God, [political] family… and Europe? The selective resilience of religion in shaping the work of Italian members of the European Parliament
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: Drawing on data from an original survey and the qualitative content analysis of parliamentary written questions, the contribution studies how religion shapes the political activity of Italian MEPs. It claims that Italian MEPs show some resilient attachment to the Catholic identity of Europe, although they do not take religious values much into consideration for policy decisions. To highlight the role of religion in European politics, this contribution also compares its impact on some policy issues in the EU and Italian political arenas. In both spheres, religious tropes and values, considered as a cultural reference, are more politicised on security issues than on other questions. Such politicisation is undertaken by populist radical right MEPs, who adopt a securitisation framework to emphasise the threat posed by Muslim communities. In the Italian polity, religious values as Christian cultural norms are also politicised on identity issues and morality questions to sustain value-driven restrictive policies.
Source: Religion State & Society
Authors: Fabio Bolzonar, Noemi Trino
Institutions: Waseda University, Université Libre de Bruxelles
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4389726798