Christian nationalism

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Christian nationalism is a type of religious nationalism that is affiliated with Christianity. It primarily focuses on the internal politics of society, such as legislating civil and criminal laws that reflect their view of Christianity and the role of religion/s in political and social life. [1]

Contents

In countries with a state church, Christian nationalists seek to preserve the status of a Christian state by holding an antidisestablishmentarian position to perpetuate the Church in national politics. [2] [3] [4]

Christian nationalism supports the presence of Christian symbols in the public square, and state patronage for the practice and display of religion, such as Christmas as a national holiday, school prayer, the exhibition of nativity scenes during Christmastide, and the Christian Cross on Good Friday. [5] [6] Christian nationalism draws political support from the broader Christian right, but not exclusively, given the broad support for observing Christmas as a national holiday in many countries. [7]

By country

Canada

The COVID-19 pandemic saw a rise in Christian nationalist activity with many groups using anti-lockdown sentiments to expand their reach to more people. [8] The group Liberty Coalition Canada has garnered support from many elected politicians across Canada. [9] In their founding documents they argue that "it is only in Christianized nations that religious freedom has ever flourished." [10] Their rallies have attracted the support of Alex Jones and Canada First, a spin-off of Nick Fuentes' group America First. [11] Many of Liberty Coalition Canada's leaders are pastors who have racked up millions in potential fines for violating COVID protocols and in many cases express ultra-conservative views. [12]

Finland

The far-right and pro-Russian Power Belongs to the People (VKK) has been described as Christian nationalist by Helsingin Sanomat. [13] The party's parliamentary candidate [14]  Johan Bäckman and editor-in-chief of pro-VKK organ MV-media Janus Putkonen have recruited combatants for the Russian side in Ukraine, who have then after gone to the Russian Imperial Movement’s training camps in St. Petersburg and become fighters in the Russo-Ukrainian War. [15] [13] [16] [17] [18] [19] Sanan- ja uskonnonvapaus ry (Freedom of Speech and Religion Association) associated with MP Päivi Räsänen of Christian Democrats has also supported openly fascist candidates of Blue-and-Black Movement that seek to ban the LGBT movement and "non-native religions". The association also supports aforementioned VKK. [20] The Blue-and-Black movement itself is also inspired by the Christian fascist Patriotic People's Movement. [21]

Lebanon

In Lebanon, Christian nationalist groups and movements are often motivated by sectarian identity, as is ensrined in Lebanese Constitution. [22]

Palestine

The Arab Orthodox Movement, which sought to move the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem away from Hellenism and towards Arabism is often seen as a Christian nationalist and Palestinian nationalist movement within the Greek Orthodox Church in Palestine. [23]

Russia

President of Russia Vladimir Putin has been described as a global leader of the Christian nationalist and Christian right movements. [24] As President, Putin has increased the power of the Russian Orthodox Church and proclaimed his staunch belief in Eastern Orthodoxy, [25] as well as maintaining close contacts with Patriarchs of Moscow and all Rus' Alexy II and Kirill.

The Russian Imperial Movement is a prominent neo-Nazi Christian nationalist group that trains militants all over Europe and has recruited thousands of fighters for its paramilitary group, the Imperial Legion, which is participating in the war in Ukraine. The group also works with the Atomwaffen Division in order to network with and recruit extremists from the United States. [26] [27]

Scotland

In Scotland UK, the Scottish Family Party has been described as Christian nationalist. The party was formed as a push back movement, based on a rejection of LGBT+ topics being taught in schools, with the political party claiming it to be an overly sexualized topic and ideology. They believe it to be an attack on traditional Christian family values, promoted by the Scottish National Party.

