Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Date of Degree
6-2017
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Program
Political Science
Advisor
Corey Robin
Committee Members
Uday Singh Mehta
Paisley Currah
Bryan Turner
Matthew Scherer
Subject Categories
American Politics | American Studies | Arts and Humanities | Christianity | Comparative Methodologies and Theories | Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | Models and Methods | Political Science | Political Theory | Religion | Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Keywords
evangelical, theory, thought, politics, Christian right, post-secular
Abstract
Despite renewed attention to religion and ethics in political theory, there is a notable absence of inquiry into evangelicalism. Social scientists have studied Christian right policy in the late 20th century, but how has the movement shifted in the new millennium and what are the theoretical beliefs that undergird those shifts? By reading popular devotional writings as political texts, this dissertation distills a three-part evangelical political thought: 1) a theory of time in which teleological eternity complements retroactive re-birth; 2) a theory of being wherein evangelicals learn to strive after their godly potential through a process of emotional self-regulation; and 3) a theory of personhood wherein identity develops concurrently within the evangelical subculture and today’s (neo)liberal ethos. Ultimately, this dissertation argues that for the last fifteen years, an evangelical revival has been transforming the movement from a policy-driven politics to an ontologically driven politics—innovatively pivoting it away from the Christian right. Whereas most secular observers focus on the internal contradictions of evangelicalism, my close reading and interpretation of devotional texts instead describes a series of creative tensions that work to strengthen religious belief, support a strategic revivalism, and catalyze evangelicalism as a new kind of socio-political movement.
Recommended Citation
Jen, Joanna Tice, "Thine Is the Kingdom: The Political Thought of 21st Century Evangelicalism" (2017). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1989
Included in
American Politics Commons, American Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, Comparative Methodologies and Theories Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Models and Methods Commons, Political Theory Commons, Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons