What Is Christian Nationalism?
Christian nationalism is an ideology that espouses a form of religious nationalism that focuses on promoting the Christian views of its followers in order to achieve prominence or dominance in political, cultural, and… Part of the Religious family.
Definition
Christian nationalism is an ideology that espouses a form of religious nationalism that focuses on promoting the Christian views of its followers in order to achieve prominence or dominance in political, cultural, and social life.
Definition quoted from Wikipedia: Christian nationalism (text available under CC BY-SA 4.0; checked October 20, 2026).
Core ideas
- National identity tied to Christianity.
- Christian values in law and public institutions.
- Opposition to strict separation of church and state.
How it is classified
Used both as a self-description and as a critical label; definitions differ.
Core ideas, origins and thinkers: Atlas summary.
Where Christian Nationalism sits on the Atlas maps
| Map dimension | Score (0–100) | Position | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Collective / planned ↔ Market | 54 | near the center | |
| Social Progressive ↔ Traditional | 98 | strongly toward traditional | |
| Authority Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian | 65 | near the center | |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 100 | strongly toward nationalist | |
| Foreign policy Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 31 | toward non-intervention |
All nine underlying dimensions
| Dimension | Score | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Economic ownership Collective ownership ↔ Private ownership | 65 | near the center |
| Civil liberties Civil liberty ↔ State restrictions | 60 | near the center |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 100 | strongly toward nationalist |
| Social and cultural values Progressive ↔ Traditionalist | 100 | strongly toward traditionalist |
| Political governance Democratic ↔ Autocratic | 70 | toward autocratic |
| Equality and hierarchy Egalitarian ↔ Hierarchical | 85 | toward hierarchical |
| Economic management Free market ↔ State planning | 63 | near the center |
| Military intervention Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 31 | toward non-intervention |
| Religion and government Secular state ↔ Religious authority | 93 | strongly toward religious authority |
These positions are estimates on the Atlas’s nine-dimension scale, produced by running the tradition’s core principles through the same questions and scoring used for test-takers. They are interpretations for comparison, not objective measurements. How scores are made.
Estimated positions on key questions
| Statement | Position | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| The means of production should ultimately be owned collectively. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| A naturalized citizen can belong to the nation as fully as someone born there. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Traditional values should guide what society considers right and wrong. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| The government should be able to restrict how certain religions are practiced, such as their places of worship, clothing or schools. | Agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Military power should be used proactively when serious external threats are emerging. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Class distinctions should gradually disappear. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Foreign students should be deported for taking part in protests the government considers supportive of terrorism. | Agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Central economic planning is preferable to decentralized market decisions. | Disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| A strong leader who gets things done matters more than following proper procedures. | Agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| A shared language is essential to a strong national identity. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
Related ideologies
Main differences from the closest ideologies
- Compared with Theoconservatism, Christian Nationalism sits 13 points further toward nationalist on the national identity dimension.
- Compared with Ethnonationalism, Christian Nationalism sits 8 points further toward libertarian on the authority dimension.
- Compared with Islamism, Christian Nationalism sits 15 points further toward libertarian on the authority dimension.
Figures with the closest estimated positions
Closeness of estimated positions only; this does not mean these people identify with Christian Nationalism.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Christian nationalism
- Wikipedia: Christian Nationalism (Wikipedia search)
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Nationalism
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Religion and Political Theory
Position last reviewed: not yet reviewed individually.