French Populism and Discourses on Secularism

French Populism and Discourses on Secularism
Author: Per-Erik Nilsson
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 233
Release: 2018-12-27
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1350055840

Per-Erik Nilsson takes a religious studies approach to analyse the intersections of secularism, nationhood and populism in contemporary France. This book provides insight into the French and European radical-nationalist ideology and activism, and contributes to our understanding of the complex relationship between religion and the state in contemporary Europe and beyond. When Marine Le Pen became the leader of the radical nationalist and populist party National Front in 2011, she made clear that secularism was a core value of party. This signalled a significant shift in the party's rhetorical strategies and previous reluctance to embrace secularism. Nilsson argues that this conspicuous appropriation first came about as a logical result of the obsession of the established mainstream political parties and news media with questions of secularism, national identity and Islam. He shows that a key player in understanding the National Front's change is the web-based journal Riposte Laïque, which has become a central actor in French radical-nationalist and anti-Muslim web and street-based activism. For the first time, this source is examined in order to understand French radical nationalists' recent appropriation of secularism, as well as debates on secularism, national identity and Islam in France more broadly.

French Populism and Discourses on Secularism

French Populism and Discourses on Secularism
Author: Per-Erik Nilsson
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 233
Release: 2020-06-25
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1350170216

Per-Erik Nilsson takes a religious studies approach to analyse French contemporary populism, and uses the discourse on secularism as a lens to do so. This book provides insight into the French and European far-right and radical-nationalist ideology and activism, and contributes to our understanding of the complex relationship between religion and the state in contemporary Europe and beyond. Marine Le Pen stated that secularism was a core value of the National Front, which signaled a significant shift in the far-right's rhetorical strategies and previous opposition to secularism. Nilsson argues that this conspicuous appropriation first came about as a logical result of the obsession of the established main-stream political parties and news media with questions of secularism, national identity, and Islam. He argues that a key player in understanding the National Front's change is the web-based journal Riposte Laïque, which has become a central actor in French radical-nationalist and anti-Islamic web and street based activism. For the first time, this source is examined in order to understand the French far-right's recent appropriation of secularism, as well as debates on secularism, national identity and Islam in France more broadly.

Religion and the Populist Radical Right: Secular Christianism and Populism in Western Europe

Religion and the Populist Radical Right: Secular Christianism and Populism in Western Europe
Author: Nicholas Morieson
Publisher: Vernon Press
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2021-07-06
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1648892175

In Western Europe, populist radical right parties are calling for a return to Christian or Judeo-Christian values and identity. The growing electoral success of many of these parties may suggest that, after decades of secularisation, Western Europeans are returning to religion. Yet these parties do not tell their supporters to go to church, believe in God, or practise traditional Christian values. Instead, they claim that their respective national identities and cultures are the product of a Christian or Judeo-Christian tradition which either encompasses—or has produced—secular modernity. This book poses the question: if Western European politics is secular, why has religious identity become a core element of populist radical right discourse? To answer this question, Morieson examines the discursive use of religion by two of the most powerful and influential populist radical right parties: The French National Front and the Dutch Party for Freedom. Based on this examination, he argues that the populist radical right has capitalised on a cultural shift engendered by the increasing visibility of Islam in Europe. Western Europeans’ encounter with Islam has revealed the non-universal nature of Western European secularism to Europeans, and demonstrated the secularisation of Christianity into Western European ‘culture.’ This, in turn, has allowed secular French and Dutch citizens to identify themselves—as well as their nation and, ultimately, Western civilisation—as Christian or Judeo-Christian. Seizing on this cultural shift, the author contends that the National Front and Party for Freedom have built successful and similar brands of reactionary politics based on the notion that contemporary secularism is a product of Europe’s Christian heritage and values, and that therefore Muslim immigration is an existential threat to the core values of European politics, including the differentiation of politics and religion, and of church and state. ‘Religion and the Populist Radical Right: Secular Christianism and Populism in Western Europe’ will be of interest to scholars and researchers working on the intersections of Political Science, Sociology, and Religion. It will also appeal to the general audience interested in the relationship between populism in Western Europe and religious identity as it is written in an accessible style.

Populist Discourse

Populist Discourse
Author: Encarnación Hidalgo-Tenorio
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 248
Release: 2019-03-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0429648960

Populist Discourse brings together experts from both linguistics and political science to analyse the language of populist leaders and the media's representation of populism in different temporal, geographical and ideological contexts, including Nazi Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Austria, Greece, the UK, the US and South America. With 17 contributions split into four sections, Populist Discourse covers a variety of approaches such as corpus-based discourse analysis, critical discourse analysis and political perspectives, making it a timely dissection for students and researchers working in linguistics, political science and communication.

The Oxford Handbook of Populism

The Oxford Handbook of Populism
Author: Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 737
Release: 2017
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0198803567

The Oxford Handbook of Populism presents the state of the art of research on populism from the perspective of Political Science. The book features work from the leading experts in the field, and synthesizes the main strands of research in four compact sections: concepts, issues, regions, and normative debates. Due to its breath, The Oxford Handbook of Populism is an invaluable resource for those interested in the study of populism, but also forexperts in each of the topics discussed, who will benefit from accounts of current discussions and research gaps, as well as a map of new directions in the study of populism.

