Donald Trump's candidacy has sparked a civil war inside American Christianity.
Trump's popularity among self-identified evangelical Christians has led national figures in American Christianity toquestion whether large swaths of the church even know what their faith teaches, and how it applies to public and political life.
The split is between a subset of evangelicals best categorized as "creedal"
believers—those who take their faith most seriously and who oppose
Trump. Less devout Christians, often described as "notional" or
"cultural," are more open to the businessman and GOP front-runner.
The majority of national evangelical leaders are on the side of creedal
believers.
believers—those who take their faith most seriously and who oppose
Trump. Less devout Christians, often described as "notional" or
"cultural," are more open to the businessman and GOP front-runner.
The majority of national evangelical leaders are on the side of creedal
believers.
If Trump becomes the Republican nominee many of these creedal evangelicals who have traditionally voted Republican say they would distance themselves from the GOP. But nobody knows whether this would result in evangelicals moving over to vote for the Democratic nominee or whether there would be a broader movement among conservatives to form a third party.
Nonetheless, many anti-Trump Christian leaders believe that the American church has been in decline for decades, leaving many casual Christians — for whom faith is more of a cultural identity rather than a day-to-day experience — vulnerable to Trump's appeals to anger and resentment.
