Christianity in Britain is becoming increasingly divided. Nowadays, established churches are viewed as weak and pandering by a militant strain of Christian nationalists; they demand a white, Christian nation, free from immigration and Islam, as activists combine their faith with far-right politics. This movement responds to complaints they claim relate to grooming gangs, ‘two-tier policing’, and what they describe as cultural degradation, while drawing inspiration heavily from American MAGA’s rise.
Traditionalists abandon organisations like the Church of England, due to its progressive views on sexuality, multiculturalism, and critical stances on Britain’s colonial past. They claim that in their pursuit of new social norms and relevance, bishops have betrayed Scripture. Dissidents, on the other hand, support individuals like Tommy Robinson (political stage name of Stephen Yaxley-Lennon), who says a prison conversion transformed him, and now portrays his Islamophobic and anti-immigrant campaigns in what he characterises as ‘crusade-style’ holy wars. Preachers criticising ‘godless elites’, crusader chants, and mass baptisms were all part of Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally last month in London.
So why do nationalists use Christianity to support their anti-immigration beliefs and purportedly ‘fight’ Islam? As parishes shrink and close, mainstream Sunday service attendance stays below 600,000. As mosques grow in number, progressives embrace messages of inclusivity, net-zero sermons and Pride flags. In response, nationalists transform the Bible into a weapon.
They maliciously promote false claims, misrepresenting Islam as a religion of conquest, supposedly aiming to replace British culture, enforce ‘sharia zones’, or groom girls. Robinson and his supporters demand bans on the building of new mosques, burqas, and halal meat. Other far-right organisations, such as Britain First, organise ‘Christian patrols’ to ‘reclaim the streets’ and storm houses of worship with crosses; hateful acts all in the name of their political ideology, blanketed by a thin veil of religion.
It’s difficult to ignore the extent to which the American far right and its rhetoric have influenced the UK far right. White Evangelicals were crucial to Donald Trump’s 2024 victory; 81% of them supported him in spite of his many scandals, which can be characterised as highly anti-Christian. He was preached by pastors to be God’s tool against secularism, which somehow threatened the Christian majority.
Far-right leaders in Britain mimic this strategy. Reform party council members, in an effort to maintain what they call Britain’s Christian identity, have banned Pride flags and reinstated Christian prayers in meetings. Robinson warns of a clash between civilisations, quoting Scripture at demonstrations. Furthermore, right-wing online networks share memes of knights defending white Europe from non-white, non-Christian ‘invaders’, concerningly apeing Nazi propaganda.
Nationalists transform the Bible into a weapon.
Beyond cultural Christianity, some white nationalist groups advocate for a faith-based, white ethno-state. Organisation Patriotic Alternative ties churches to European identity, mourning attacks on Christianity as assaults on whiteness. Disturbing right-wing conspiracy theories like The Great Replacement are echoed by fearful supporters: ideas like ‘Muslims procreate more quickly, and elites import them to dilute and reduce the native white population’. For white nationalists, Christianity becomes a tribal marker that serves as the white race’s armour, rather than a means of universal salvation. Migration is equated to genocide, and large white families are hailed as a sign of resistance.
Leaders in the mainstream denounce Christian nationalists as greatly twisting the faith. Bishops refer to it as a corruption, transforming love for one’s neighbour into hatred for strangers. Outside the walls of the establishment, however, dissidents like Ceirion Dewar and other independent preachers rant against Islam and wokeness, while baptising hundreds of people on beaches. Reform UK emphasises Christianity in government while promising to fight so-called radical Islam.
For white nationalists, Christianity becomes a tribal marker that serves as the white race’s armour, rather than a means of universal salvation.
With its pews emptying, the Church of England begs for inclusivity. Fire and rage are utilised by nationalists to fill a void. They completely disassociate themselves from interfaith dialogue and peace amongst the faiths that make up this country. They claim that Christianity demands borders, bans, and ‘blood-and-soil’ loyalty. The future of Britain is at stake. Will faith bring people together or drive them apart?
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