Evangelicals: from faith to power

In the beginning there was Billy Graham. In the midst of the Cold War, the US preacher established himself at the ‘pope’ of the evangelicals - a conservative Christian movement that aims to expand the social influence of religion in society. His great crusade was then appropriated by a powerful political-religious lobby in the following decades.

From the 1970s onwards, the secularisation of America was increasingly a source of dismay for evangelical leaders. In a society they denounced as decadent, they fought to preserve their version of family values. When Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980, he was conservative Christians favoured candidate.

At the beginning of the 21st century, the evangelicals have managed to reach the summits of power. They are also exporting their messianic hopes for the return of Christ to the Holy Land with Donald Trump recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.