The political role of Christianity has varied greatly from nation to nation. It has steadily become less important in most Western democracies, since voters increasingly support political parties on grounds that have little to do with religion. Where it retains some importance in politics, this manifests itself in two main ways. One is the conflict between clerical and anti-clerical factions, which used to be fierce in France and is still significant in Italy. The other is the conflict between parties representing different Christian denominations. The denominations are usually Catholic and Protestant, although in some countries, notably the Netherlands, divisions inside Protestantism gave rise to separate political organizations. However, a series of consolidations during the 1970s and 1980s along political lines of parties previously distinguished by denomination, principally between Calvinist and Catholic, is an indication of the decline in religion as a politically motivating factor in Europe. Even where there are no overtly Christian parties, politics and religion may still be linked, and some of these links (for example in the moral majority in the USA), may even be getting stronger.
Political parties in countries as different as Australia, Canada and Britain still tend to attract specific religious groups. Until recently a majority of Roman Catholics of all classes voted for the Labour Party in Britain, while the Conservative Party has traditionally been popular among Anglicans. In some countries or territories, the most notable example being Northern Ireland, conflicts between Christian sects are the entire basis for political alignment. Usually, however, as in the new Eastern European democracies, Christian politics is right wing, socialism still being the prerogative of the rump communist parties.
Christianity as such is not usually seen as leading to any particular political position, and despite its sheer numbers world-wide, it has relatively little political force, though institutions like the World Council of Churches may on occasion exercise a good deal of influence. Where nominally Christian parties exist, as for example in Germany, they tend over time to become fairly orthodox conservative parties (see Christian democracy). The political impact of committed Christians since the late 20th century has been somewhat contradictory, depending on other aspects of the relevant political culture. Thus in Europe, radical pacifist movements have often been led by or heavily influenced by Christian movements, while in the USA the impact of ‘born again’ Christians has been largely conservative, not only on moral issues, such as abortion, but across the range of political issues.
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