South Africa

The future leader of the National Party and Apartheid Prime Minister of South Africa, BJ Vorster in 1942 declared: "We stand for Christian Nationalism which is an ally of National Socialism. You can call this anti-democratic principle dictatorship if you wish. In Italy, it is called Fascism; in Germany, National Socialism and in South Africa, Christian Nationalism." [28]

While the National Party was primarily concerned about the nationalist interest of Afrikaners, there was a strong adherence to Calvinist interpretations of Christianity as the bedrock of the state. Moreover, by advancing ideas of Christian Nationalism, the National Party could incorporate other "nations" in their programme of racial hierarchies and segregation. [29] The Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa provided much of the theological [30] and moral justification for Apartheid and the basis for racial hierarchy. [31]

The adjective commonly used in South Africa is "Christian national", without the "ist", e.g. Christian national education. [32] The term may be applied to any activity that combines Christian values with traditional values of Southern African Afrikaans speakers, although it is most commonly used to refer to a type of K12 education, and in modern usage it rarely refers to a governmental political view.[ citation needed ] The term is viewed positively by Afrikaans people,[ citation needed ] even those who strongly oppose Apartheid and fascism, although far-left and far-right non-Afrikaans political parties often use the term as a slur.[ citation needed ]

United Kingdom

After the Second World War, James Larratt Battersby led a group called Legion of Christian Reformers that had its headquarters in Kingdom House, River, West Sussex and published a journal called the Kingdom Herald. The group came to view Adolf Hitler as having been God's appointed warrior against "Mammon". [33] [34]

In May 2023 a National Conservatism Conference was held in the United Kingdom. Mission statement of the event read “The Bible should be read as the first among the sources of a shared Western civilization in schools and universities”, and “public life should be rooted in Christianity and its moral vision, which should be honored by the state and other institutions both public and private.” The event was described as Christian nationalist by Byline Times. Among the speakers were Conservative party MPs Michael Gove, Miriam Cates, Danny Kruger and Conservative peer and Brexit Secretary David Frost. [35]

In Northern Ireland, Ian Paisley led a Protestant fundamentalist party described as Christian nationalist, the Democratic Unionist Party, which had a considerable influence on the province's culture. [36] [37] For a time after the 2017 United Kingdom general election, the DUP provided confidence and supply to the governing Conservative Party, although this agreement provoked concern from socially liberal elements of the party about possible DUP influence on social policy. [38] Some Democratic Unionist Party politicians have called for creationism to be taught in state schools, [39] [40] and for museums to include creationism in their exhibits. [41] [42] In 2007, a DUP spokesman confirmed that these views were in line with party policy. [39]

United States

The Christian Liberty Party and the American Redoubt movement—both organized and inspired by members of the Constitution Party—are early 21st century examples of political tendencies which are rooted in Christian nationalism, with the latter advocating a degree of separatism. [43] [44] The New Columbia Movement is an organization in the United States that identifies as being aligned with Christian nationalism. [45] [46] Christian nationalists believe that the US is meant to be a Christian nation, and that it was founded as a Christian nation, and want to "take back" the US for God. [47] [48]

Author Bradley Onishi has described this theologically-infused political ideology as a "national renewal project that envisions a pure American body that is heterosexual, white, native-born, that speaks English as a first language, and that is thoroughly patriarchal." [44] Experts say that Christian-associated support for right-wing politicians and social policies, such as legislation which is related to immigration, gun control and poverty is best understood as Christian nationalism, rather than evangelicalism per se. [47] [49] Some studies of white evangelicals show that, among people who self-identify as evangelical Christians, the more they attend church, the more they pray, and the more they read the Bible, the less support they have for nationalist (though not socially conservative) policies. [49] Non-nationalistic evangelicals ideologically agree with Christian nationalists in areas such as gender roles, and sexuality. [49]

A study which was conducted in May 2022 showed that the strongest base of support for Christian nationalism comes from Republicans who identify as Evangelical or born again Christians. [50] [51] Of this demographic group, 78% are in favor of formally declaring that the United States should be a Christian nation, versus only 48% of Republicans overall. Age is also a factor, with over 70% of Republicans from the Baby Boomer and Silent Generations supporting the United States officially becoming a Christian nation. According to Politico, the polling also found that sentiments of white grievance are highly correlated with Christian nationalism: "White respondents who say that members of their race have faced more discrimination than others are most likely to embrace a Christian America. Roughly 59% of all Americans who say white people have been discriminated against ... favor declaring the U.S. a Christian nation, compared to 38% of all Americans." [50] [52]

