Christian Nationalism and Political Violence
Christian Nationalism and Political Violence
Christian nationalism is a political and cultural ideology that connects American national identity with a particular understanding of Christianity. Research collected on Christian nationalism and political violence examines whether stronger identification with this worldview is associated with greater acceptance of political violence, authoritarian government, armed political action, punitive social control, conspiracy theories, racial and religious exclusion, and challenges to democratic institutions.
The research does not establish that Christians generally, religious conservatives generally, or everyone who holds Christian-nationalist beliefs supports political violence. Indeed, national surveys included in the research consistently find that most Americans reject political violence. Instead, the literature investigates statistical relationships between particular Christian-nationalist beliefs and attitudes toward violence, coercion, political authority, and perceived threats.
A recurring finding across the material is that Christian nationalism can become especially relevant to political violence when it is combined with other attitudes, including perceived victimization, racial or religious threat, conspiracy beliefs, authoritarianism, apocalyptic expectations, strong partisan identities, gun-owner identity, or beliefs that political struggles have divine significance.
Empirical Research on Christian Nationalism and Political Violence
One of the central empirical studies in the literature is Miles T. Armaly, David T. Buckley, and Adam M. Enders' Christian Nationalism and Political Violence: Victimhood, Racial Identity, Conspiracy, and Support for the Capitol Attacks. Their research found an association between Christian nationalism and support for political violence following the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack. The relationship was particularly important when Christian-nationalist beliefs occurred alongside perceived victimhood, white identity, and conspiratorial beliefs.
Armaly, Buckley, and Enders therefore describe political violence as arising from an interaction among several identities and grievances rather than treating Christian nationalism as an isolated explanation.
Subsequent studies have expanded this research. Donald Haider-Markel, Brooklyn Walker, and Abigail Vegter examined the relationship among Christian nationalism, gun ownership, gun-owner identity, and support for political violence. Their research found independent associations involving Christian nationalism and gun identity, as well as an interaction between the two.
Other nationally representative studies of political violence have examined Christian nationalism alongside authoritarianism, conspiracism, prejudice, QAnon beliefs, approval of extremist movements, firearms, and partisan identity. This broader literature suggests that political violence is best understood as a multidimensional phenomenon rather than the product of any single religious or political belief.
National Surveys and Support for Political Violence
National survey research provides another major portion of the evidence.
Public Religion Research Institute surveys repeatedly report that Americans classified as Christian-nationalism adherents or sympathizers are more likely than skeptics or rejecters to agree with statements suggesting that political violence might sometimes be necessary to protect or save the country.
At the same time, these surveys emphasize that most Americans reject political violence. The research therefore identifies differences in the relative level of support among ideological groups rather than suggesting that political violence represents a majority position.
PRRI's state-level surveys have also examined Christian nationalism alongside right-wing authoritarianism, belief in strong political leaders, immigration attitudes, patriarchy, election legitimacy, expectations of political upheaval, and willingness to disregard democratic norms.
The repeated appearance of these relationships across multiple survey years has made authoritarianism and democratic legitimacy major themes in research on Christian nationalism and political violence.
January 6 and Christian-Nationalist Mobilization
The January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol became a major focus of scholarship because Christian symbols, prayers, banners, prophetic claims, and spiritual-warfare rhetoric were visible among portions of the crowd.
The Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and Freedom From Religion Foundation produced an extensive report, Christian Nationalism and the January 6, 2021, Insurrection, documenting organizations, religious rhetoric, events, networks, symbols, and individuals connected with Christian-nationalist mobilization surrounding January 6.
The report describes Christian nationalism as one of several ideological currents involved in the events rather than as a description of every participant.
News investigations and academic analyses documented crosses, Christian flags, public prayer, biblical imagery, claims of divine authorization, prophecies about Donald Trump, spiritual-warfare language, and beliefs that political opponents represented forces of evil.
Researchers have subsequently studied January 6 not only as an episode of political violence but also as an example of how religious ritual and political identity can become intertwined.
Sacred Politics and Public Ritual
Research on political ritual adds another dimension to the subject.
Joel Day's research on Christian Nationalism as a Social Practice: Prayer, Violence, and the Politics of Public Ritual examines prayer during January 6 and militia-associated demonstrations. The study considers how public religious ritual can reinforce collective identity and give political grievances sacred significance.
From this perspective, Christian nationalism is not merely a set of responses to survey questions. It can also operate through symbols, ceremonies, prayers, flags, religious narratives, and collective performances.
When political struggles are framed as part of a divine conflict between good and evil, ordinary political compromise can become more difficult because political disagreement may be understood as a spiritual or existential confrontation.
This does not mean religious ritual inherently produces violence. Rather, the literature examines circumstances in which religious narratives may legitimize political action, strengthen group solidarity, or portray political conflicts as sacred struggles.
Conspiracy Theories, Victimhood, and Perceived Threat
Conspiracy beliefs appear repeatedly in the research.
Brooklyn Walker and Abigail Vegter found Christian nationalism associated with generalized conspiracy thinking, with biblical literalism strengthening that relationship in their study. Other research examines Christian nationalism alongside QAnon beliefs, election conspiracy theories, distrust of institutions, perceived persecution, and expectations of national catastrophe.
Perceived victimization is another recurring factor. Individuals who believe their religious, racial, cultural, or political group is losing its rightful position may become more receptive to claims that extraordinary action is necessary.
The research therefore frequently describes a pathway involving:
- a belief that the nation possesses a divinely ordained identity;
- a perception that this identity is under serious threat;
- distrust of institutions believed to have permitted or caused that threat;
- conspiracy narratives explaining political or cultural change;
- identification of threatening out-groups or political enemies; and
- increased willingness to consider extraordinary or coercive political measures.
This pattern should not be interpreted as a deterministic sequence. Most people experiencing political or cultural grievances do not engage in violence. Instead, researchers examine how combinations of beliefs may increase acceptance of violent or anti-democratic responses.
