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Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A...
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Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 27965

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Tobias Köllner

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Witten Institute of Family Business, Witten/Herdecke University, 58455 Witten, Germany
Interests: anthropology and sociology; anthropology of religion
Dr. Boris K. Knorre

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Studies of Civil Society and Non-Profit Sector, Faculty of Humanities, Higher School of Economy, Staraya Basmannaya 1, Moscow
Interests: political ideology; local religions in Russia and politics; anthropology of orthodoxy; church–state relations; nationalism in India; sociocultural preferences of Russian Orthodoxy; paganism in Russia and national revitalization of local cultures

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

In the current SARS CoV-2 pandemic, increasingly authoritarian measures and instruments are being implemented, and nationalist discourses are being initiated. This means that despite global challenges, global interactions, and burgeoning globalization, national and ethnic identification patterns remain extremely relevant today. To be sure, this development is far from new and has been going on for a couple of decades. Nevertheless, currently, we are experiencing a persistence and resurgence of the national in very different countries, such as in Hungary and the United States, Poland and India, and Turkey and Russia.

Moreover, in many cases, such trends are linked to religion in one way or another. In many ways, the nation or the dominant ethnic group often draws on religious symbols, couches its representation in religious language, and fosters commemoration by equating national and religious history. In so doing, however, there seems to be a tendency to favor more authoritarian forms of government. Around the world, phenomena such as patriotism, nationalism, and illiberalism are gaining ground and often follow a trend towards “indigenization”. From conservative Protestants in the United States to Catholicism in Poland and Orthodox groups in Russia, from factions within the Anglican Church in the United Kingdom to Muslim communities in Turkey, different religious traditions emphasize national belonging and tend to support identification with the respective nation, even at the expense of ethnic, religious, or other minorities.

Based on these developments, we intend to analyze and compare different religious traditions in relation to patriotism, nationalism, and illiberalism. To what extent, we would like to ask, can we enrich our understanding of religion in relation to patriotism, nationalism, and illiberalism by providing new empirical material? Can we gain any new insights if we take a strictly comparative research perspective and try to elaborate on the differences and similarities more clearly? Of course, our aim is not to provide a simplified picture of religious fundamentalism and conservatism as a state ideology, exclusively introduced from above. Instead, we ask, what is the repertoire of ingredients for such formations and to what extent is the combination of local cultural elements with more idealized and general connotations and ideas important? For this, it is necessary to analyze the interrelation between the “center” and the “periphery” in its full complexity. Moreover, we attempt to contribute to a better understanding of recent developments whereby the SARS CoV-2 pandemic is used to implement further authoritarian measures for nationalist inclinations.

To do so, we invite interdisciplinary contributions to this Special Issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444), which show how more empirically grounded and comparative research can contribute to a better understanding of patriotism, nationalism, and illiberalism in relation to religion by addressing themes such as, but not limited to, the following:

  • Religious fundamentalism;
  • Religious Messianism;
  • Religious communities versus national and/or ethnic communities;
  • Religion and patriotism;
  • Religious education;
  • Commemoration, memory politics, and religion;
  • Place- and identity-making based on religion by sacralization of borders and communities;
  • Material religion and the nation. 

This Special Issue will draw on the existing body of literature on patriotism, illiberalism, and nationalism but will add a number of new insights. A first contribution of the Special Issue will be new empirical material based on original research from different social sciences. Secondly, the Special Issue will offer a cross-cultural research perspective by including comparisons. Lastly, such comparisons will allow for new theoretical understandings that can be generated from the comparisons between the different research approaches.

Dr. Tobias Köllner
Dr. Boris K. Knorre
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • patriotism
  • illiberalism
  • nationalism
  • religion
  • cross-cultural perspective
  • comparative approach

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research

15 pages, 317 KiB  
Editorial
Patriotism, Nationalism, Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective
by Boris Knorre and Tobias Koellner
Religions 2022, 13(9), 772; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13090772 - 24 Aug 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2673
Abstract
This article is the introduction to an interdisciplinary Special Issue and serves two purposes [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