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has referred to herself as a Christian nationalist. Fellow congresswomen Lauren Boebert and Mary Miller have also expressed support for Christian nationalism. [53] [54] Politician Doug Mastriano is a prominent figure in the fundamentalist Christian nationalist movement, and has called the separation of church and state a myth. [55] [56]

Andrew Torba, the CEO of the alt-tech platform Gab, supported Mastriano's failed 2022 bid for office, [57] in order to build a grass-roots Christian nationalist political movement to help "take back" government power for "the glory of God"; he has argued that "unapologetic Christian Nationalism is what will save the United States of America". [58] [59] Torba is also a proponent of the great replacement conspiracy theory, and he has said that "The best way to stop White genocide and White replacement, both of which are demonstrably and undeniably happening, is to get married to a White woman and have a lot of White babies". [58] White nationalist Nick Fuentes has also expressed support for Christian nationalism. [60] [61]

Author Katherine Stewart has called the combined ideology and political movement of Christian nationalism "an organized quest for power" and she says that Florida governor Ron DeSantis has identified with and promoted this system of values in order to gain votes in his bid for political advancement. [62] According to the Tampa Bay Times, DeSantis has also promoted a civics course for educators, which emphasized the belief that "the nation's founders did not desire a strict separation of state and church"; the teacher training program also "pushed a judicial theory, favored by legal conservatives like DeSantis, that requires people to interpret the Constitution as the framers intended it, not as a living, evolving document". [63] [64] [65] [51]

Some Christian nationalists also engage in spiritual warfare and militarized forms of prayers in order to defend and advance their beliefs and political agenda. [66] According to American Studies professor S. Jonathon O'Donnell: "A key idea in spiritual warfare is that demons don't only attack people, as in depictions of demonic possession, but also take control of places and institutions, such as journalism, academia, and both municipal and federal bureaucracies. By doing so, demons are framed as advancing social projects that spiritual warriors see as opposing God's plans. These include advances in reproductive and LGBTQ rights and tolerance for non-Christian religions (especially Islam)." [67]

January 6 US Capitol attack and election certification

In the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol, the term "Christian nationalism" has become synonymous with white Christian identity politics, a belief system that asserts itself as an integral part of American identity overall. [58] [68] The New York Times notes that historically, "Christian nationalism in America has ... encompassed extremist ideologies". [58] [69] Critics have argued that Christian nationalism promotes racist tendencies, male violence, anti-democratic sentiment, and revisionist history. [70] [71] Christian nationalism in the United States is also linked to political opposition to gun control laws and strong cultural support for interpretations of the Second Amendment that protect the right of individuals to keep and bear arms. [72]

Political analyst Jared Yates Sexton has said: "Republicans recognize that QAnon and Christian nationalism are invaluable tools" and that these belief systems "legitimize antidemocratic actions, political violence, and widespread oppression", which he calls an "incredible threat" that extends beyond Trumpism. [73]

The Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) released a 66-page report on February 9, 2022, titled "Christian Nationalism and the January 6, 2021 Insurrection." [74]  It chronicled the use of Christian imagery and language by protestors on January 6, detailed the "various nonprofit groups, lawmakers and clergy who worked together to adorn Jan. 6 and Donald Trump’s effort to overturn his electoral loss with theological fervor," and discussed the important role that race had to play. [75] The Congressional Freethought Caucus hosted a virtual briefing of the report on March 17, 2022, called "God is On Our Side: White Christian Nationalism and the Capitol Insurrection."  Speakers included Amanda Tyler, Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty; Dr. Samuel L. Perry, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Oklahoma; Dr. Jemar Tisby, speaker, historian, and author of The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism; and Andrew Seidel, Vice President of Strategic Communications at Americans United for the Separation of Church and State.  On March 18, 2022, Seidel delivered written testimony to the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, and opened by quoting a statement he originally made on September 19, 2019, at the Religion News Association conference in Las Vegas: "Christian Nationalism is the biggest threat to America today. An existential threat to a government of the people, for the people, and by the people." [76]