Apocalypticism and Spiritual Warfare
Some research focuses specifically on apocalyptic expectations.
James A. Piazza's research examines Christian nationalism, apocalypticism, hostility toward out-groups, and support for violent extremism. Apocalyptic narratives can portray political events as signs of catastrophic national or spiritual collapse, potentially increasing the perceived stakes of political conflict.
Related reporting documents the use of "spiritual warfare" language in some Christian-nationalist networks. Political opponents may be described not simply as people with competing policy preferences but as agents of evil, demonic forces, or participants in a cosmic struggle.
Researchers and religious commentators represented in the source material have raised concerns that such framing may reduce the legitimacy of political compromise and encourage the belief that extraordinary resistance is morally justified.
Gun Culture and Political Violence
Firearms constitute another significant area of research.
Earlier studies found Christian nationalism associated with opposition to gun-control policies and with symbolic understandings of gun rights connected to American identity, freedom, and national decline.
More recent research examines the intersection of Christian nationalism and gun-owner identity. Haider-Markel, Walker, and Vegter found that strong gun-owner identity can interact with Christian nationalism in predicting support for political violence.
The literature does not establish that gun ownership itself causes political violence. Instead, it examines how firearms can acquire symbolic political meaning when incorporated into narratives about freedom, masculinity, self-defense, government tyranny, religious identity, or national restoration.
Investigations of some Christian-nationalist and conspiracy-oriented political networks also document firearms, military imagery, militia culture, and rhetoric concerning armed resistance.
Authoritarianism and Social Control
Christian nationalism has also been studied in relation to authoritarian attitudes.
Joshua Davis' Enforcing Christian Nationalism found associations between Christian nationalism and support for capital punishment, harsher criminal penalties, and government crackdowns on perceived troublemakers.
Later research examines Christian nationalism alongside right-wing authoritarianism, preferences for strong political leaders, obedience, corporal punishment, policing, and willingness to allow leaders to violate democratic norms during national emergencies.
Research by Samuel Perry and Joshua Grubbs examines whether national emergencies increase tolerance among Christian nationalists for leaders bypassing democratic restrictions.
Christopher Seto's research on law enforcement adds further complexity. It suggests that support for law enforcement among Christian nationalists may depend partly on whether state power is perceived as protecting their political or cultural in-group or restraining it.
The broader theme is therefore not simply support for government power. Rather, some research suggests that attitudes toward coercive institutions may depend on who is perceived as benefiting from or being targeted by that power.
Race, White Identity, and Political Violence
Race is a major component of the scholarly literature on American Christian nationalism.
Research has found associations between Christian nationalism and white racial solidarity, opposition to interracial marriage, perceptions of racial inequality, attitudes toward police violence, and beliefs concerning America's racial and religious identity.
Samuel Perry, Andrew Whitehead, Joshua Davis, and other researchers have examined how Christian-nationalist beliefs can intersect with attitudes concerning race and policing. Other scholarship conceptualizes white Christian nationalism as a historical fusion of religious identity, national chosenness, racial hierarchy, and political power.
Armaly, Buckley, and Enders found that white identity and perceived victimhood played important roles in the relationship between Christian nationalism and support for the January 6 attack.
This scholarship generally treats Christian nationalism and white nationalism as analytically distinct phenomena while examining areas where religious, national, and racial identities can overlap.
Religious Minorities and Out-Group Boundaries
Research also examines attitudes toward religious minorities.
Studies have found associations between Christian nationalism and negative attitudes toward Muslims and Islam. Nilay Saiya and Stuti Manchanda's quantitative research examined Christian nationalism and violence against religious minorities in the United States and reported a relationship between political empowerment of Christian-nationalist rhetoric and attacks against religious minorities.
Other comparative research considers how religious-nationalist movements construct minorities as outsiders whose loyalty, citizenship, or cultural legitimacy may be questioned.
These findings connect political violence research to a broader literature about social boundaries. Christian nationalism often involves disputes over who counts as an authentic member of the nation and which religious traditions, racial groups, immigrants, or cultural communities belong within the national identity.
Extremism, Militias, and Radicalization
The uploaded material also examines movements on the more explicitly extremist edges of religious nationalism.
Historical research documents Christian Identity, a racist and antisemitic religious ideology associated with white-supremacist organizations, armed compounds, terrorism, and political violence. Christian Identity is distinct from the much broader population categorized by researchers as Christian nationalists, but it represents one historical example of religion, racial nationalism, apocalypticism, and violent extremism becoming fused.
Contemporary reporting also examines Christian-nationalist rhetoric within networks involving election denial, QAnon, militia movements, white nationalism, and antigovernment conspiracy theories.
The ReAwaken America Tour and related political networks have attracted particular attention because reporting documented combinations of Christian-nationalist rhetoric, election conspiracy theories, firearms, spiritual-warfare language, and claims that American politics represents a struggle between good and evil.
Researchers generally distinguish these explicitly extremist networks from the larger population holding some Christian-nationalist beliefs.
Political Violence and Democratic Institutions
Research on Christian nationalism increasingly places political violence within the broader issue of democratic legitimacy.
Political systems depend in part on citizens accepting election results, recognizing the legitimacy of political opposition, permitting peaceful transfers of power, and accepting institutional limits on leaders.
Studies included in the source material examine Christian nationalism in relation to election distrust, strong-leader preferences, willingness to permit violations of democratic norms, conspiracy beliefs, political polarization, and acceptance of political violence.
This does not mean that every person holding Christian-nationalist beliefs rejects democracy. Survey measures instead show variation across populations, with stronger Christian-nationalist identification frequently associated with higher levels of some authoritarian or anti-democratic attitudes.
Conversely, PRRI surveys report that people categorized as Christian-nationalism skeptics or rejecters show lower levels of support for political violence than adherents.
Political Violence Versus Actual Violent Behavior
An important distinction throughout this research concerns the difference between support for violence and committing violence.
