A Christian Theory Of Knowledge
Ellyn Krucke
To measure Christian nationalism, the PRRI/Brookings Christian Nationalism Survey included a battery of five questions about the relationship between Christianity, American identity, and the U.S. government. Respondents were asked whether they completely agree, mostly agree, mostly disagree, or completely disagree with each of the following statements:
Christian Nationalism Skeptics (Score 0.01-0.49): A majority of these Americans disagree with the statements in the scale but are less likely than rejecters to completely disagree. This group includes 39% of Americans.
At the other end of the spectrum, more than three-quarters of Hispanic Catholics, other non-Christian religious Americans,[1] Jews, and religiously unaffiliated Americans qualify as either Christian nationalism skeptics or rejecters. Notably, majorities of other non-Christian religious Americans (54%), Jewish Americans (61%), and religiously unaffiliated Americans (61%) qualify as rejecters.
Identifying as evangelical or born-again is positively correlated with holding Christian nationalist views across racial and ethnic lines. White (29%), Hispanic (25%), and Black (20%) Christians who identify as born-again or evangelical are each about five times as likely to be Christian nationalism adherents as members of the same racial or ethnic groups who identify as Christian but not evangelical (6% of white non-evangelicals, 4% of Black non-evangelicals, and 4% of Hispanic non-evangelicals).
Americans who lean toward supporting Christian nationalism are not, as some have theorized, Christian in name only. They are significantly more likely than other Americans to be connected to churches and to say religion is important in their lives.
Christian nationalism adherents are nearly twice as likely as Americans overall to report attending religious services at least a few times a month (54% vs. 28%). As support for Christian nationalism goes down, so do reported church attendance rates: 42% of Christian nationalism sympathizers report attending church at least a few times a month, compared with 27% of skeptics, and only 10% of rejecters.
Similarly, attitudes toward former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are highly correlated with attitudes toward Christian nationalism. Just one-third of Americans (32%) hold a favorable view of former President Trump, while two-thirds (65%) have unfavorable views of him. More than 7 in 10 Christian nationalism adherents (71%) have a favorable view of Trump, including 43% who hold very favorable views of him. A majority of Christian nationalism sympathizers also hold favorable views of Trump (57%), compared to 29% of skeptics, and 8% of rejecters.
By contrast, Americans overall are more evenly divided in their views of President Joe Biden (47% favorable, 49% unfavorable). Just 17% of Christian nationalism adherents and 24% of Christian nationalism sympathizers hold favorable views of Biden, compared to 50% of skeptics and 70% of rejecters.
Differences in trust of various media sources strongly correlate with differences in Christian nationalist beliefs. Nearly eight in ten Americans who most trust far-right news outlets such as One America News Network and Newsmax lean toward supporting Christian nationalism (41% sympathizers and 38% adherents). And the same is true of a majority of those who most trust Fox News (34% sympathizers and 20% adherents). Meanwhile, only about a quarter of those who most trust mainstream news or who do not trust any TV news sources support Christian nationalism.[2]
There are no significant differences in Christian nationalist beliefs by gender. Among both men and women, 10% qualify as Christian nationalism adherents, and approximately two in ten qualify as Christian nationalism sympathizers (18% of men and 20% of women). And approximately seven in ten men and women qualify as either Christian nationalism skeptics or rejecters.
Differences in educational attainment also correlate closely with Christian nationalist beliefs. Americans with a high school degree or less (13%) and those with some college experience but no four-year degree (11%) are roughly twice as likely as those with a four-year college degree (6%) or a postgraduate degree (4%) to be Christian nationalism adherents. By contrast, approximately four in ten Americans with a four-year college degree (40%) or postgraduate degree (41%) qualify as Christian nationalism rejecters, compared to only 28% of those with some college and 21% of those with a high school education or less.
There are minimal differences in adherence to Christian nationalism beliefs by race. Rates of support for Christian nationalism are roughly the same among white Americans (20% sympathizers, 10% adherents) and Black Americans (21% sympathizers, 10% adherents). The only racial group whose members are significantly less likely than others to qualify as Christian nationalism adherents is AAPI Americans (4%).
