Christian Nationalism: A Summary in Examples and Traits

 By R. Fowler White - Posted at Green Baggins:

Published August 9, 2025

Though usage of the term Christian nationalism is relatively new in American public discourse, it is an ideology and movement that is both on the rise and not yet definitively or fully formed. Given that Christian nationalism is a still-developing phenomenon, it may be useful to survey the phenomenon as it has appeared in history in various times and degrees, both outside and inside the U.S. Several examples are cited below.

1. Ireland: From the late 19th century until the late 20th century when its government was made legally secular, the Roman Catholic Church was a defining and constitutional part of Irish national identity.

2. Korea: As leaders of Korea’s independence movement against Japanese occupation (1910–1945), Christians established a connection between Korean national identity and Christianity that in measure still exists today in South Korea.

3. South Vietnam: In the 1950s and early 1960s, South Vietnam’s president gave the Roman Catholic Church a privileged position while using force to control Buddhists and limit their freedom. The president’s position was a contributing factor to his eventual downfall.

4. Hungary: In 2010 the Hungarian Prime Minister’s party won two-thirds of the National Assembly seats. In 2011 that assembly passed a new constitution that included recognition of Christianity’s role in preserving its nationhood and a need for “spiritual and intellectual renewal.” During the Syrian refugee crisis, the Hungarian government opposed the resettlement of asylum seekers in Europe, based in part on religion. In December 2020 the National Assembly passed a constitutional amendment that restricted adoptions to heterosexual couples and mandated that children be raised with “values based on our Christian culture.”

5. The U.S. has a long history of Christian Nationalism phenomena in various expressions. For instance:

a) In 1791 the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibited Congress from “making any law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” By that amendment, Congress was prohibited from establishing a national church, such as the Church of England or the Church of Denmark. Interestingly, however, when the First Amendment was ratified, it did not forbid states from designating a denomination as their official church. In fact, nine of the thirteen states had formal ties with a Christian denomination. Two examples: Connecticut named the Congregational Church as its official church, a relationship that was not changed until the 1830s. Delaware had a constitutional provision requiring a Christian profession to hold public office.

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