Many studies measure agreement with survey statements about whether political violence might be justified under hypothetical circumstances. Such questions measure attitudes, not behavior.
Even when a group demonstrates higher average support for political violence, only a fraction of respondents may express such support, and a still smaller number would necessarily be willing to participate personally in violence.
Some recent national surveys explicitly distinguish approval of political violence from respondents' stated willingness to commit violent acts themselves.
Consequently, research finding an association between Christian nationalism and support for political violence should not be interpreted as demonstrating that Christian nationalists generally engage in political violence.
Correlation, Causation, and Methodological Debate
The research also contains important methodological disagreements.
Christian nationalism is typically measured through survey questions concerning whether the United States should be declared a Christian nation, whether the federal government should advocate Christian values, whether Christianity should receive a privileged role in public life, and related propositions.
Scholars debate precisely what these measures capture. They may reflect religious identity, racial identity, political conservatism, partisan loyalty, authoritarian attitudes, historical understandings of the United States, or combinations of these factors.
Researchers frequently attempt to control statistically for political ideology, party identification, religious attendance, biblical interpretation, race, education, age, gender, and other characteristics. Nevertheless, observational survey research generally demonstrates associations rather than simple direct causation.
Some scholars therefore caution against treating Christian nationalism as a single uniform ideology or assuming that every statistical correlation demonstrates that Christian nationalism itself directly causes violence.
Historical Context
Religiously justified political violence in the United States predates the contemporary Christian-nationalism debate.
Historical research in the uploaded material examines Christian Identity, militia movements, racial violence, anti-abortion violence, religious defenses of racial hierarchy, national chosenness, and apocalyptic political movements.
Mark Juergensmeyer's 1998 discussion of Christian Violence in America, for example, examined abortion-clinic attacks, militia movements, Christian Identity, conspiracy narratives, and religiously framed violence years before January 6.
More recent historical scholarship places contemporary Christian nationalism within longer traditions involving ideas of America as a divinely chosen nation, racial hierarchy, westward expansion, political authority, masculinity, militarism, and resistance to perceived national decline.
Historical continuity does not mean that contemporary Christian nationalism is identical to earlier extremist movements. Rather, historians examine how recurring religious and political narratives are adapted to new circumstances.
Comparative and International Perspectives
Although most of the uploaded material focuses on the United States, comparative scholarship shows that religious nationalism is not exclusively American.
Research examines Christian nationalism and Christian civilizationalism in Europe, Africa, Latin America, and other regions, as well as comparisons with Hindu and other religious-nationalist movements.
John Ishiyama's research on Christian nationalism and attitudes toward democracy in Africa extends the study of religious nationalism beyond the United States and examines relationships with support for democratic and authoritarian forms of government.
Comparative scholarship helps researchers distinguish features that are specifically American from broader dynamics of religious nationalism, including national chosenness, majority-group identity, political exclusion, threatened status, and the sacralization of political authority.
Christianity and Christian Nationalism
The literature generally distinguishes Christianity as a religion from Christian nationalism as a political ideology.
Many Christian leaders, churches, theologians, and organizations represented in the source material explicitly oppose Christian nationalism. Some Christian organizations have produced major reports documenting Christian-nationalist participation in January 6 and have organized campaigns criticizing attempts to merge Christianity with national political power.
Christian nationalism therefore should not be treated as synonymous with Christianity, evangelicalism, religious conservatism, Republican identification, or ordinary participation by Christians in politics.
Likewise, religious belief alone does not explain political violence. The research instead examines particular combinations of national identity, religion, political grievance, perceived threat, racial identity, conspiracism, authoritarianism, and attitudes toward political power.
Conclusion
The research on Christian nationalism and political violence identifies a recurring association between stronger Christian-nationalist beliefs and greater acceptance of political violence, authoritarian leadership, punitive social control, conspiracy narratives, and challenges to democratic norms. These relationships become especially important in studies examining perceived victimhood, racial identity, apocalyptic expectations, gun-owner identity, political conspiracy theories, and beliefs that political conflicts possess divine significance.
January 6 became a central case study because Christian symbols, prayer, prophecy, spiritual-warfare rhetoric, election conspiracy theories, and political militancy appeared together within portions of the movement attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election result.
At the same time, the research requires important qualifications. Most Americans reject political violence; support for violence is not equivalent to participation in violence; Christian nationalism is not synonymous with Christianity; and Christian nationalists are not a uniform population. Much of the empirical literature establishes statistical associations rather than demonstrating simple causal relationships.
Taken together, the scholarship portrays political violence as emerging most clearly where several factors converge: exclusionary national identity, perceptions of existential threat, distrust of political institutions, conspiratorial explanations, authoritarian preferences, rigid in-group and out-group boundaries, and narratives that portray political conflict as a sacred struggle. Christian nationalism is examined within this larger network of identities, grievances, beliefs, and political conditions rather than as a single sufficient cause of violence.
Empirical Research on Christian Nationalism and Political Violence
1. | Christopher H. Seto | Criminology | August 6, 2026
Finds Christian-nationalist attitudes toward law enforcement vary substantially according to whether policing is perceived as controlling an out-group or restraining the ideological in-group.
2. | David E. Campbell and Geoffrey C. Layman | Politics and Religion | July 13, 2026
Backlash to Christian Nationalism: The Impact of the January 6th Insurrection on Americans' Religiosity and Political Partisanship. Uses panel data to examine how Americans reacted to Christian-nationalist imagery displayed during the Capitol attack.
3. | David E. Campbell and Geoffrey C. Layman | University of Notre Dame | 2026
University research page for the study documenting religious and partisan backlash associated with perceptions of Christian-nationalist imagery during January 6.
4. | Donald P. Haider-Markel, Abigail Vegter, and Brooklyn Walker | Religion in Public | April 30, 2026
Christian Nationalism, Gun Owner Identity, and Support for Political Violence. Authors summarize evidence that Christian nationalism and strong gun-owner identity interact to produce especially high levels of support for political violence.
