AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): A new study has revealed that over the past 25 years, far-right parties in Western Europe have increasingly used Christian symbols to portray themselves as defenders of “Christian values” against what they describe as an Islamic threat, despite there being no direct connection between personal religiosity and Islamophobia.
Conducted across the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the Netherlands, the research analyzed data from approximately 75,000 participants. It found that individuals who regularly attend church or identify as Christian do not systematically hold racist, authoritarian, or extremist populist views.
In contrast, Islamophobia was found to be strongly associated with authoritarianism and a sense of cultural superiority toward immigrants. Those who express anti-immigrant or authoritarian views are significantly more likely to hold negative attitudes toward Muslims, and vice versa. This consistent pattern across all four countries reflects a shared social dynamic in Western Europe.
According to the study’s author, far-right parties have employed a strategy of “Christianism,” turning Christianity into a cultural symbol of Western identity while framing Islam as a civilizational threat. This approach enables them to spread nationalist and anti-immigrant messages even among secular voters, without resorting to overt racism.
The findings suggest that Islamophobia in Western Europe stems not from Christian faith but from exclusionary and authoritarian worldviews, reinforced by political manipulation of religious symbols. The study offers new insight into how far-right movements exploit cultural narratives to fuel division and normalize hostility toward Muslims in secular societies.
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