The Washington Post reported that God & Country , a documentary film produced by Rob Reiner, was released in early 2024 to "wake up churchgoing American Christians" to the "threat of anti-democratic religious extremism in the United States". [77]

Criticisms of significance

Responding to media analysis about the effects of Trumpism and Christian nationalism following the 2020 presidential election, Professor Daniel Strand, writing for The American Conservative , said that there was a "superficially Christian presence at the January 6 protest" and he criticized claims that Christian nationalism played a central role in the attack on the Capitol. He cited a University of Chicago study which found that "those arrested on January 6 were motivated by the belief that the election was stolen and [influenced by] what they call 'the great replacement' " theory. Strand says the study failed to mention "any explicit religious motivation, let alone theological beliefs about America being a Christian nation". [78] [79]

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

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  2. ↑ Bloomberg, Charles (1989). Christian Nationalism and the Rise of the Afrikaner Broederbond in South Africa, 1918-48. New York: Springer. p. xxiii-11. ISBN   978-1-349-10694-3.
  3. ↑ Jenkins, Jack (August 2, 2019). "Christian leaders condemn Christian nationalism in new letter". Religion News Service . Retrieved March 14, 2020. Christian nationalism demands Christianity be privileged by the State...
  4. ↑ Kymlicka, Will (April 19, 2018). "Is there a Christian Pluralist Approach to Immigration?". Comment Magazine. Retrieved March 14, 2020. As against both Christian nationalists who wanted an established church and French-republican-style secular nationalists who wanted a homogenous public square devoid of religion, Dutch pluralists led by Kuyper defended a model of institutional pluralism or "sphere sovereignty."
  5. ↑ Perry, Samuel L.; Whitehead, Andrew L. (2020). Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 7–10. ISBN   978-0-19-005789-3.
  6. ↑ Bean, Lydia (2016). The Politics of Evangelical Identity: Local Churches and Partisan Divides in the United States and Canada. Princeton, New Jersey and Woodstock, Oxfordshire: Princeton University Press. p. 152. ISBN   978-0-691-17370-2.
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  13. 1 2 "Tapaus Turtiainen". Helsingin Sanomat . January 10, 2021.
  14. ↑ "VKK-puolue yrittää saada dosentti Johan Bäckmanin eduskuntaan". Demokraatti . March 24, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Some 20 Finns fought against Ukraine in Donbas, facing no consequences in Finland – media". Euromaidan Press . May 13, 2024. "Johan Backman says that he continues to help Finns who have gone to Eastern Ukraine to fight. He does not feel responsible for the people he recruits." Johan Bäckman is an important central figure for Finnish fighters, who had organized their travel from Finland to the Donbas and engaged them in illegal activities there. Janus Kostia Putkonen arrived in Donbas from Moscow via Rostov, southern Russia, in March 2015.
  16. ↑ "Itä-Ukrainassa Venäjän puolesta taistelleet suomalaiset kehuskelevat kokemuksillaan – muualla Euroopassa vierastaistelijoita on tuomittu rikoksista". Finnish Broadcasting Company . January 12, 2022.
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  22. ↑ Malley, Muadth (2018). "The Lebanese Civil War and the Taif Accord: Conflict and Compromise Engendered by Institutionalized Sectarianism". The History Teacher. pp. 121–159.
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  24. ↑ Michel, Casey (February 9, 2017). "How Russia Became the Leader of the Global Christian Right". Politico . Retrieved March 7, 2022.
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  32. ↑ Pharos English-Afrikaans dictionary
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  34. ↑ The Kingdom Herald. Archived 18 January 2017 at the Wayback Machine Copac. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  35. ↑ "MPs links to Christian Nationalism Revealed". Byline Times . May 11, 2024.
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  37. ↑ Richard P. Davis, Mirror Hate: the Convergent Ideology of Northern Ireland paramilitaries, 1966–1992. Dartmouth, 1994. ISBN   1855215586 . (p.80)
