Civil Religion in the Era of Trump

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In this photograph, Donald Trump, standing next to the sign for St. John's Church in Washington D.C. holds a hardcover Bible over his right shoulder (the viewer's left). Trump's expression is one of concentration, severity, and distress. His posture and serious features suggest that the matter at hand is one of great importance. Moreover, his position in the foreground marks him as the most important figure, and draws the eye to the center of the image. Trump is dressed formally, wearing a white shirt, blue tie, and navy suit with an American flag pin on the lapel. Although the pin is difficult to make out in the image, it still clearly symbolizes an alliance to the U.S. There is a letter board to Trump's left (the viewer's right) that welcomes new and returning members to Sunday service in addition to listing the various names of the parish's clergy. Both Trump and the sign stand out from the lighter background, which indicates an association between the two; the bible is also starkly visible against the white. Trump standing outside of the church symbolizes his affiliation with that group and Christianity more broadly. This image was orginally paired with an article talking about how Trump began receiving royalties from "God Bless the USA Bible" sales. 

In "Civil Relgion in America," Robert Bellah argues that there exists a form of religion called civil religion that represents "certain common elements of religious orientation that the great majority of Americans share" (Bellah 1967: 3). Civil religion implies that Americans are not only united under certain public religious beliefs, rituals, and symbols, but that they also believe in a higher cause that exists external to human society. He gives the example of Kennedy's 1961 inauguration speech, in which Kennedy says the "rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God." According to Bellah, Kennedy invoking God in his speech signifies the importance of religious practices in American politics and culture; Kennedy reminds the American public of their responsibility to carry out God's will, which is greater than the law and humanity alike. Kennedy was not the first to invoke God, however, as the founding fathers and first presidents of the U.S. also believed that politics and law were directly tied to realizing God's plan for America. Thus, the nation was founded on the idea that there is a power beyond the president that Americans must strive to obey. Even so, Bellah makes clear that civil religion is in no way a substitute for Christianity (or any other religious identities), as the two are distinct concepts. While Christianity remains separate from the state, civil religion is inherently linked to American government and law. Bellah uses Durkheim's deifinition of religion, particularly the idea of sacred symbols, beliefs, and rituals. Nevertheless, his argument is distinct from Durkheim's, as he applies the concept of religious practices to American politics. 

In promoting the Bible during his presidential campaign, Donald Trump shows his simultaneous awareness and complete misunderstanding of civil religion. While past presidents have used invocations of God to establish "a transcendent goal for the political process" (Bellah 1967: 4), Trump, who was "not overtly religious" before running for president, views Bible sales as a profitable campaigning strategy. His partnership with Lee Greenwood, the creator of the "God Bless the USA Bible," is seemingly a way for him to reach a wider audience while also appealing to his current supporters, many of whom are Christian. He not only gains economic wealth from each Bible purchase, but also the respect of much of the Christian community. Trump's promotion of the Bible is an example of Bellah's claim that "civil religion has not always been invoked in favor of worthy causes" (14), as he only uses religion for his own interests rather than the betterment of the country. 


References

Bellah, Robert N. 1967. "Civil Religion in America." Daedalus 96(1): 1-21. 

Gold, Michael and Maggie Haberman. 2024. "Trump's Newest Venture? A $60 Bible." The New York Times, March 26. Retrieved March 28, 2024 (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/26/us/politics/trump-bible.html?searchResultPosition=32).






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