An Army for God: Gun Ownership, Christian Nationalism, and Support for Political Violence. Finds Christian nationalism, gun ownership, and gun-owner identity independently and interactively associated with greater support for political violence.
6. | Paul A. Djupe and Brooklyn Walker | Politics and Religion | March 26, 2026
The Weakness of Anti-Christian Nationalism. Finds Christian nationalism can override pluralistic religious orientations when respondents perceive substantial political or cultural threat.
7. | James A. Piazza | Defence and Peace Economics | January 10, 2026
Christian Nationalism, Apocalypticism, Outgroup Hate, and Support for Violent Extremism. Examines whether apocalyptic expectations help explain the association between Christian nationalism and support for political violence, emphasizing perceived societal collapse, threat, and hostility toward outgroups.
8. | Garen Wintemute et al. | Injury Epidemiology / PubMed Central | November 2025
The MAGA Movement and Political Violence in 2024. Examines political violence alongside Christian nationalism, QAnon, authoritarianism, conspiracism, prejudice, and firearm-related attitudes.
9. | Garen Wintemute et al. | Injury Epidemiology | November 19, 2025
National survey finding stronger endorsement of several political-violence measures among MAGA Republicans while distinguishing endorsement of violence from stated personal willingness to commit it.
10. | Joel Day | Terrorism and Political Violence | September 11, 2025
Christian Nationalism as a Social Practice: Prayer, Violence, and the Politics of Public Ritual. Examines prayer and ritual at January 6 and militia-linked demonstrations as practices capable of sacralizing political conflict.
11. | John Ishiyama | Politics and Religion | September 15, 2025
Christian Nationalism and Attitudes About Democracy in Africa. Comparative evidence finds Christian-nationalist attitudes associated with lower support for democracy and greater receptiveness to authoritarian alternatives.
12. | Gabriele Dushaj | University of Chicago | June 2025
Scapegoated Muslims: How Christian and Hindu Nationalists Racialize Religious Minorities. Comparative research examines rhetoric that racializes minorities and may facilitate or justify discrimination and violence.
13. | Samuel L. Perry et al. | Social Forces | February 23, 2025
The Religion of White Identity Politics: Christian Nationalism and White Racial Solidarity. Finds Christian nationalism strongly associated with several forms of white racial consciousness and solidarity among white Americans.
14. | Samuel L. Perry | Social Forces | 2025
Order Begins at Home: Christian Nationalism and Control Over Children. Finds Christian nationalism associated with preferences for obedience and support for corporal punishment, situating these attitudes within broader authoritarian approaches to social control.
15. | Garen Wintemute et al. | Injury Epidemiology / PubMed Central | 2025
Approval of Extreme Right-Wing Organizations and Social Movements and Support for Political Violence in the United States. National survey includes approval of Christian nationalism among movements examined in relation to willingness to endorse political violence.
16. | Garen Wintemute et al. | Injury Epidemiology | 2025
Publisher version of a nationally representative study connecting strong approval of several extremist or anti-democratic movements with elevated acceptance of political violence.
Christian Nationalism and Political Violence 2021 Survey. Public research dataset containing measures of Christian nationalism, political violence, conspiracy theories, religion, victimhood, and related attitudes.
18. | Samuel L. Perry and Joshua B. Grubbs | Politics and Religion | September 19, 2024
Christian Nationalism and Support for Leaders Violating Democratic Norms During National Emergencies. Examines willingness to permit executives to bypass democratic restraints under conditions of national crisis.
19. | Nilay Saiya and Stuti Manchanda | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion | September 2, 2024
Christian Nationalism and Violence Against Religious Minorities in the United States: A Quantitative Analysis. State-level longitudinal analysis finds political empowerment of Christian-nationalist rhetoric associated with attacks against religious minorities.
20. | Jesse Smith | Sociological Forum | August 11, 2024
Old Wine in New Wineskins. Critical review of scholarship linking Christian nationalism, authoritarianism, and religiopolitical conflict, warning against essentialist interpretations and highlighting methodological debates.
21. | Brooklyn Walker and Abigail Vegter | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion | May 8, 2023
Christ, Country, and Conspiracies? Finds Christian nationalism associated with generalized conspiracy thinking, with biblical literalism strengthening the relationship.
22. | Miles T. Armaly, David T. Buckley, and Adam M. Enders | Political Behavior | January 4, 2022
Christian Nationalism and Political Violence: Victimhood, Racial Identity, Conspiracy, and Support for the Capitol Attacks. Survey research conducted after January 6 finds Christian nationalism associated with support for political violence, with the relationship especially strong when combined with perceived victimhood, white identity, and support for QAnon.
23. | Miles T. Armaly, David T. Buckley, and Adam M. Enders | PubMed | 2022
Bibliographic and abstract record for research finding that Christian nationalism's relationship with support for political violence is conditioned by white identity, victimhood, and conspiratorial beliefs.
24. | Miles T. Armaly, David T. Buckley, and Adam M. Enders | Political Behavior / PubMed Central | 2022
Open-access version of the major study examining Christian nationalism, conspiracy beliefs, racial identity, perceived victimization, and support for the January 6 Capitol attack.
25. | Alexandra Filindra and Noah J. Kaplan | Journal of Politics | 2019
The Political Weaponization of Gun Owners. Examines how gun ownership was cultivated as a political social identity, providing useful background for research linking gun identity and Christian nationalism with support for political violence.
National Surveys, Democracy, and Authoritarianism
26. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 17, 2026
Updated 50-state survey finds Christian-nationalism adherents more likely than other groups to support political violence and score highly on right-wing authoritarianism.
27. | PRRI | Public Religion Research Institute | February 17, 2026
Expert discussion of Christian nationalism, authoritarianism, political violence, state differences, immigration, and related findings from the 2025 American Values Atlas.
28. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | January 2026
National study of political violence finds support consistently highest among Christian-nationalism adherents and lowest among rejecters, while most Americans overall reject violence.
29. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | January 2026
Full report examining violent political rhetoric, firearms, hate symbols, partisan responsibility, religion, and Christian-nationalist attitudes.
30. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | 2026
Reviews evidence on white evangelical Christianity, Christian nationalism, authoritarianism, apocalyptic beliefs, and support for political violence.
31. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | June 18, 2025
Examines charismatic prophecy, Christian nationalism, political identity, and expressed justification for political violence following politically motivated shootings in Minnesota.
32. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 4, 2025
Finds Christian-nationalism adherents and sympathizers more likely than skeptics and rejecters to say violence might be needed to save the country.
33. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 4, 2025
Summarizes state-level relationships among Christian nationalism, electoral behavior, belief that political outcomes are divinely ordained, and support for political violence.
34. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | 2025
Examines democratic attitudes during the first months of the second Trump administration and reports higher support for political violence among Christian-nationalism adherents than rejecters.
35. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | October 30, 2024
Examines Americans who resist Christian-nationalist ideology and reports markedly lower levels of support for political violence among skeptics and rejecters.
36. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | September 10, 2024
Examines Christian nationalism alongside right-wing authoritarianism, democratic norms, political violence, immigration, patriarchy, and willingness to empower strong leaders.
37. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | September 10, 2024
Reports that Christian-nationalism adherents and sympathizers were roughly twice as likely as the public overall to endorse a measure suggesting patriots might need to use violence.
38. | Chip Rotolo, Gregory A. Smith, and Jonathan Evans | Pew Research Center | March 15, 2024
Provides broader national context on Christian nationalism, official religion, biblical influence over law, church-state separation, and public definitions of a Christian nation.
39. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 28, 2024
Maps Christian-nationalist beliefs across the states and finds adherents and sympathizers more likely to endorse revolutionary rhetoric and possible political violence.
40. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 2024
Full PDF of PRRI's 50-state analysis, including measures of an anticipated political "storm," rightful leaders, and possible resort to violence.
41. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | 2024
American Values Survey explores perceptions of political violence, election legitimacy, partisan distrust, Christian nationalism, and democratic institutions.
42. | Gabriel R. Sanchez et al. | Brookings Institution | February 2023
Discusses survey evidence connecting Christian nationalism, white nationalism, political violence, armed election intimidation, and threats toward communities of color.
43. | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 8, 2023
A Christian Nation? National survey finds Christian-nationalism adherents substantially more likely than rejecters to say political violence might be necessary to save the country.
44. | Brookings Institution and PRRI | Brookings Institution | February 8, 2023
Expert panel analyzing Christian nationalism's relationships with authoritarianism, racial attitudes, antisemitism, immigration, and support for violence.
January 6, Mobilization, and Sacred Politics
45. | Bob Smietana | The Washington Post | January 6, 2023
Provides a taxonomy of Christian-nationalist networks after January 6, ranging from institutional activists to online extremists, Trump prophets, and New Apostolic Reformation leaders.
46. | Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | January 6, 2023
Who Are the Christian Nationalists? A Taxonomy for the Post-Jan. 6 World. Distinguishes institutional Christian-nationalist activists from prophets, online movements, extremists, and other networks.
47. | Jack Jenkins | The Washington Post | December 29, 2022
Faith leaders and scholars question why the congressional January 6 report devoted little attention to Christian nationalism despite extensive religious symbolism and mobilization.
48. | Brian Bennett | TIME | December 2022
Profiles Christians organizing against Christian nationalism and examines concerns about January 6, white supremacy, replacement narratives, and political violence.
49. | Andrew L. Seidel | U.S. House January 6 Select Committee / GovInfo | March 18, 2022
Written testimony presented to the January 6 committee documenting Christian-nationalist rhetoric, organizations, events, imagery, and networks surrounding the Capitol attack.
50. | Chrissy Stroop | Religion Dispatches | February 15, 2022
Reviews the BJC-FFRF investigation into Christian-nationalist organizations, rhetoric, and religious imagery surrounding January 6.
51. | Harvard Divinity School | Harvard University | February 10, 2022
Peril to Democracy: Racism and Nationalism in America. Scholars discuss racialized Christian nationalism and religious participation in the January 6 attack.
52. | Amanda Tyler et al. | Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty | February 9, 2022
Christian Nationalism and the January 6, 2021, Insurrection. Extensive report documenting Christian-nationalist organizations, rhetoric, prayers, symbols, networks, and mobilization before and during the attack.
Companion site for the January 6 report documenting religious symbolism and claims that Christian nationalism helped bolster and justify the attack.
54. | Freedom From Religion Foundation | FFRF | February 9, 2022
Overview of the joint BJC-FFRF investigation into Christian nationalism's role in the buildup to and events of January 6.
55. | Jack Jenkins | The Washington Post | January 26, 2022
Examines how January 6 helped spread a "revolutionary Christian framework" among Proud Boys, QAnon circles, Christian Identity adherents, and other far-right communities.
56. | Samuel L. Perry and Andrew L. Whitehead | TIME | January 2022
January 6th May Have Been Only the First Wave of Christian Nationalist Violence. Uses survey evidence to connect strong Christian-nationalist beliefs with increased sympathy for the Capitol rioters and political violence.
57. | Sojourners Staff | Sojourners | January 2022
We Have to Be a Counter Voice to White Christian Nationalism. Religious leaders discuss January 6, Christian-nationalist mobilization, polarization, and nonviolent responses.
58. | Kathryn Joyce | History News Network | January 6, 2022
Historical analysis of Christian symbols, prayers, religious rhetoric, and political theology visible during the Capitol attack.
59. | Cora Alder and Emanuel Schäublin | ETH Zurich Center for Security Studies | July 7, 2021
Security analysis of confrontational Christian nationalism, January 6, racial backlash, political polarization, and challenges to American democracy.