Saving the People

Saving the People
Author: Nadia Marzouki
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2016
Genre: Christianity and politics
ISBN: 9781849045209

Western democracies are experiencing a new wave of right-wing populism that seeks to mobilise religion for its own ends. With chapters on the United States, Britain, France, Italy, Austria, the Netherlands, Poland and Israel, Saving the People asks how populist movements have used religion for their own ends and how Church leaders react to them. The authors contend that religion is more about belonging than belief for populists, with religious identities and traditions being deployed to define who can and cannot be part of 'the people'. This in turn helps many populists to claim that native Christian communities are being threatened by a creeping and highly aggressive process of Islamisation, with Muslims becoming a key, if not the, 'enemy of the people'. While Church elites generally condemn this instrumental use of religions, populists take little heed, presenting themselves as the true saviours of the people. The policy implications of this phenomenon are significant, which makes this book all the more timely and relevant to current debate.

Populism and Religion

Populism and Religion
Author: Thierry-Marie Courau
Publisher:
Total Pages: 139
Release: 2019
Genre: Populism
ISBN: 9780334031536

Editorial 7 Part One: World Situations Populism and Religion in Bosnia and Herzegovina 14 MILE BABIĆ Populism and Religious Nationalism in India 26 FRANCIS GONSALVES The Nationalisation of the Central Islamic Reference Point: Islam and Populism in the History of Turkey 37 DILEK SARMIS Part Two: Analyses Religious Populism: the New Avatar of Political Crisis 50 FRANÇOIS MABILLE Masculinist Populism and Toxic Christianity in the United States 61 SUSAN ABRAHAM Part Three: Challenging populism by theology The 'People' of God and its Idols in the 'One and Other' Testaments: How Sacred Scripture Challenges Populist Rhetoric 74 MARIDA NICOLACI 'Bridges not Barriers': The Potential of Christian Hope to Counter Right-Wing Populism 89 ANDREAS LOB-HÜDEPOHL Right-wing Populism and Catholicity: An Ecclesiological Reflection 101 FRANZ GMAINER-PRANZEL The Paradoxes of Populism and the Church's Contribution to Democracy: Some Hypotheses 111 CARMELO DOTOLO Part Four: Theological Forum Summer of Shame: American Catholics and the Latest Wave of the Abuse Crisis 124 CATHLEEN KAVENY Listening to the Conversation: After the Synod of Bishops Meeting on Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment 130 BRUNO CADORÉ Contributors 136

Discourse Theory and Political Analysis

Discourse Theory and Political Analysis
Author: David R. Howarth
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2000-11-18
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9780719056642

How can recent developments in post-structuralist, post-Marxist, and psychoanalytical theory actually inform ongoing empirical research? What are the appropriate methods and research strategies for conducting research in discourse theory and analysis? How can concepts such as hegemony, identity, the imaginary, dislocation, and empty signifiers illuminate key aspects of contemporary society and politics? This pathbreaking and multi-focal book contains a clear introductory statement of the theoretical approach used, and concludes with an assessment of the future directions of discourse theory in the social sciences.

Religion and the Rise of Populism

Religion and the Rise of Populism
Author: Daniel Nilsson DeHanas
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 134
Release: 2020-06-29
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1000507572

Populism is on the rise around the world. Since 2016, with the US presidential election and the Brexit debate in the UK, populism has taken a central place in global discussions on democracy. This book aims to correct the oversight that, although religion has played a key role in populism in many countries, it has been curiously neglected in recent academic debates. The authors use case studies from around the world to provide global insights into this issue. The first part of the book focuses on the West, with authors exploring the important role of Anglican voters in the Brexit referendum; rural and pre-millennialist American support for Donald Trump; and the rise of political rhetoric on Muslims in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. The book then moves beyond the West to consider leaders and political parties in Turkey, Macedonia, Greece, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan. The authors consider varied populist types, from more established ‘ruling populists’ to young upstart movements. This wide-ranging volume redefines the concept of populism as a political style that sets a ‘sacred people’ apart from its enemies, providing a timely yet grounded account that will stimulate further research and public debate. It was originally published as a special issue of the journal Religion, State & Society.

Citizenship and Belonging in France and North America

Citizenship and Belonging in France and North America
Author: Ramona Mielusel
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 265
Release: 2020-01-09
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3030301583

The first decades of the new millennium have been marked by major political changes. Although The West has wished to revisit internal and international politics concerning migration policies, refugee status, integration, secularism, and the dismantling of communitarianism, events like the Syrian refugee crisis, the terrorist attacks in France in 2015-2016, and the economic crisis of 2008 have resurrected concepts such as national identity, integration, citizenship and re-shaping state policies in many developed countries. In France and Canada, more recent public elections have brought complex democratic political figures like Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau to the public eye. Both leaders were elected based on their promising political agendas that aimed at bringing their countries into the new millennium; Trudeau promotes multiculturalism, while Macron touts the diverse nation and the inclusion of diverse ethnic communities to the national model. This edited collection aims to establish a dialogue between these two countries and across disciplines in search of such discursive illustrations and opposing discourses. Analyzing the cultural and political tensions between minority groups and the state in light of political events that question ideas of citizenship and belonging to a multicultural nation, the chapters in this volume serve as a testimonial to the multiple views on the political and public perception of multicultural practices and their national and international applicability to our current geopolitical context.