Andrew Graystone reflects on our conversation with Prof. Stephen Schneck, who says that political identity is replacing the sense of community in America and around the world. 10/10/2024
Four weeks to the day from the United States presidential election, Professor Stephen Schneck has warned that religion is a polarising factor in the US and that religious freedom is in retreat around the world. Stephen Schneck is chair of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, an agency of the US Congress. He previously served the Obama administration as a member of the White House Advisory Council for Faith–Based and Neighbourhood Partnerships, and was also chair of the Catholics for Biden campaign.
Stephen Schneck was in conversation with Revd Dr Giles Fraser, at Theos, the religion and society think tank, on Tuesday 8 October. He said: “I see freedom of religion and belief in retreat around the world. It’s not just people who belong to organised religion who are being squeezed, but people who practice indigenous religion and even atheism.”
There are two main reasons for the growing pressure on religions, he said. The first is that the rise of authoritarian politics squeezes out the space for other forms of authority. Belief in an outside power, or in scripture, present a challenge to authoritarian regimes. The second source of pressure is the unfolding of globalisation. He identifies “a sense of dislocation” that makes people feel so insecure in their own religion that they become antagonistic to other communities of belief.
He sees America as “deeply split”, not only on partisan lines, but also by class, race and poverty. All of these factors play into the ‘culture wars’, the polarisation of US society. “There’s no way that this level of polarisation can be sustained, either in the US or elsewhere in the West,”, Professor Schneck said. “Without bridging it, governance is impossible. The next president, whoever he or she is, must reach out to the other side.” Schneck pronounced himself ultimately hopeful. “The system may come up to the precipice but it will then have to be resolved.”
Asked how religion is playing into the US election, Professor Schneck said that the religious communities in the US are equally prone to polarisation. According to his estimate the Roman Catholic church roughly mirrors the US population in being split 48:48 between Democrat and Republican parties. He feels that white evangelicals are divided about 80:20. Both presidential candidates are appealing to religion to mobilise voters.
“The role of religion is a bit less than it was in the past,”, he said for many religious people, the thinking is that irrespective of his personal flaws, he [Donald Trump] is associated with a tradition that will strengthen the role of religion.” Professor Schneck said that some evangelicals would vote for Trump on purely pragmatic grounds, such as his role in appointing conservative–leaning Supreme Court Justices. In truth, he said, the vast majority of Americans don’t know in detail the policy positions of the candidates. Partisanship is an identity that people have taken on, and through that identity they look at a range of issues.
Around the world, Schneck sees a blurring between secular and religious leadership. As the grip of traditional religions has diminished, other identities have taken its place. Politicised identity replaces the sense of community; it fills the gap left by the decline of community associations including faith groups. “Our anchors have been washed away,”, said Professor Schneck. “Rootlessness affects so much of the contemporary world, and that contributes to the rise of political polarisation.” He described India as a telling example, in which the rise of religious nationalism associated with the BJP has closed out the space for people to espouse other religions. Prime Minister Narandra Modi has stepped into this space – a political leader offering quasi–religious leadership.
“Faith communities need to proceed practically, and pragmatically,” he said. Efforts to rebuild community can be positive, but they can also be horribly negative. It was the sense of alienation and rootlessness that created a vacuum in Europe in the 1930s.
We need to show people the whole of what religion is – not just a part. His advice for church leaders? “More listening; more humility.”
A political philosopher by training, Stephen Schneck retired from The Catholic University of America in 2018, after more than thirty years as a professor. He served the administration of President Barack Obama as a member of the White House Advisory Council for Faith–Based and Neighbourhood Partnerships, and was chair of the Catholics for Biden campaign. Professor Schneck is now chair of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, an agency of the US Congress. He was speaking to Revd Dr Giles Fraser, an Anglican priest and broadcaster in front of an invited audience at Theos, the religion and society think tank, on Tuesday 8 October 2024.
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