20 pages, 331 KiB  
Article
Positivism and Reasonableness: Authoritarian Leanings in New Atheism’s Thinking
by Michael Roseneck
Religions 2022, 13(2), 186; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13020186 - 21 Feb 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2492
Abstract
Various contemporary phenomena of social regression and authoritarianism are related to religious actors, movements, and beliefs. This text, however, seeks to follow this up with the political–theoretical argumentation that New Atheism has to be understood as a way of thinking which carries illiberal [...] Read more.
Various contemporary phenomena of social regression and authoritarianism are related to religious actors, movements, and beliefs. This text, however, seeks to follow this up with the political–theoretical argumentation that New Atheism has to be understood as a way of thinking which carries illiberal and authoritarian tendencies with it as well. In defence of this position, this article will first reconstruct, with reference to Habermas’s and Rawls’s theory of democracy, elements that must include personal beliefs in order to be considered congruent with democratic values. Subsequently, New Atheism’s conception of rational politics will be presented in order to show in which aspects it contradicts the demands of reasonable convictions. This concerns, in particular, the rejection of reasonable pluralism on the one hand and a non-positivistic view of human beings on the other. As a conclusion, this text supports the proposition that, when speaking of the connection between certain worldviews and today’s illiberalism, New Atheism must also be considered as an unreasonable comprehensive doctrine. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)
20 pages, 379 KiB  
Article
Finding Religion: Immigration and the Populist (Re)Discovery of Christian Heritage in Western and Northern Europe
by Efe Peker
Religions 2022, 13(2), 158; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13020158 - 11 Feb 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3985
Abstract
Why and in what ways do far-right discourses engage with religion in geographies where religious belief, practice, and public influence are particularly low? This article examines religion’s salience in the rhetoric of leading right-wing populist parties in eight European countries: the Netherlands, Belgium, [...] Read more.
Why and in what ways do far-right discourses engage with religion in geographies where religious belief, practice, and public influence are particularly low? This article examines religion’s salience in the rhetoric of leading right-wing populist parties in eight European countries: the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. Based on a qualitative content analysis of various documents such as party programmes, websites, election manifestos, reports, and speeches of their leadership, the article offers insight into the functions that Christianist discourses serve for anti-immigration stances. The findings are threefold: first, they confirm previous research suggesting that while these parties embrace Christianity as a national/civilizational heritage and identity, they are also careful to avoid references to actual belief or practice. Second, the data suggests, their secularized take on Christianity rests not simply on the omission of theological content, but also on the active framing Christianity itself as an inherently secular and progressive religion conducive to democracy. Third, and finally, they starkly contrast this notion of Christianity with Islam, believed to be incompatible due to its alleged backward and violent qualities. Emphasizing religio-cultural hierarchies—rather than ethno-racial ones—plays an indispensable role in presenting a more palatable form of boundary-making against immigrants, and helps these parties mainstream by giving their nativist cause a liberal and enlightened aura. Preliminary comparisons with traditional conservative parties, moreover, reveal that while some of the latter partially embraced a similar nativism, variations remain across countries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)
20 pages, 344 KiB  
Article
Illiberal Cultural Christianity? European Identity Constructions and Anti-Muslim Politics
by Anja Hennig and Oliver Fernando Hidalgo
Religions 2021, 12(9), 774; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12090774 - 15 Sep 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3560
Abstract
This paper refers to the ambivalence of secularization in order to explain why Cultural Christianity can show both a liberal and illiberal character. These two faces of Cultural Christianity are mostly due to the identity functions that, not only faith-based religion, but a [...] Read more.
This paper refers to the ambivalence of secularization in order to explain why Cultural Christianity can show both a liberal and illiberal character. These two faces of Cultural Christianity are mostly due to the identity functions that, not only faith-based religion, but a particularly culturalized version of religion, entails. Proceeding from this, it will be demonstrated here how Cultural Christianity can turn into a concrete illiberal marker of identity or a resource for illiberal collective identity. Our argument focuses on the link between right-wing nationalism and Cultural Christianity from a historical-theoretical perspective, and illustrates the latter with the example of contemporary illiberal and selective European memory constructions including a special emphasis on the exclusivist elements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)
24 pages, 706 KiB  
Article
Of Pride and Prejudice—A Cross-National Exploration of Atheists’ National Pride
by Insa Bechert
Religions 2021, 12(8), 648; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12080648 - 16 Aug 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4782
