Throughout history — on the global stage and in American states — religious leaders and communities have played a crucial role in protecting people and pushing back against authoritarian systems. This moment requires this type of movement, and we are proud to introduce a series of toolkits to help religious communities fight back.

In the United States today, an elected leader is consolidating power and exacting retribution against perceived enemies, challenging the rule of law, civic freedoms, and democratic institutions. His sidekick is a tech billionaire unconstrained by the norms, values, or laws of democratic governance.  While these waters feel uncharted for Americans, the actions by President Trump and his administration follow a similar pattern to what has happened in Hungary, Poland, and other democracies that have slid into authoritarianism. They recall the long history of racial authoritarianism in the US, including over a century of single-party rule in the Jim Crow South. While we are witnessing an authoritarian playbook at work, there is also a playbook for defeating it.

As powerful forces begin by trying to overwhelm Americans as they entrench wealth and power in a smaller number of hands, it is critical to acknowledge this is not normal. We must be clear that the democratic backsliding strategy being waged by Trump, Musk, and the rest of the regime is antithetical to fundamental freedoms and self-government of, by, and for the people. In doing this, we can — as Pope St. John Paul II and the Polish Solidarity movement were integral in confronting Communist dictatorships, and as Bishop Desmond Tutu and faith leaders in South Africa were critical to ending apartheid and achieving a democratic transition — begin by tailoring our response to actions threatening democracy and our religious institutions. 

In this piece, we seek to define the authoritarian threat and — perhaps more importantly — lay out ways that you can take action to protect democracy values and fundamental freedoms using toolkits that have been created by experts who have done this work on the ground in communities across the country.

What is authoritarianism?

What is authoritarianism?

Authoritarianism is a method of rule that suppresses political freedoms and civil rights, that shifts power from the people to the hands of one ruler or set of rulers.

It concentrates power in the hands of a small group of people who act in ways that are not constitutionally accountable to be governed. 

When we think of the term “authoritarian,” we might be tempted to picture leaders rolling into power atop invading tanks. In reality, in our time they are often elected to leadership through the ballot box as part of a slow decline of institutions and norms — before a sharp decline. 

Protect Democracy has outlined seven tactics of authoritarianism:

Beyond these tactics, authoritarians want people to feel fearful, overwhelmed, powerless, and incapable of bringing about change. Authoritarians don’t act alone. Their power is enabled by organizations and institutions in society that provide them with the moral, social, political, and economic means to wield power. You can think of these pillars of support, which include political parties, legislatures, courts, police and military, but also businesses, unions, professional associations, cultural groups, and faith organizations, as columns holding up a Greek temple. When cracks emerge within those pillars, and their support can no longer be relied upon, the authoritarian’s grip on power weakens or is lost entirely. 

Religious actors and communities have historically played key roles in both propping up and in dismantling authoritarian systems. Religious symbols, slogans, rituals, organizing infrastructure and communications networks have been important sources of power for autocrats and pro-democracy movements alike. 

[Authoritarian] efforts run in direct contrast to religious communities which believe that every person has human dignity, that each human person is made in the image and likeness of God.

Here and in countless examples abroad, religious leaders have been the targets of authoritarian tactics; they have also been some of its most successful opponents. This is true, in part, because authoritarian movements often use religious and racial identity to divide people in ways that are useful to gaining power. For example, those who have melded Christian nationalism and white supremacy throughout American history as a means to gain power in the United States; with the Black Church and multifaith coalitions serving as its most powerful counterweight. Far-right autocrats in Hungary, Brazil, Poland, and Russia have frequently used interpretations of Christian values to justify xenophobic, anti-immigrant, anti-gay, and misogynistic policies.   

The goal of these authoritarian strategies is to create the politics of “us vs. them,” to give themselves the singular “authority” to determine who is deserving of rights, dignity, and even having their basic needs met, and who is not. Such efforts run in direct contrast to religious communities which believe that every person has human dignity, that each human person is made in the image and likeness of God.

The role of faith leadership

Faith leadership has been crucial to the success of global pro-democracy movements

There are many examples of faith leaders speaking truth to power and taking collective action to reject authoritarianism, among them:

During the first Trump administration, faith groups mobilized against the Muslim travel ban aimed at drastically reducing the number of refugees allowed into the U.S. They offered sanctuary to primarily Central American immigrants threatened by indiscriminate roundups by immigration police. They provided witness and protective accompaniment during Movement for Black Lives rallies and demonstrations. When President Trump cleared Lafayette Square of BLM protestors and staged a photo-op holding a bible in front of St. John’s Church, faith leaders condemned the action as an abuse of power and a defamation of holy space.

The threat today

The threat today

In accordance with the authoritarian playbook, the Trump administration has come out forcefully against religious communities with whom they do not align. 

When Bishop Mariann Budde asked President Trump to show mercy toward fearful Americans, she faced an onslaught of hate and threats — including a demand for an apology from president Trump, and an attempt to censure her on the floor of the United States House of Representatives. A Republican Representative even called for her to be deported. 

From a policy perspective, the administration and its allies in Congress are taking extreme measures to delegitimize, intimidate, and divide religious communities, including:

• Authorizing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to conduct deportations inside houses of worship — repealing decades-old regulations prohibiting this practice. 

• Pausing refugee resettlement and stopping funding for refugee resettlement work — including work to support refugees who have already been vetted and arrived in the United States. 

• Spreading lies accusing Catholic, Lutheran, and other organizations of criminal operations and promising to defund their work altogether. 

• Attacking diversity, equity and inclusion programs, resulting in Christian groups being forced to suspend their operations.

These actions have already earned strong pushback from a diverse group of religious leaders —including many of the Christian denominations that voted for the president. There is reason to believe that these opening actions are just the first in a string of assaults on faith-based organizations — and the larger plan to consolidate power, encroach on civil rights, and target vulnerable groups. Vice President JD Vance has used tired tropes to criticize and attempt to delegitimize the leadership of the Catholic Church. Elon Musk and Michael Flynn have spread lies about the works of Lutheran charities and other faith-based organizations who serve people in need. And the administration and members of Congress are pushing legislation that makes it easier to crack down on nonprofits. 

At a time when an authoritarian movement in the U.S. is seeking to divide us from each other and degrade fundamental freedoms and our shared humanity, religious communities have a critical role to play in bringing communities together and fighting back.

This unprecedented moment requires an unprecedented response from religious leaders across America. If history has taught us anything, it’s that the best way to reverse democratic backsliding is to build a broad coalition of individuals who might have major disagreements on politics or policy, but who are willing to join together to prioritize the defense of fundamental democratic freedoms.

We want to do our part to build this coalition with you.

In the coming weeks, we will publish toolkits from inspiring leaders who are taking on the work to protect our freedoms in communities across the country. They will provide concrete ways that you can take action, and we’ll be inviting you to share other information and materials that could help orient our collective action.

At a time when an authoritarian movement in the United States is seeking to divide us from each other and degrade fundamental freedoms and our shared humanity, religious communities have a critical role to play in bringing communities together and fighting back. The religious opposition can harness the power of faith actors and communities to draw on different strategies, ranging from bridge-building and advocacy to grassroots organizing, survival strategies and community care, and nonviolent resistance and noncooperation, in order to confront and transform hateful authoritarianism with spiritual tenacity and loving defiance, while moving us closer to the beloved community.

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