60. | Michelle Boorstein | The Washington Post | July 6, 2021
Reports on defendants who framed their participation in January 6 through prophecy, spiritual warfare, divine authority, and Christian political identity.
61. | Andrew L. Whitehead | TIME | May 27, 2021
Examines Christian symbolism at January 6 and argues that Christian nationalism's implications extend beyond the riot to broader anti-democratic political activity.
62. | Ed Pilkington | The Guardian | February 24, 2021
Reports on evangelical leaders condemning Christian nationalism, conspiracy theories, white supremacy, and religious justifications offered for the January 6 violence.
63. | Kelsey Dallas | Deseret News | February 7, 2021
What Did We Learn About Christian Nationalism During the Capitol Riot? Interviews researchers and religious leaders about how exclusionary religious-national identity can develop into militancy.
64. | Paul D. Miller | Christianity Today | February 3, 2021
Explainer distinguishing nationalism and patriotism while noting that some Christian-nationalist rhetoric increasingly depicted physical struggle as necessary to protect America.
65. | Paul A. Djupe and Jacob Dennen | The Washington Post | January 26, 2021
Research-based analysis finding connections among Christian nationalism, QAnon identification, antisemitism, Trump support, and themes visible during the Capitol attack.
66. | Morgan Lee and Paul D. Miller | Christianity Today | January 13, 2021
Discusses Christian nationalism, radicalization, the Capitol riot, and the responsibility of churches when political ideology becomes intertwined with religious identity.
67. | Philip S. Gorski | Georgetown University Berkley Center | January 2021
White Christian Nationalism: The Deep Story Behind the Capitol Insurrection. Explains the historical narrative of divine national chosenness, racial hierarchy, threatened status, and legitimate force underlying some January 6 rhetoric.
68. | Jack Jenkins | The Christian Century | January 2021
Reports on crosses, Christian flags, prayer, charismatic rhetoric, conspiracy narratives, and militant forms of Christian nationalism present around the Capitol attack.
69. | Joseph Williams | Rutgers University | 2021
Explains Christian nationalism following January 6 and discusses overlaps with the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, QAnon, and other extremist currents.
The Devil That You Know. Examines how Christian nationalism shaped continued electoral support for Donald Trump after his first term.
71. | CBS News Staff and Amanda Tyler | CBS News | June 2022
Interview examining Christian nationalism's role in January 6 and the ideology's relationship to efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
72. | Sojourners Staff | Sojourners | January 2023
We Still Need Moral Accountability for Jan. 6. Discusses Christian nationalism as one of several mobilizing frameworks visible among participants in the Capitol attack.
Extremism, Militias, and Radicalization Networks
73. | Southern Poverty Law Center | SPLC | 2025
Backgrounder on Christian supremacy, dominionism, the New Apostolic Reformation, January 6, and movements seeking explicitly Christian control of political and cultural institutions.
74. | Southern Poverty Law Center | SPLC | 2024
Examines Christian supremacy, dominionism, antigovernment conspiracy culture, and political actors embracing ideas historically associated with extremist movements.
75. | Hannah Allam et al. | The Washington Post | July 28, 2024
Discusses New Apostolic Reformation rhetoric portraying politics as spiritual warfare and scholars' concerns about violent interpretations of demonization and prophecy.
76. | Hannah Allam | The Washington Post | July 13, 2024
Investigates violent biblical imagery and "spiritual warfare" rhetoric among militant Christian-nationalist activists and the concern that sacred framing can lower barriers to political violence.
77. | Hannah Allam | The Washington Post | June 2, 2024
Traces the "Appeal to Heaven" flag from its Revolutionary-era origins to its adoption by Christian nationalists and far-right activists invoking resistance to perceived tyranny.
78. | Nathan Empsall | Religion News Service | March 27, 2024
Christian commentary warning about conspiracy theories, January 6-style violence, political intimidation, and the use of Christianity in anti-democratic movements.
79. | Southern Poverty Law Center | SPLC | June 2023
Annual extremism analysis includes white Christian nationalism, antigovernment movements, political intimidation, armed activity, anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, and January 6.
80. | Anti-Defamation League | ADL | March 7, 2023
Documents Nick Fuentes' explicit Christian-nationalist, antisemitic, and white-nationalist rhetoric and his attempts to expand those ideas within right-wing politics.
81. | Annika Brockschmidt | Religion Dispatches | March 14, 2023
AR-15 Lapel Pins Are More Than Political Provocation. Examines the symbolic fusion of firearms, conservative politics, masculinity, and white Christian-nationalist identity.
82. | Nilay Saiya | Religion Dispatches | March 8, 2023
Uses comparative research on religious nationalism to assess why fusion of national and religious identity can heighten risks of intergroup political violence.
83. | Joe Wiinikka-Lydon | Southern Poverty Law Center | December 28, 2022
Reviews congressional testimony concerning white Christian nationalism, anti-democratic extremism, online radicalization, and risks of political violence.
84. | Anti-Defamation League | ADL | August 19, 2022
Profiles Gab founder Andrew Torba's promotion of Christian nationalism and connections with white nationalists, election conspiracists, and other extremist figures.
85. | Thomas Lecaque | Religion Dispatches | June 7, 2022
Examines crusader imagery, firearms, political radicalization, January 6, apocalyptic symbolism, and religious narratives that can sacralize armed political struggle.
86. | Michelle R. Smith and Richard Lardner | AP / PBS FRONTLINE | September 2022
Investigates Michael Flynn-linked organizing involving Christian-nationalist rhetoric, firearms, a gun range, military imagery, and claims of spiritual warfare.
87. | Associated Press and FRONTLINE | PBS FRONTLINE | September 2022
Summarizes reporting on the convergence of election conspiracies, Christian nationalism, firearms, local organizing, and militant political rhetoric.
