Christianity As Tribal Identity

The American Right seems to be settling on faith as its preferred tribal identity

JD Vance proclaimed Christianity as the heart of our national identity at AmFest last weekend. “The only thing that has truly served as an anchor of the United States of America is that we have been, and by the grace of God, we always will be, a Christian nation,” he said to rapturous applause.

This statement encapsulated the vibe of the Turning Point USA event. Part religious revival, part political rally, AmFest sought to showcase the trajectory of the Right in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death. Despite the feuding on stage between various personalities, a common theme was discerned among most speakers: America is a Christian nation, and it’s imperative for the audience to keep it that way.

Vance, who was endorsed for president by TPUSA, made this clear this in his keynote address. He issued his declaration in response to the ongoing debate over America’s true identity. The vice president eschewed both the creedal and Heritage American arguments with his faith-based answer. “Christianity is America’s creed,” he stated.

It indicated how Christian nationalism is the preferred tribal identifier for the Right. The New Right wants a thicker identity for America, one that transcends the perceived limitations of civic nationalism and appeals to ordinary Americans. Heritage Americanism is now a thing due to this tribal desire. The Right wants a national identity that sets clear boundaries and establishes a stronger group consciousness than the preamble of the Declaration of Independence. Heritage Americanism promises that identity.

The problem, as I noted in my last column, is that it’s a term with little resonance among common Americans. While more ambiguous than white, it still has racial connotations that discomforts normies. It also can end up being more exclusive than “white” as an identity. Most importantly, no one off the internet identifies as a Heritage American, especially not the people who qualify for this label. It’s a term that creates confusion rather than clarity. While the White House may make memes winking towards it, don’t expect politicians to go all-in on it.

However, the New Right does not want to fall back on creedalism. It’s discredited in their eyes and seen as what’s led America to its current state.

Enter Christian as the preferred tribal identity. Unlike Heritage American, it resonates with the public. The majority of Americans still say they’re Christian. Tens of millions say it’s the most important thing in their lives and critical to American identity. It’s far more socially acceptable—and more popular, according to polling—to say you must be a Christian to be a real American rather than saying you must be white. Unlike with white nationalism, it’s an identity that fits with in multiracial America. Few will call you a racist for declaring yourself a Christian. One can appeal to your faith to argue that it prevents you from being such a bigot. You can even point to minorities as part of the in-group to dismiss accusations of racial exclusion.

Emphasizing Christianity is obviously nothing new for American conservatism. What’s new is how the faith acts as a surrogate ethnic identity. The Religious Right focused on the beliefs and practices of the faith, which is why it was reliably socially conservative but often terrible on identity issues. MAGA’s Christian nationalism emphasizes simply being a Christian over specific beliefs and practices. Its purpose is to engender a strong group identity among “Red Americans” and encourage support for right-wing policies. The group identity aspect allows Nicki Minaj, Russell Brand, Nicole Shanahan, and other unorthodox Christians to emerge as representatives of the faith. What matters is that they publicly declare their membership in the tribe, not that they act like Christians.

The new style of Christian politics was outlined by Vance in his AmFest speech. “A true Christian politics, it cannot just be about the protection of the unborn or the promotion of the family, as important as those things absolutely are,” the VP argued. “It must be at the heart of our full understanding of government.”

He then outlined national populism as his political Christianity, with calls to restrict immigration and outsourcing, as well as tax cuts and a more restrained foreign policy. It wasn’t clear what made it specifically Christian, but it becomes more understandable when Christian nationalism is seen as a version of identity politics. The point of these policies are intended to secure the group interests of American Christians. Their tax dollars will go to people like themselves rather than to Ukrainians and Somali scammers. American jobs will go to “our people” (American Christians) rather than the outgroup.

The TPUSA crowd loved Vance’s message, illustrating its appeal to the conservative base.

All factions within the Right utilize explicitly Christian arguments to defend their cause. Fights on the Right are often animated by competing claims to properly represent Christian doctrine. Neocons will point to Bible passages to demand fealty to Israel, while their critics will throw back scripture to argue for Israel’s perfidy. Identitarians will stress that race realism compliments Christian doctrine, while anti-identitarians will warn it goes against their religion’s teaching. Christian faith underscores much of conservative discourse today.

Christian identity (not to be confused with the white nationalist religion Christian Identity) is a fairly big tent. It includes Catholics, evangelicals, Orthodox, and Mormons. It excludes Hindus, Muslims, and atheists. (Exceptions can be made, as Harmeet Dhillon and Usha Vance prove.) Jews remain a matter of debate. While various denominations are welcome, its style is megachurch. It better aligns with Trump’s bombastic, populist style than the austerity of the Latin Mass.

The old conservatism may have been leery of these overt declarations of faith. The Religious Right tried to soft-peddle it with “Judeo-Christianity” to make it more inclusive. But Vance dropped the “Judeo” in his speech. “Christian” works far better in fostering a tribal identity. There didn’t seem to be much of a backlash to that. Conservative media, especially Fox News, loved his proclamation of America as a Christian.

Fox itself is far more religious than it was when I was growing up. Most Fox Nation content is faith-based. Many of its ads are for Christian products and services. Its regular programming constantly promotes Christian influencers and themes. Hosts make a point to discuss their personal faith on their shows. It’s no longer Bill O’Reilly’s network.

There are issues that could arise with the Right’s embrace of Christian tribalism. While meant to exclude non-American Christians, it could in the future be used to justify mass immigration–so long as the newcomers are Christian. . If Christianity is the core of American national identity, then what’s to keep out a devout Guatemalan Catholic? The old Religious Right championed immigration on these grounds. The current state of right-wing discourse frowns upon these arguments. It’s understood the tribal identity only extends to American Christians. But it’s possible that could change in the future.

Christian institutions aren’t eager to embrace Christian tribalism. The Pope, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Church of Latter-Day Saints, and many Protestant leaders virulently condemn Trump’s deportations. Christian nationalism is a movement of laymen, not of clerics. The institutions turning strongly against this trend could undercut it.

The most important issue is that it may be rejected at the ballot box. Christian identity is popular among Republican voters, but that’s not the entirety of the electorate. America is much more secular than it was in the heyday of the Moral Majority. Just 62 percent of Americans are Christian and church attendance is at record lows. The vast majority of citizens believe abortion and gay marriage should be legal. An explicitly religious message on the campaign trail may alienate voters. Trump played with this rhetoric in his 2024 campaign, but no one believes he’s a devout Christian and he ran on the more socially liberal agendas in GOP history. He won the election. It could be a very different story when his successor runs on a more serious Christian nationalist message.

A decade ago, Trumpism and the Alt Right were considered signs of an emerging post-Religious Right. Leaders of the Alt Right were explicit in their desire to take the Right in a secular direction. The last thing they wanted was a movement that resembled The Righteous Gemstones. The MAGA era has taken Alt Right views into the mainstream, but, as AmFest demonstrates, it’s combined with megachurch aesthetics.

The fusion of faith and politics reached its apogee in the Charlie Kirk memorial. The political rally made clear the Trumpian version of Christian nationalism is now the style of the Right. Warnings that Trump would inaugurate a post-Religious Right look silly now. Something else has emerged in MAGA’s wake.