Education levels influence the likelihood that white and Hispanic Americans will qualify as Christian nationalism adherents. White (5%) and Hispanic Americans (4%) with four-year college degrees are less likely than their non-college graduate counterparts (13% and 10%, respectively) to qualify as Christian nationalism adherents. There is no significant gap between the proportion of Black college graduates (9%) and non-college graduates (11%) who are Christian nationalism adherents.
Americans overall are much more likely to express a preference for the U.S. to be a nation made up of people belonging to a variety of religions (73%), rather than a nation primarily made up of people who follow the Christian faith (27%). But these views are highly stratified by attitudes toward Christian nationalism.
Christian nationalism adherents overwhelmingly express a preference for a primarily Christian nation (77%, including 59% who believe this strongly). A majority of Christian nationalism sympathizers (55%) also say they would prefer a primarily Christian nation, though they are less likely than adherents to strongly favor the idea (29%).
Reflecting their preference for a primarily Christian nation, supporters of Christian nationalism are far less likely than other Americans to have regular interactions with people who hold religious beliefs that differ from their own. Nearly half of Americans (46%) report that they have conversations with people who belong to a different religion from their own at least a few times per month. Christian nationalism adherents, however, are half as likely as rejecters to report regular interreligious interactions (33% vs. 62%).
A majority of Americans (54%) believe that biblical injunctions to care for the poor are primarily talking about charitable acts by individuals, compared to 47% who believe they are primarily talking about our obligation to create a just society.
About two-thirds of Christian nationalism adherents (65%) and sympathizers (65%) agree that biblical obligations are more about charitable acts by individuals, compared to 57% of skeptics and 39% of rejecters who agree. Christian nationalism rejecters are the only group in which a majority (61%) believe the biblical injunctions refer primarily to the task of creating a just society.
To better understand the inner workings of Christian nationalism, we examine five core attitudes often associated with Christian nationalist beliefs: anti-Black racism, anti-immigrant views, antisemitic views, anti-Muslim views, and patriarchal understandings of traditional gender roles.
Around four in ten Americans (41%) agree that discrimination against white Americans is as big of a problem as discrimination against Black Americans and other minorities, compared to 58% who disagree. Approximately two-thirds of Christian nationalism sympathizers (66%) and more than three-quarters of Christian nationalism adherents (77%) agree with this statement. Among Christian nationalism sympathizers and adherents who are white, agreement with this sentiment rises to 73% and 85%, respectively.
By a margin of nearly two to one, Americans believe that the growing number of newcomers from other countries strengthens American society (63% agree, 34% disagree). However, solid majorities of Christian nationalism sympathizers (58%) and adherents (64%) disagree that immigrants strengthen the country. Among Christian nationalism sympathizers and adherents who are white, disagreement rises to 64% and 72%, respectively.
About two in ten Americans (21%) believe that Christians in America love Israel more than most Jewish people in America do, while 73% reject this idea. The share who agree with this statement rises to 29% among Christian nationalism sympathizers. Christian nationalism adherents are approximately twice as likely as all Americans to hold this belief, with 40% expressing agreement.
Roughly a quarter of Americans (24%) say that Jewish people are more loyal to Israel than to the United States, while 70% say this statement is only a little or not at all true. The rate of agreement is significantly higher among Christian nationalism sympathizers (37%) and adherents (44%).
Fewer than four in ten Americans (39%) believe that the values of Islam are at odds with American values and the American way of life, while a majority of Americans disagree (57%). A solid majority of Christian nationalism sympathizers (58%) and nearly seven in ten adherents (69%) agree with this anti-Muslim view. There are only modest differences among white and non-white Christian nationalism sympathizers and adherents.
Supporters of Christian nationalism tend to support obedience to authority and the idea of authoritarian leaders who are willing to break the rules. While half of Americans (50%) agree that society is in trouble because people do not obey authority, this number rises to 69% among Christian nationalism sympathizers and 74% among Christian nationalism adherents.
A majority of Americans hold favorable views of the police, but Americans overall are notably more likely to hold a favorable view of the local police who protect people in their community (80%) than of the U.S. Capitol police who protect elected officials in Washington, D.C. (68%).
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