Christian right
The Christian right, otherwise referred to as the religious right, are Christian political factions characterized by their strong support of socially conservative and traditionalist policies. Christian conservatives seek to influence politics and public policy with their interpretation of the teachings of Christianity. In the United States, they oppose any interpretation of the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution that implies a "separation of church and state", as they seek to use politics and the law to impose their conservative Christian beliefs on American society.
| Part of a series on |
| Conservatism |
|---|
| This article is part of a series on |
| Conservatism in the United States |
|---|
In the United States, the Christian right is an informal coalition which was formed around a core of predominantly White conservative Evangelical Protestants and Roman Catholics. The Christian right draws additional support from politically conservative mainline Protestants, Orthodox Jews, and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The movement has its roots in American politics going back as far as the 1940s; it has been especially influential since the 1970s. Its influence draws from grassroots activism as well as from focus on social issues and the ability to motivate the electorate around those issues.
The Christian right is notable because it has advanced socially conservative positions on issues such as creationism in public education, school prayer, temperance, Christian nationalism, Christian Zionism, and Sunday Sabbatarianism, as well as opposition to biological evolution, embryonic stem cell research, LGBT rights, comprehensive sex education, abortion and euthanasia, use of drugs, and pornography. Although the term Christian right is most commonly associated with politics in the United States, similar Christian conservative groups can be found in the political cultures of other Christian-majority countries.