Christian fundamentalism and conspiracy theories

Since the early twentieth century there has been a significant overlap between Christian fundamentalism and millennialism in the United States and belief in false conspiracy theories, ^{[1] [2]} primarily the New World Order conspiracy theory, QAnon, and COVID-19 conspiracy theories, which are frequently perceived to represent fulfilment of Christian eschatology.

History

In 1991, in the book The New World Order , American evangelical charismatic televangelist Pat Robertson claimed that a secret one-world government has existed in the world led by Freemasonry and the Illuminati, in collaboration with Jewish bankers. ^[3] One of the recurring subjects of Christian fundamentalist conspiracy theorists is the accusation of homosexual people of a gay agenda and of being responsible for social problems. ^[4] The QAnon conspiracy movement, which originated in 2017 found a loyal following among Christian fundamentalists particularly concerned with the search for signs of the end times. ^{[5] [6] [7]} Frank Peretti's 1986 novel This Present Darkness , which depicted New Age practices, modern feminism, and secular education as part of a conspiracy to overthrow Christianity, has been criticized as being a possible influence on QAnon. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

Adherence to conspiracy theories is particularly important in fundamentalist evangelical churches. ^{[11] [12]} Some pastors have explained this phenomenon with the distrust of expertise, which encourages citizens to challenge established authority figures. ^[13] Others have described the mechanism of faith as "[mutating] into vulnerability to conspiracy theories" as well as apocalyptic narratives and Christian nationalism playing roles. ^[14]

According to a 2018 survey by LifeWay Research for the Wheaton College Billy Graham Center, 46% of self-identified evangelicals and 52% of evangelicals by belief believe that mainstream media spreads fake news. ^[15] A 2022 study among Polish Roman Catholics found a positive correlation between religious fundamentalism and COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs. ^[16]

Criticism

Outlets such as Christianity Today and Religion News Service have covered the movement's impact among congregations. ^{[17] [13]}

In 2017, Ed Stetzer wrote that Christians should repent of spreading false conspiracy theories and fake news online, which he says "directly violates Scripture's prohibition from bearing false witness against our neighbors". He argued that "The Seth Rich conspiracy theory is a textbook example of false witness... Without seriously defending their claims, conservative Christians across the country accused their neighbor of murder." ^[18]

See also

• Barack Obama religion conspiracy theories
• Vaccines and religion
• Anti-intellectualism
• Blood libel

References

1. Fenster 1999, pp. 147–148.
2. Wilcox 1988, pp. 663–664.
3. Isikoff, Michael (October 10, 1992). "Opinion: THE ROBERTSON RIGHT AND THE GRANDEST CONSPIRACY". Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved April 13, 2024.
4. Stewart, Katherine (October 26, 2012). "How Christian fundamentalism feeds the toxic partisanship of US politics". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved April 13, 2024.
5. LADNER, KERI L (2024). "End Time Politics: From the Moral Majority to QAnon". JSTOR . Retrieved 2024-08-29.
6. Pettipiece, Timothy (March 21, 2021). "History repeats itself: From the New Testament to QAnon". The Conversation . Retrieved June 29, 2023.
7. Miotto, Nicolò (2022). 'Stand against the wiles of the devil.': Interpreting QAnon as a Christian extremist movement (Thesis). Prague: Charles University. hdl:20.500.11956/178337.
8. Springs, Jason (2021-06-16). "QAnon, Conspiracy, and White Evangelical Apocalypse". Contending Modernities. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
9. James, Emily St (2022-04-28). "Revisiting the Christian fantasy novels that shaped decades of conservative hysteria". Vox. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
10. Lewis, James R.; Melton, J. Gordon, eds. (1992). Perspectives on the New Age. SUNY series in religious studies. Albany: State University of New York Press. ISBN   978-0-7914-1213-8.
11. Jadarat, Mya (December 20, 2023). "Why would these Christians embrace conspiracy theories?". Deseret News . Retrieved April 13, 2024.
12. Watson, Joey (December 22, 2020). "Conspiracy theories are taking hold in some churches. But some Christian leaders are fighting back". ABC News . Retrieved April 13, 2024.
13. Beaty, Katelyn (August 17, 2020). "QAnon: The alternative religion that's coming to your church". Religion News Service . Retrieved August 17, 2023.
14. Lawrence, Joel (January 25, 2021). "Faith, Apocalypse, and Nationalism: Why Evangelicals Are Vulnerable to Conspiracy Theories". The Center for Pastor Theologians. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
15. "Evangelical and Non-evangelical Voting & Views of Politics in America: Survey of 3,000 Americans" (PDF). Wheaton College Billy Graham Center . Retrieved April 13, 2024.
16. Łowicki, Paweł; Marchlewska, Marta; Molenda, Zuzanna; Karakula, Adam; Szczepańska, Dagmara (March 1, 2022). "Does religion predict coronavirus conspiracy beliefs? Centrality of religiosity, religious fundamentalism, and COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs". Personality and Individual Differences . 187. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2021.111413. ISSN   0191-8869. PMC   8626275 . PMID   34866726.
17. Kristian, Bonnie (August 26, 2020). "QAnon Is a Wolf in Wolf's Clothing". Christianity Today . Retrieved June 29, 2023.
18. Stetzer, Ed (2017). "Christians, Repent (Yes, Repent) of Spreading Conspiracy Theories and Fake News—It's Bearing False Witness". The Exchange. Retrieved 17 August 2020.

Sources

• Fenster, Mark (1999). Conspiracy Theories: Secrecy and Power in American Culture. University of Minnesota Press. ISBN   978-0-8166-3242-8.
• Wilcox, Clyde (1988). "The Christian Right in Twentieth Century America: Continuity and Change". The Review of Politics. 50 (4): 659–681. doi:10.1017/S0034670500041991. ISSN   0034-6705. JSTOR   1407358. S2CID   143220016.

Further reading

• Barkun, Michael (2003). A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic Visions in Contemporary America. University of California Press. ISBN   978-0-520-24812-0.
• Brekke, Torkel (2019). "Christianity Betrayed - Conspiracy Theory about a Leftist-Muslim Plot against Christianity in Norway". Journal of Religion and Society. 21: 1–15. ISSN   2684-852X.
• Dyrendal, Asbjørn; Robertson, David G.; Asprem, Egil, eds. (2018). Handbook of Conspiracy Theory and Contemporary Religion. Brill. ISBN   978-90-04-38202-2.
• James, Nigel (2000). "Militias, the Patriot Movement, and the Internet: The Ideology of Conspiracism". The Sociological Review. 48 (2_suppl): 63–92. doi:10.1111/j.1467-954X.2000.tb03521.x. S2CID   145683605.
• Knight, Peter (ed.). Conspiracy Theories in American History: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN   978-1-57607-812-9.
• Ruotsila, Markku (2004). "Mrs Webster's religion: conspiracist extremism on the Christian far right". Patterns of Prejudice. 38 (2): 109–126. doi:10.1080/00313220410001692321. S2CID   159905361.
• Thielman, Sam (11 August 2020). "When the news becomes religion". Columbia Journalism Review . Retrieved 21 August 2020.