Religion, Politics and the Christian Right

[CrackSmokeRepublican]

Religion, Politics and the Christian Right
 by Mark Lewis Taylor


The power and influence of America's Christian Right is undeniable, so of course there have been innumerable books seeking to explain how the movement developed and what it means for American politics. Most such books focus on religion and religious explanations, yet we must remember that this is an American movement — there isn't anything quite like it elsewhere. Explanations must, therefore, take American political and social history into account.

The fact that America's Christian Right is as much American as it is Christian (if not more so) is often ignored or forgotten. This is, I believe, part of a general attitude which fails to acknowledge the degree to which religion is situated in a historical and cultural context. Wherever you find religion, you find that it influences local culture while local culture influences it. Thus, when trying to understand and explain religion, local culture and history must be a significant part of the process.

This is what Mark Lewis Taylor, the Maxwell M. Upson Professor of Theology and Culture at Princeton Theological Seminary, does in his book Religion, Politics, and the Christian Right: Post-9/11 Powers in American Empire. Taylor's basic argument is that militant, nationalistic Christianity in America is the latest manifestation of the tradition of political romanticism. This tradition has, in turn, excused or justified imperial aspirations and the use of military force.

This book is obviously not a broad critique of Christianity in general or even just conservative American Christianity. Taylor's focus is on a subset of conservative evangelicalism which has adopted a program of political rule alongside its evangelistic mission and which has formed a political alliance with neoconservatives who seek to impose American rule around the globe.

Either alone might be a nuisance, but the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, provided the context for the two to work together. Christian theocrats started to see more value in the use of military might on the international scene; neoconservatives saw how the messianic fervor of the Christian Right could be politically useful.

Together they have adopted the premise that using American military power abroad, even in an imperialistic manner, is a moral good because it is combined with American ideals of liberty and Christian belief. p]The political romanticism which Taylor focuses on involves an uncritical, unquestioning reverence for America's founders, American law, and American ideals. In a religious context, it includes a belief that America is favored by God to spread democracy and Christianity around the world. In a secular context, it includes a general opposition to modern innovations and changes in social structures of power or privilege.

Celebrating the nation's past and reverence for its history are always critical, however — and in this way political romanticism opposes criticism of the past, questioning history, and efforts to make improvements in society. Romanticism is a mythologizing of the past, holding it up as superior to the present. Political romanticism seeks to translate this mythologizing into a political agenda and is thus almost always a very conservative, even reactionary, movement.

As many votes as the Christian Right has, it doesn't have the money and social influence necessary to really win elections. This is where their alliance with wealthy conservatives, neoconservatives, and corporate interests has been so critical. These other groups may or may not share the political and religious romanticism of the Christian Right, but they do find the votes useful for political purposes.

The anti-liberal consequences of this political alliance are the animating force behind America's current international policies as well as many aspects of the Republican Party's domestic agenda. Taylor makes suggestions for reigniting a more revolutionary liberalism in America in order to reduce the threat of anti-liberal romanticism. Politically, though, it might ultimately come down to breaking the alliance between the Christian Right and their various corporate and neoconservative allies.

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