88. | Michelle R. Smith and Richard Lardner | AP / FRONTLINE | 2022
Investigation of Michael Flynn's ReAwaken America tour, where Christian nationalism, election conspiracy theories, apocalyptic rhetoric, and warnings about political violence converged.
89. | PBS NewsHour | PBS | 2022
Interview with scholars about Christian nationalism, perceived persecution, January 6, democratic erosion, and circumstances under which religious-nationalist rhetoric can facilitate violence.
90. | Anti-Defamation League | ADL | 2017
Backgrounder on Christian Identity, a racist and apocalyptic religious ideology associated historically with terrorist attacks, assassinations, armed compounds, and white-supremacist violence.
91. | Anti-Defamation League | ADL | 2017
Reviews contemporary white supremacy and documents violent activity connected to Christian Identity and related racist religious movements.
Guns, Militarism, and Political Force
92. | Carmen Celestini | Sojourners | July 2026
How Christian Nationalists Took Control of the U.S. Military. Historical and contemporary examination of crusading imagery, militarism, religious rhetoric, and ideas of divinely sanctioned warfare.
93. | Cassie Miller | Southern Poverty Law Center | June 13, 2024
The Violent History of the Anti-Abortion Movement. Documents murders, bombings, arson, assaults, and religiously framed militant activism in a movement that has sometimes overlapped with Christian-nationalist currents.
94. | Zack Beauchamp | Vox | August 2024
Interview with violence researcher Garen Wintemute discusses firearm availability, Christian nationalism, prejudice, and other factors associated with support for political violence.
95. | Mya Jaradat | Deseret News | October 17, 2022
Analysis of gun politics includes Andrew Whitehead's research showing how Christian nationalism can transform gun rights from an ordinary policy disagreement into a question of sacred national identity.
96. | Edward Lempinen | UC Berkeley | September 20, 2022
Berkeley scholars discuss Christian nationalism, demographic status threat, Proud Boys, gun politics, gender hierarchy, January 6, and democratic instability.
97. | Edward Lempinen | Berkeley News | September 20, 2022
University feature examining why some Christian-nationalist communities respond to perceived loss of cultural dominance with authoritarian or anti-democratic politics.
98. | Samuel L. Perry and Philip S. Gorski | The Washington Post | May 20, 2022
Authors of The Flag and the Cross discuss racial hierarchy, political violence, the Buffalo massacre, anti-abortion militancy, and their concept of white Christian nationalism's "freedom, order, violence" framework.
99. | Center for American Progress | Center for American Progress | January 2022
Reviews research connecting Christian nationalism with gun ownership, opposition to gun regulation, white supremacy, and religious advocacy surrounding firearm violence.
100. | Philip S. Gorski and Samuel L. Perry | Oxford University Press | 2022
The Flag and the Cross. Historical and sociological account of white Christian nationalism linking racial hierarchy, national chosenness, coercion, exclusion, and January 6.
101. | Philip S. Gorski and Samuel L. Perry | Oxford University Press | 2022
Freedom, Violence, Order. Develops the authors' argument that a recurring logic of white Christian nationalism joins in-group freedom, hierarchical social order, and legitimized coercion.
102. | Andrew L. Whitehead and Samuel L. Perry | Oxford University Press | March 19, 2020
Power. Book chapter examines Christian nationalism's relationships with gun politics, militarism, immigration, political authority, and Donald Trump.
103. | Andrew L. Whitehead, Landon Schnabel, and Samuel L. Perry | Socius | July 23, 2018
Gun Control in the Crosshairs. Finds Christian nationalism a strong predictor of opposition to stricter gun laws and connects gun politics to beliefs about national religious identity and social decline.
104. | Joshua Davis | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion | June 22, 2018
Enforcing Christian Nationalism. Finds Christian-nationalist beliefs associated with capital punishment, harsher punishment, and support for society to crack down on perceived troublemakers.
God's Country in Black and Blue. Finds Christian nationalism associated with beliefs minimizing racial disparities and justifying police use of lethal force against Black Americans.
Apocalypticism, Conspiracies, and Threat Narratives
106. | Paul A. Djupe and Brooklyn Walker | Religion in Public | June 15, 2026
Examines Christian persecution beliefs and grievance across racial groups while noting established connections between Christian nationalism, election distrust, intolerance, and political violence.
107. | Andrew L. Seidel | Religion Dispatches | February 5, 2025
Reviews survey findings connecting Christian nationalism with beliefs about divinely ordained political leaders and support for political violence.
108. | Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | October 21, 2024
Scholars and members of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's family warn against deploying the theologian's resistance to Nazism as a religious justification for contemporary political violence.
109. | Paul A. Djupe | Religion News Service | May 30, 2024
Interview concerning the documentary Bad Faith explores dualistic theology, political organization, January 6, and beliefs framing political opponents as forces of evil.
110. | Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | April 3, 2024
Examines Catholic integralism and its relationship to Christian nationalism while distinguishing institutional strategies from extremist strands more accepting of political violence.
111. | Brookings Institution and PRRI | Brookings Institution | October 25, 2023
Survey discussion examines political violence alongside election denial, replacement theory, Christian-nationalist beliefs, and perceived national crisis.
112. | Brookings Institution and PRRI | Brookings Institution | February 2023
Transcript of expert discussion of the PRRI/Brookings Christian Nationalism Survey, including measures of interpersonal aggression and willingness to resort to political violence.
Codebook for the Christian Nationalism and Political Violence survey, including measures of victimhood, system distrust, conspiracy thinking, religious-national identity, and political violence.
Authoritarianism, Punishment, and Social Control
114. | The Christian Century | The Christian Century | 2024
Critical discussion of how Christian nationalism is defined and measured, including cautions against automatically treating correlations with violence or racial attitudes as proof of direct causation.
115. | Samuel L. Perry, Andrew L. Whitehead, and Joshua T. Davis | Sociology of Race and Ethnicity | 2019
Abstract version of research examining Christian nationalism and perceptions of police mistreatment of Black Americans.