Abstract
This paper explores how atheism relates to national pride. Previous research reports the strong positive relationship between religiosity and national pride. Inversely, it can be assumed that atheists feel less national pride. Whether this assumption holds true and whether the perceived relevance of [...] Read more.
This paper explores how atheism relates to national pride. Previous research reports the strong positive relationship between religiosity and national pride. Inversely, it can be assumed that atheists feel less national pride. Whether this assumption holds true and whether the perceived relevance of religiosity for values perceived as fundamental for national pride is a national-specific or a global phenomenon will be investigated here by examining attitudes towards atheists and assessing cross-nationally how proud atheists truly are of their countries. The data reveals cross-country differences in both respects. In highly religious countries, prejudice against atheists is pronounced, while atheists’ feelings of national pride indeed tend to be weaker. But what exactly predicts atheists’ feelings of national pride? For a Multilevel Analysis of this question, this article uses the ONBound database offering cumulated and harmonized data from international survey programs as well as linked country-level data on national identities and religion. Results identify countries’ ideological background as one of the crucial country-level predictors for national pride among atheists. In highly religious countries, people who deny religion also seem to possess ambivalent feelings towards their country. In turn, if the state ideology opposes religion, atheists tend to support the combination of anti-religiousness and patriotism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)
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15 pages, 322 KiB  
Article
Polarization but Not Pillarization Catholicism and Cultural Change in Post-Transformation Poland
by Wojciech Sadlon
Religions 2021, 12(7), 457; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12070457 - 22 Jun 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3923
Abstract
The modern Polish cultural system emerges through the interplay between social structure and agency, which represent different properties and powers or, more precisely, ‘independent properties, capable of exerting autonomous influences.’ I argue that Polish Catholicism entered the transformation process to some extent as [...] Read more.
The modern Polish cultural system emerges through the interplay between social structure and agency, which represent different properties and powers or, more precisely, ‘independent properties, capable of exerting autonomous influences.’ I argue that Polish Catholicism entered the transformation process to some extent as an agential force which shaped progressive social change and delivered ‘energy’ for the transformation of Polish society. However, the process of transformation has changed the public position of the Catholic Church as it is no longer an actor within a dominating social movement that thrived in the quest for freedom and human rights. Catholicism that has played a role in shaping social conflicts, still represents to some degree ‘a public good’. That is why, despite strong political polarization in Poland, there is no context for ‘pillarization’ within Polish society. The situation of Catholicism in the modern Polish social configuration should be described using the category of ‘polarization’ rather than ‘pillarization’. My study of Polish Catholicism confirms that social polarization in Poland is not a bottom-up process but rather, is driven from the top down as a cultural process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)
26 pages, 410 KiB  
Article
Divided by the Rainbow: Culture War and Diffusion of Paleoconservative Values in Contemporary Poland
by Ryszard Bobrowicz and Mattias Nowak
Religions 2021, 12(3), 170; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12030170 - 5 Mar 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3712
Abstract
Over the last decade, representations of the rainbow were repeatedly disputed in Poland, revealing the country’s ongoing socio-political changes and its drift away from the generally liberal and secular values of the European mainstream. These cases show a political growth and an increasing [...] Read more.
Over the last decade, representations of the rainbow were repeatedly disputed in Poland, revealing the country’s ongoing socio-political changes and its drift away from the generally liberal and secular values of the European mainstream. These cases show a political growth and an increasing social diffusion of Polish ‘national paleoconservatism.’ The aim of this article is to (1) discuss the intellectual roots of this distinct form of conservatism built upon the confrontational notions of national identity, patriotism, and Catholicism; (2) propose a novel concept in the studies of Polish politics (‘national paleoconservatism’); and (3) present the social diffusion of such conservatism based on conflicts over representations of the rainbow. By combining the historical and intellectual background with the contemporary case studies, the authors aim to facilitate a deeper understanding of the vitality of national conservative ideas among internationally unknown conservative intellectuals, who participate in a discursive ‘culture war’ against their liberal, progressive and secular opponents in present-day Poland. The ideological conflicts revolve around the meaning of Polish national identity, the essential character of the country’s culture, and the position of Poland within the framework of European integration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Patriotism, Nationalism, and Illiberalism in Their Relation to Religion: A Cross-Cultural Perspective.)
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