Religious Nationalism in Modern Europe: If God Be for Us

Political scientists have long argued that economic development and modernization would lead to a world in which religion is relegated to the sidelines. However, while a broad trend can be observed, there are numerous examples of religious revival in the world today, from the United States to the Middle East to Europe itself. This book addresses the issue of modern religious nationalism in Europe exploring, why several countries, including Ireland, Yugoslavia, Greece, and Poland, stand in clear contrast to this broader trend. So much so, that it calls into question the broader argument as a whole. This book examines: Why have certain modern states remained religiously nationalistic? And does the broader argument of secularization and modernization stand up to scrutiny? Providing an overview of the arguments that exist, the author develops a new way of looking at the phenomenon of religious nationalism in the world today. He argues that there are two crucial factors that lead to the formation of religious nationalism in Europe: the presence of religious frontiers and the presence of an existential threat, and examines this theory through a series of in-depth case studies. Greatly expanding our current understanding of the conditions in which religious nationalism develops, this important book has implications for our understanding of religion and politics, secularization, European politics and foreign policy.Barker, Philip W. is the author of 'Religious Nationalism in Modern Europe: If God Be for Us', published 2009 under ISBN 9780415775144 and ISBN 0415775140.