Populism and religion

The chapter examines the literature on the relation between religion and the European populist radical right. It suggests that the populist radical right defines Christianity in nativist terms as a constituent part of ‘the people’ to exclude Islam. It analyses the ‘civilizationist’ approach, which frames Christianity together with the modernization process as core features of a unified European cultural whole. Moreover, it is emphasized that contrary to this paradigm, several parties do not accept the divide between Islam and Christian Europe in terms of social liberalism and secularity but structure their discourse on the supposed threat Islam poses for national homogeneity and state security. In conclusion, it is argued that both politicized forms of Christianity have as an effect the loss of its significance as faith and its actual secularization.