"Evangelical" in the US is used to refer to conservative Christians who identified with some form of fundamentalism or "born-again" beliefs. In Europe, it's used to refer to Protestants generally.
Christian Right leaders and Republicans closely aligned with them currently cite the perennial "pro-life" (anti-abortion, anti-women's-rights) argument along with Trump's decision to move the American Embassy to Jerusalem. It is somewhat ironic that anti-abortion and support of conservative governments in Israel have become standard Christian Right talking points. Because condemnation of abortion is nowhere mentioned in the Christian Bible. And the "Christian Zionist" view that supports rightwing Israeli governments is based on a very imaginative reading of Christian Scripture, the current form of which dates back to John Nelson Darby (1800-1882), a Irish cleric who founded the Plymouth Brethren sect.
Erin Prophet's article focuses in particular on authoritarian tendencies among Pentecostals, whose religious practice includes "prophecy" and speaking-in-tongues rituals. (The term "charisma" he uses refers to Pentecostalism.) He writes:
The study of charisma, on the contrary, offers insight into his continuing popularity as well as to its potential end. Trump's appeal eventually came into focus for me when I realized that he had fashioned himself as the savior he knew such people were seeking by capitalizing on the charismatic potential of white Christian nationalism, which overlaps with evangelicalism. Although Trump and his inner circle view the prophets with some suspicion, there are clear resonances between the prophets and Trump's public image. His MAGA slogan ("Make America Great Again") echoes [Mark] Taylor's 2011 prediction that God would use Trump "to bring honor, respect, and restoration to America."Christian Right groups really do stress the need to follow supposedly annoited leaders and actively discourages critical, fact-based thinking and resoning. Rebecca Klein discusses the role of fundamentalist sectarian Christian schools, which the Republican Party actively Voucher Schools Championed By Betsy DeVos Can Teach Whatever They Want. Turns Out They Teach Lies. Huffpost 12/20/2017.
Other [charismatic/Pentecostal] prophets predicted that Trump would stand up to banking elites, and in 2015 [reality-show star Kim] Clement declared that the president elected in 2016 would be a "strong figure" who would "clean up the mess" in government. Like a canny charismatic leader, Trump sotto voce embraced the authority of these predictions, for example, by promising to "drain the swamp." The prophets have continued to support Trump through his presidency, even going so far as to predict a second term. They excuse his failings by portraying him as a morally weak and imperfect tool that is yet being used by God.
But charismatic authority is inherently unstable, and unforeseen events may expose a leader's weaknesses. The power of charisma ends when the leader's failures become so apparent that followers have no choice but to withdraw their identification. The events of spring 2020, including the pandemic, natural disasters and economic crisis, have whittled down his support, although the base remains energized. The mysterious "Q" at the heart of QAnon is using elements of the prophecies to shore up the president's charismatic authority. [my emphasis]
Chrissy Stroop isn't optmistic that appeals from more moderate, non-fundamentalist religious leaders will directly sway the view of the authoritarians ('Respectable' Evangelicals Can't Rein in Evangelical Conspiracy Theorists Religion Dispatches 07/24/2020):
It’s easy enough for these high-profile, “civil” and “respectable” evangelicals to scold their followers for “gullibility” — which, according to [Christianity Today’s Ed] Stetzer is “not a spiritual gift” — or, similarly, to raise concerns about evangelicals’ “witness,” that is, how their reputation in society may bear on their ability to convert others. Not that they will listen — a solid majority of white evangelicals don’t see their support for Donald Trump as harming their witness at all.Stroop stresses the role that promoting irrational fear of specific outgroups of other people is often central to fundamentalist religious teaching and education:
It seems to be much more difficult, however, for these men to dig deeper into the theological roots of evangelical authoritarianism and abuse. Doing so would mean they would have to become aware of their own complicity in the very real physical and psychological harm done to those of us “raised up” to “take back this country for Christ” in the thick of the culture wars.
Take [David] French’s reference to schools. Early last year, I sparked a media firestorm by launching the hashtag #ExposeChristianSchools in order to highlight the extent to which evangelical and fundamentalist schools in particular, like the ones I attended as a child, perpetuate abuse, racism, misogyny, and anti-LGBTQ animus as they indoctrinate children in “alternative facts.” [my emphasis]
... how can you expect evangelicals to listen to your exhortation to stop believing and spreading conspiracy theories when you [i.e., NeverTrumper evangelicals like David French] simultaneously defend the very institutions that teach evangelical children to be suspicious of any and all experts from outside the evangelical community (at least on matters like evolution, psychology, gender and sexuality, abortion, and climate science), which would, of course, mean the majority of genuine experts in most fields? And yet this is precisely what evangelical schools (which usually brand themselves Christian schools or Christian academies) do, along with promoting a heavy dose of Christian nationalism. [my emphasis]Stroop has also been profiling the role of the evangelial bloc in the Republican Party in a series of posts in The Conversationalist, including “Jesus is my vaccine”: culture wars, coronavirus, and the 2020 election 04/30/2020:
White evangelicals have consistently been Donald Trump’s most supportive demographic since his 2016 victory. Even as the president’s overall approval numbers decline after the initial “rally ‘round the flag” effect from the COVID-19 pandemic that he is egregiously (and arguably criminally) mishandling, white evangelicals remain steadfastly by his side. The pandemic has itself become a site of the culture wars that the anti-democratic U.S. Christian Right has been waging relentlessly for four decades as it attempts to hold back the progress of civil rights and equality in America. And Trump, who has demonstrated his willingness to pursue their culture wars agenda, can count on unwavering support from white evangelicals in the upcoming presidential election. Our analytical focus should be on why and how authoritarian evangelicals have managed to gain so much power and what can be done to fight back, as opposed to hand wringing over their willingness to partner with an impious strongman. [my emphasis]Stroop does seem to have a real sense of mission in his criticisms of his former brand of faith. But he also knows his subject:
[Trump's] evangelical base remains unwavering in its support for one simple reason: Trump gives authoritarian Christians practically everything they want. He validates their worst culture warring impulses and pursues the Christian Right’s agenda more comprehensively and vigorously than any previous president, including George W. Bush. Not only has Trump been stacking the federal courts and the federal bureaucracy with young far right ideologues; he also moved the United States Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to play to evangelicals “end times” beliefs. [my emphasis]
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