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  39. 1 2 Lesley-Anne Henry (September 26, 2007). "Tussle of Biblical proportions over creationism in Ulster classrooms". Belfast Telegraph . Archived from the original on October 15, 2012. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
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  43. ↑ McKeen, Leah A D, "Canadian Christian Nationalism?: The Religiosity and Politics of the Christian Heritage Party of Canada" (2015). Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive). 1740.
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  47. 1 2 Bailey, Sarah Pulliam (October 26, 2020). "Seeking power in Jesus' name: Trump sparks a rise of Patriot Churches". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved November 12, 2020.
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  50. 1 2 Rouse, Stella; Telhami, Shibley (September 21, 2022). "Most Republicans Support Declaring the United States a Christian Nation". Politico. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  51. 1 2 Nichols, John (September 23, 2022). "Republicans Are Ready to Declare the United States a Christian Nation". The Nation. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  52. ↑ Smietana, Bob (September 23, 2022). "78% of Republican evangelicals want U.S. declared a Christian nation". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  53. ↑ Tyler, Amanda (July 27, 2022). "Opinion: Marjorie Taylor Greene's words on Christian nationalism are a wake-up call". CNN. Retrieved July 29, 2022. We need to be the party of nationalism and I'm a Christian, and I say it proudly, we should be Christian nationalists," Greene said in an interview while she was attending the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit in Florida. She is not alone in doing so. Greene's embrace of Christian nationalism follows closely after troubling remarks from Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert: "The church is supposed to direct the government, the government is not supposed to direct the church," she said at a church two days before her primary election (and victory) in late June 2022. "I'm tired of this separation of church and state junk.
  54. ↑ @Miller_Congress (July 10, 2022). "The "far-left atheist quest for power" has created a mental health crisis, a drug addiction crisis, a crime wave an…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  55. ↑ Dias, Elizabeth (July 8, 2022). "The Far-Right Christian Quest for Power: 'We Are Seeing Them Emboldened'". The New York Times. Mr. Mastriano's ascension in Pennsylvania is perhaps the most prominent example of right-wing candidates for public office who explicitly aim to promote Christian power in America. The religious right has long supported conservative causes, but this current wave seeks more: a nation that actively prioritizes their particular set of Christian beliefs and far-right views ...
  56. ↑ Smith, Peter; Bharath, Deepa (May 29, 2022). "Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns". Associated Press.
  57. ↑ Trip, Gabriel (July 27, 2022). "Doug Mastriano Faces Criticism Over His Backing From Antisemitic Ally". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 21, 2022. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  58. 1 2 3 4 Dias, Elizabeth (July 8, 2022). "The Far-Right Christian Quest for Power: 'We Are Seeing Them Emboldened'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 22, 2022. Retrieved November 24, 2022.
  59. ↑ Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (November 22, 2022). "A Lasting Legacy of Covid: Far-Right Platforms Spreading Health Myths". The New York Times. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  60. ↑ Shah, Areeba (January 28, 2023). "'Groyper' guru Nick Fuentes returns to Twitter (briefly): Hateful content keeps flowing". Salon. Retrieved January 31, 2023. Fuentes has repeatedly recited antisemitic tropes about alleged Jewish control of the media, and has called for embracing Christian nationalism as official policy in the United States.
  61. ↑ "They Love Jesus, Bon Iver, and Incels. Inside America's New Ultranationalist Youth Movement". Vice.com. June 7, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  62. ↑ Blumenfeld, Dr. Warren J. (January 24, 2023). "Ron DeSantis promotes the 'purity culture' of Christian Nationalism". LGBTQ Nation. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  63. ↑ Ceballos, Ana; Brugal, Summer (June 28, 2022). "Some teachers alarmed by Florida civics training approach on religion, slavery". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on October 6, 2022. A review of more than 200 pages of the state's presentations show that the founding fathers' intent and the 'misconceptions' about their thinking were a main theme of the training ... Several presentation slides emphasized that it was a 'misconception' that the 'Founders desired strict separation of church and state and the Founders only wanted to protect Freedom of worship.'
