Religion, populism, and the dynamics of nationalism

Abstract

ABSTRACT This contribution constructs a three-stage integrative framework to analyse relations between nationalism, populism, and religion. First, following the work of A.D. Smith, nationalism is interpreted as a complex phenomenon with the capacity to accommodate multiple religious forms. Second, productive comparisons are drawn between the ‘sacred properties of the nation’ as defined by Smith with elements of the ‘populist core’ proposed by the scholar of ideology M. Freeden. Third, situating these comparisons within arguments by S.W. Hibbard on the dynamics of religion and politics, connections between religion and populism are partly framed as ‘intra-communal’ contests over competing ideologies of the nation. The contribution concludes with preliminary analyses of religion and populism in Europe and the United States, highlighting the value of integrative methods to analyse the dynamics of religio-populism in western contexts of nationalism.