connections between Christian nationalism and other ideologies on the right
Christian Nationalism does not exist in a vacuum. It is strongly linked to other ideologies swirling on the right. Anti-Black racism, anti-immigrant views, antisemitic views, anti-Muslim views, and patriarchal views of gender roles are each positively associated with Christian nationalism.
• A majority of Christian nationalism adherents (57%) disagree that white supremacy is a major problem in the United States today, and 7 out of 10 reject the idea that past discrimination contributes to present-day hurdles for Black Americans.
• Seven in 10 (71%) Christian nationalism adherents embrace so-called “replacement theory,” the idea that immigrants are “invading our country and replacing our cultural and ethnic background.”
• Nearly a quarter of Christian nationalism adherents (23%) believe the stereotype that Jewish people in America hold too many positions of power, compared to just 9% of Christian nationalism rejecters. Christian nationalism adherents are more than three times as likely as rejecters to believe Jewish people are more loyal to Israel than America (44% vs. 13% respectively).
• Two-thirds (67%) of Christian nationalism adherents say we should prevent people from some majority Muslim countries from entering the United States, compared to only 29% of all Americans.
• Nearly 7 in 10 Christian nationalism adherents (69%) agree that the husband is the head of the household in “a truly Christian family,” and his wife submits to his leadership, compared to only 33% of all Americans.
White Racial Identity and Christian Nationalism
The correlations between Christian nationalism and anti-Black racism, anti-immigrant views, and anti-Muslim views are significantly stronger among Christian nationalism adherents who identify as white, compared to adherents who are non-white.
A unique embedded survey experiment revealed an estimated 17% of Americans agree with the experimental statement that “the United States is a white Christian nation, and I am willing to fight to keep it that way.”
The survey also contained a standalone statement about white Christian nationalism: “God intended America to be a new promised land where European Christians could create a society that could be an example to the rest of the world.” By a margin of two to one, Americans overall reject this assertion (30% agree, 67% disagree). But more than 8 in 10 Christian nationalism adherents (83%) agree with this statement, as do two-thirds of Christian nationalism sympathizers (67%). By contrast, only 1 in 5 Christian nationalism skeptics (19%) and 3% of rejecters agree that America was selected by God as a promised land for white Christians.
Conclusion
More than any policy differences, these enduring, incompatible perceptions of America—as a pluralistic democracy or as a promised land for European Christians—are at the heart of America’s political polarization. While two thirds of the country readily embraces the former, a vocal and engaged minority has hijacked one of our major religious traditions and one of our political parties, determined to hold the country hostage to a mythical past it is ready to leave behind.
To read the full PRRI/Brookings report, including the top line questionnaire and methodology, click here.
I had to leave the webinar just as the panel was beginning to discuss the data that Robert P. Jones had just presented. Is there a video of that discussion?
Kathy Petrini