  64. ↑ Rozsa, Lori (July 2, 2022). "In trainings, Florida tells teachers that religion belongs in public life" . The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 15, 2022. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  65. ↑ "Florida training program: "Misconception" that founders wanted separation of church and state". Axios. July 2, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  66. ↑ McAlister, Elizabeth (January 2, 2016). "The militarization of prayer in America: White and Native American spiritual warfare". Journal of Religious and Political Practice. 2 (1): 114–130. doi: 10.1080/20566093.2016.1085239 . ISSN   2056-6093. S2CID   155833194.
  67. ↑ Kilgore, Ed (September 18, 2022). "Mixing Christianity With Nationalism Is a Recipe for Fascism". Intelligencer (blog). New York . Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  68. ↑ Dalsheim, Joyce; Starrett, Gregory (September 6, 2022). "Christian nationalism is getting written out of the story of January 6". The Conversation. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  69. ↑ Perry, Samuel (August 5, 2022). "After Trump, Christian nationalist ideas are going mainstream—despite a history of violence". The Conversation. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  70. ↑ Jones, Sarah (June 4, 2022). "White Christian Nationalism 'Is a Fundamental Threat to Democracy'". Intelligencer. Retrieved August 22, 2022. Combining research with data analysis, Gorski and Perry argue that white Christian nationalists share a set of common anti-democratic beliefs and principles. 'These are beliefs that ... reflect a desire to restore and privilege the myths, values, identity, and authority of a particular ethnocultural tribe,' they write. 'These beliefs add up to a political vision that privileges the tribe. And they seek to put other tribes in their proper place'.
  71. ↑ Blake, John (July 24, 2022). "An 'imposter Christianity' is threatening American democracy". CNN. Retrieved August 22, 2022. That ends-justify-the means approach is a key part of White Christian nationalism", says Du Mez. It's why so many rallied behind former President Trump on January 6 ... But with few exceptions, White Christian nationalists do not accept this 'militant masculinity' when exhibited by Black, Middle Eastern and Latino men ... Aggression by people of color 'is seen as a threat to the stability of home and nation,' she writes.
  72. ↑ Perry, Samuel L. (May 25, 2022). "School Shootings Confirm That Guns Are the Religion of the Right". Time. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  73. ↑ Conley, Julia (September 21, 2022). "Majority of Republican Voters Say US Should Be Declared a 'Christian Nation'". Common Dreams. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  74. ↑ Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty; Freedom From Religion Foundation (February 9, 2022). Report on Christian nationalism and the January 6 insurrection (Report). Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  75. ↑ Boorstein, Michelle (March 18, 2022). "Researchers warn that Christian Nationalists are becoming more radical and are targeting voting". Washington Post. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  76. ↑ Seidel, Andrew (March 18, 2022). "Christian Nationalism and the Capitol Insurrection" (PDF). Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  77. ↑ Boorstein, Michelle (January 12, 2024). "'God & Country' film spotlights Christian nationalism's threat to democracy". The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  78. ↑ Strand, Daniel (August 24, 2022). "'Christian Nationalism' Didn't Cause January 6". The American Conservative. Archived from the original on October 6, 2022. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  79. ↑ Pape, Dr. Robert A.; Ruby, Dr. Kevin (July 22, 2022). "Understanding the Insurrectionist Movement: January 6 and Beyond". Chicago Project on Security & Threats at the University of Chicago. Archived from the original on October 6, 2022. Retrieved October 6, 2022.

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