In my new book, The Spirit of Our Politics, I introduce a new term, Political Therapeutic Deism, inspired by the term Moral Therapeutic Deism which was coined by sociologists Christian Smith and Melinda Lundquist Denton.

Political Therapeutic Deism is a system of beliefs which invoke religious terms for the purposes of affirming one’s politics. It includes beliefs like:
1. God is on my political party’s side.
2. My views on political issues are a leading indicator that I am a true Christian.
3. My actions in politics are justified in light of God’s general approval of my politics.
4. I do not understand how other “Christians” could vote for my candidate’s opponent.
5. It is clear and obvious which political issues are most important to God.

Political Therapeutic Deism makes sense of why we’re seeing sorting in churches by politics, over and above theology or other factors. It makes sense of why we’ve seen steep declines of religious affiliation among Democrats over the last several decades, and why growing numbers of Trump supporters identify as evangelical, even if they don’t share evangelicals’ theological beliefs. It makes sense of political scientist Michele Margolis’s contention that politics shapes our social identities and that partisan forces are responsible for shaping religious divides along partisan lines. It is why a pastor who is merely reading the assigned Scripture from the lectionary can be accused of partisan motive if the Scripture happens to run crosswise of the political needs of the moment. God, Scripture, theological precepts—these are not desired to refine one’s politics, but rather to provide supplemental support for one’s politics. It is why they are valued.

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Michael Wear | “Political Therapeutic Deism” | April 3rd, 2024

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