Christian right

Christian Right is a term collectively referring to a spectrum of conservative Christian political and social movements and organizations characterized by their strong support of traditional social values in the United States and other western countries. The terms Christian Right and Religious right are sometimes used interchangeably, although this is problematic (see discussion at Religious right).

History

Jerome Himmelstein writes that:

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:"The term New Religious Right refers to a set of organizations that emerged in the late 1970s, the Moral Majority (later renamed the Liberty Federation), the Religious Roundtable, and the Christian Voice; their leaders, including Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, and Ed McAteer; and the movement that these leaders and organizations fostered. Though this movement made a broad, religiously based conservative appeal, its deepest roots and most lasting impact were among white evangelicals and fundamentalist Christians (p. 97)."

Related Topics:
Moral Majority - Liberty Federation - Religious Roundtable - Christian Voice - Pat Robertson - Jerry Falwell - Ed McAteer

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A Consciousness of "The Christian Right" as a political entity emerged after evangelicals began organizing against a series of Supreme Court decisions (???) and also engaged in local battles over pornography, obscenity, taxation of private Christian schools, school prayer, textbook contents, and abortion.

Related Topics:
Supreme Court - Pornography - Obscenity - Tax - School prayer - Textbook - Abortion

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As a political force, the Christian Right was said to have played a significant role in the election of President Ronald Reagan in 1980.

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Some believe that the Christian Right is a continuing stream of politically active biblically based Christians who migrated to America in the early 1600's and particularly at the time of the English Civil War. Many believe that the Christian Right are in fact modern day Puritans.

Related Topics:
English Civil War - Christian Right - Puritans

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The Christian Right does not represent all evangelicals. Some Christians are active on the left. In taking the Great Commission as a global political mandate for Christendom they have looked to government for support. They hold to a more left-wing ecumenical view the Gospel. This socialistic perspective is not nearly as common in the U.S.A. as it is in Europe and the British Commonwealth countries. Then there are a significant number of evangelical Christians in America and elsewhere who are quite apolitical. Many of them came out of the Pilgrim separatist tradition. Some came out of the Anabaptist movement which arose in Europe the 1500's and 1600's after the Reformation Wars. The history of Christian savagery at that time was so awful that many Christian swore never to engage political involvement again. This resolve to live a life as separated from the world as possible gave rise to many of the denominations we see today in the independent 'free church' tradition. These include the Amish, the Mennonites and denominations such as the Primitive Baptists. America also received a large number of independent minded Pilgrim separatists in the early colonial period. These Christians have always had a rather dim view of politics and the serious compromise to the faith it often calls for or tends to engender. These Christan activists have traditionally chosen not to channel their energies in politics and social action. They concentrate on addressing the flawed human condition at the heart level. They prefer to support the Gospel and Christian missions overseas rather than trust and rely on the political connections.

Related Topics:
Anabaptist - Amish - Mennonites - Primitive Baptists - Pilgrim - Gospel

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