116. | Joshua T. Davis | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion | June 22, 2018
Full-text version of research connecting the fusion of Christian and national identity with authoritarian approaches to crime and social deviance.
Racial Boundaries, Outgroups, and Violence
117. | Gabriele Dushaj | University of Chicago | June 2025
Research compares Christian and Hindu nationalist racialization of Muslims and examines ways nationalist rhetoric can legitimize violence against religious minorities.
118. | John Corrigan | University of Chicago Press | 2023
The Feeling of Forgetting: Christianity, Race, and Violence in America. Historical analysis examines how racial memory, religious identity, white Christian nationalism, terrorism, and insurrection interact.
119. | Allyson F. Shortle and Ronald Keith Gaddie | Politics and Religion | June 19, 2015
Religious Nationalism and Perceptions of Muslims and Islam. Finds Christian-nationalist attitudes associated with negative perceptions of Muslims and Islam.
120. | Allyson F. Shortle and Ronald Keith Gaddie | Politics and Religion | September 2015
Journal issue containing research on Christian nationalism and anti-Muslim attitudes, useful for understanding processes of religious boundary-making and outgroup threat.
121. | Andrew L. Whitehead and Samuel L. Perry | Sociological Perspectives | April 6, 2015
Publisher version of research on Christian nationalism, social identity boundaries, and opposition to same-sex unions.
122. | Andrew L. Whitehead and Samuel L. Perry | Sociological Perspectives | 2015
A More Perfect Union? Finds Christian nationalism associated with lower support for same-sex marriage and civil unions, illustrating its broader tendency to define marginalized populations as cultural outgroups.
123. | Samuel L. Perry and Andrew L. Whitehead | Ethnic and Racial Studies | March 6, 2015
Christian Nationalism and White Racial Boundaries. Finds Christian nationalism associated with stronger white opposition to interracial marriage and tighter racial group boundaries.
Religion, Public Ritual, and Sacralized Conflict
124. | The Christian Century | The Christian Century | 2026
Historical discussion places present-day Christian nationalism against America's longer history of religious persecution and church-state conflict.
125. | William J. Barber II et al. | Sojourners | September/October 2024
Essays by Christian scholars and activists define weaponized Christian nationalism as a movement willing to use coercion or violence to obtain or maintain political power.
126. | Laura Flanders and Guests | PBS | 2024
Discussion of the documentary God & Country includes religious leaders' concerns about the invocation of divine authority to legitimize political power and violence.
127. | Cynthia G. Lindner | The Christian Century | November 2022
Reviews Pamela Cooper-White's psychological analysis of Christian nationalism, polarization, authoritarianism, trauma, and extremist political identity.
128. | Amar D. Peterman | Sojourners | 2022
Theological analysis discusses Christian nationalism, ethnocentrism, state violence, militarization, and political idolatry.
129. | America Magazine | America | September 19, 2019
Critiques nationalist political theology and examines the implications of exclusionary national identity for vulnerable minorities and state coercion.
Historical and Comparative Context
130. | Nilay Saiya | Oxford University Press | May 19, 2025
Christianity in God's Warriors. Comparative study of Christian nationalism, Christian civilizationalism, secularism, and violent Christian militancy in the United States, Europe, Africa, and Latin America.
131. | Harvard Divinity School | Harvard University | March 5, 2025
Christian Nationalism in Global Perspective. Comparative scholarly discussion includes January 6 as an example of the convergence of Christian-nationalist ritual, militancy, and challenges to peaceful transfers of political power.
Christian Nationalism: Since January 6. Traces Christian-nationalist politics after the Capitol attack, including white supremacy, replacement theory, authoritarianism, and gender politics.
Resisting an Empire State of Mind. Examines national chosenness, the Christian America myth, and historical religious ideas that contributed to aggressive nationalism around January 6.
What Now? Synthesizes the historical development of Christian America ideology and its transformation into the anger and political mobilization visible during January 6.
Christian America and the Kingdom of God. Comprehensive history tracing Christian-nationalist ideas from Puritan New England through the Capitol insurrection.
136. | Adrian Horton | The Guardian | April 27, 2024
Discusses the documentary Bad Faith, which traces Christian-nationalist political organizing and presents January 6 as the violent culmination of decades of anti-democratic activism.
137. | Carter Sherman | The Guardian | March 2, 2024
Examines contemporary Christian nationalism, abortion politics, IVF, demonization of political opponents, and warnings from scholars about interpreting politics as warfare against literal evil.
138. | Paul D. Miller | Christianity Today | September 2023
Distinguishes mainstream Christian-nationalist ideas from explicitly extremist variants advocating conspiracy theories, revolutionary politics, or violence.
139. | Paul D. Miller | Christianity Today | December 2022
Reviews competing books on Christian nationalism and specifically critiques arguments portraying violent revolution against the U.S. government as morally permissible.
140. | Samuel L. Perry | Salon / The Conversation | August 5, 2022
Historical overview connecting Christian-nationalist ideas with militia activity, Christian Identity, abortion-provider violence, January 6, and the movement's increasing visibility in mainstream politics.
141. | Academic contributors | Oxford University Press | 2024
Political Communication Research at a Time of Democratic Crises. Examines January 6 through status threat, white and Christian group identity, disinformation, polarization, and conditions under which threatened groups may accept political violence.
Christian Violence in America. Earlier scholarship examining abortion-clinic attacks, Christian militia movements, Christian Identity, apocalyptic conspiracy narratives, and religiously framed political violence.
143. | Center for American Progress | Center for American Progress | 2022
Interview and analysis discussing Christian nationalism's anti-pluralist implications, January 6 violence, discrimination, antisemitism, anti-Muslim prejudice, and religious liberty.
144. | The Christian Century | The Christian Century | 2026
Historical discussion places present-day Christian nationalism against America's longer history of religious persecution and church-state conflict.
