Comparative Framework for Understanding Jewish and Christian Violent Fundamentalism

Abstract

Abstract:Although most scholars agree that in the last couple of decades, religious fundamentalism has become the dominant ideological feature in the landscape of modern terrorism, many prefer to ignore the fact that this is not a development which is restricted to the Islamic world, and that other religious traditions have also experienced growth in groups which prefer to use violent strategies to promote their sacred visions. The current chapter strives to fill this gap by analyzing the emergence of violent religious groups in two distinct, non-Islamic, religious traditions. At first glance, the Christian Identity and the Religious-Zionist movements have very little in common. However, both movements served as a breeding ground for the emergence of violent fundamentalist groups aspiring to facilitate an apocalyptic/redemption scenario by engaging in illegal violent campaigns. Moreover, in both cases, the role of spiritual leaders was crucial in shaping the radicalization of the groups and their target selection, and the violence had a clear symbolic narrative. In other words, for the members of these violent groups, the violence served a clear role in the mobilization of potential supporters, and the branding and dissemination of the movement's ideology. Finally, while in general, terrorism is perceived as the weapon of the weak, in these two cases it was perpetrated by individuals/groups affiliated to communities belonging to the dominant religious framework in their respective polities (i.e., the Religious-Zionist and Christian Identity movements are perceived by their members as branches of Judaism and Christianity). Hence, by utilizing a comparative framework, the article will not just analyze the violent manifestations that emerged from these two movements, but also try to identify the unique factors that characterize and facilitate the emergence of religious groups within religious communities belonging to the dominant religious tradition in their societies. OPEN ACCESSReligions 2015, 6 1034

Manifestations of White Supremacy in the USA: A Case of the Ku Klux Klan

“…White supremacy claimed Jews to be the offspring of Satan, that employed manipulation for gaining dominance over the world's finances and promoted the destruction of Aryan civilizations (Perliger, 2015). Accordingly, the narrative of Jews threatening Christian identity plus beliefs was formulated.…”

“…Furthermore, a belief of white supremacy revolved around apocalyptic perceptions. Preparation for the second coming is promoted, whereby, the supremacy of the true people of Israel shall be reestablished (Perliger, 2015). Accordingly, true believers are guided to compete with the evil forces, i.e.…”

“…Jews. A war between the children of light (Christian) and darkness (Jews) will institute the Kingdom of Christ (Perliger, 2015). Moving forward, White supremacy fueled by Christian identity further pursues racial segregation for preserving the ascendency of the Aryans.…”

“…Moving forward, White supremacy fueled by Christian identity further pursues racial segregation for preserving the ascendency of the Aryans. This notion is a reflection of the biblical story of Genesis, where Adam is stated to be the first white man, rather than simply the first man (Perliger, 2015). Individuals with less capability were created before Adam.…”

“…Aryans are stated to follow in line to Adam and Eve, while, non-Aryans were regarded as children of Eve and the serpent (Zeskind, 1987). The Christian school of thought argues that, racial mixing was the original sin resulting in the expulsion of the "white man from the Garden of Eden" (Perliger, 2015). Henceforth, racial segregation and racism against the black community was justified on religious grounds.…”