In the United States, a right-wing culture war project has taken hold and is being both pushed by and used in service of a move toward authoritarianism, supported by Christian nationalism. Despite pluralism and disagreement, a constellation of factors are coming together, gaining ground within systems of political power. It is necessary to consider the role of Christian thinking, including within the U.S. Catholic Church, in not only furthering Christian nationalism but also providing it with a purported sacred justification.
Andrew Whitehead and Samuel Perry, sociologists examining Christian nationalism, present Christian nationalism as “an ideology that idealizes and advocates a fusion of Christianity and American civic life.”[1] “It is a cultural framework…that creates strong symbolic and social boundaries around a particular national identity that is used to defend claims to power, especially by dominant groups.”[2] They argue that embracing Christian nationalist ideology predicts favoring authoritarian views of social control, xenophobia, and negative views of immigrants. In the US, support for Christian nationalism has fostered a context that allowed for a government to dedicate tens of billions of dollars for the purpose of detaining, in horrific and[3] dehumanizing conditions,[4] and deporting immigrants. Given the Catholic Church’s teaching on respect for the dignity and rights of migrants, Catholic communities[5] and leaders[6] throughout the US have publicly advocated for the release of detained persons and more humane policies.
One area where Catholic leadership and public facing presence remains virtually silent is the embrace of traditionalist gender and family values within Christian nationalism. Whitehead and Perry argue that Christian nationalism’s embrace of authoritarian views and of strong social boundaries also manifests in the embrace of patriarchal approaches to gender and family. They asked survey participants several specific questions in order to measure adherence to traditionalist gender values: “(1) ‘Men are better suited emotionally for politics than women,’ (2) ‘It is God’s will that women care for children,’ (3) A preschool child will suffer if his or her mother works,’ and (4) ‘A husband should earn a larger salary than his wife.’”[7] In all of these, we see a worldview in which women belong to the private sphere, responsible for homemaking and guiding the moral life of the family unit, and men engage in the public sphere, including in politics and the economy. The sharp boundaries of gender identity also establish hierarchy and male authority. Though Whitehead and Perry have found that adherents to Christian nationalism are disproportionately Evangelicals, their research observes that across denominational belonging there is a correlation between holding Christian nationalist views and embracing traditionalist gender and family values.
It is important to note that this embrace of rigid and patriarchal gender categories is finding a home among Catholics in the context of the United States. Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker’s 2024 graduation speech at Benedictine College offers us a window into this reality. In his speech to graduates, he noted the academic accomplishments of the graduating students but emphasized the importance of a Christ-centered life of fulfilling one’s vocation, which for most, he noted, was to be found in marriage and parenthood. He warned graduating women that they had been told “diabolical lies” that their identities are tied to successes outside the home. Instead, a woman’s vocation is in homemaking and supporting her husband’s abilities to be active in the world. This is the union that he describes as helping one another “become a saint.”[8]
Another distinctive manifestation of this view emerging in U.S. political life is the push to deny women the right to vote, grounded in the belief that women should submit to the will of their husbands and that each household should have one vote, which is the responsibility of the male head of the household. Increased public commentary, including among women, has embraced the notion that women should submit to their husbands who have the responsibility to vote on behalf of the household. A federal bill, thus far passed by the House of Representatives but not voted on by the Senate, the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, on its face is dedicated to reducing vote-by-mail and requiring proof of citizenship. But it has the potential to make it particularly difficult to vote for married women who have changed their surnames due to the forms of identification it would require. Support for this kind of thinking also appears to be emerging among young Catholics, likely shaped by the rise of Catholic influencers on social media like Instagram and TikTok.
Butker’s speech and the, still in the minority, opposition to women’s voting are not accurate representations of the breadth and diversity of the Church in the US. However, they tell us something important about segments of the US Catholic Church’s views on gender. Butker’s speech was met with applause when delivered and positive responses in outlets like First Things and the National Catholic Register. These are two snapshots of currents in the Church in the United States that embrace the kind of traditionalist views of gender and family that resonate with Christian nationalism. These views lend spiritualized credibility to the ideological tendencies of Christian nationalism.
But these views of women, men, and family life are not accurate representations of the faith or teaching of the Church.
Gender essentialism and complementarity remain the teaching of the Catholic Church, grounding exclusion of women from the priesthood, the diaconate—despite activism, two Vatican commissions on the topic, and openness to discussion expressed in Synod documents—and teaching against same-sex relationships—despite Pope Francis’ and Pope Leo’s generally more open pastoral style—and anti-trans positions. Feminist theologians have long critiqued essentialist and complementarian thinking for the embrace of gender stereotypes that limit persons’ full potential and for giving way to gender hierarchy. And it is also true that earlier versions of modern papal teaching on marriage and family, such as Leo XIII’s Arcanum Divinae[9] and Pius XI’s Casti Connubii,[10] did affirm male headship as God ordained. However, the tradition is not static, but living. In the mid-twentieth century and into the present, there has been increased recognition that the Christian tradition has not adequately valued the full humanity of women, created in God’s own image.
While Catholic proponents of traditionalist gender views tend to turn to John Paul II’s teaching on complementarity, he did not endorse male headship. He is known for maintaining that women have an inherently maternal and nurturing nature. However, this maternal nature was not strictly connected to a view that women ought to be exclusively tied to homemaking and mothering tasks, even as he suggested in Familiaris Consortio that home was more appropriately guided by femininity with public leadership connected to masculinity.[xi] Moreover, as Lisa Sowle Cahill observes, “John Paul II sees motherhood as their special role, without granting that this places women in a submissive position in relation to men.”[12] And he does not suggest that public life should be left to the purview of male authority. In his 1995 “Letter to Women,” John Paul II thanked “women who work”: “You are present and active in every area of life-social, economic, cultural, artistic and political. In this way you make an indispensable contribution…to the establishment of economic and political structures ever more worthy of humanity.”[13] He goes on to advocate for the recognition of the rights of women, including equality in all areas of life, including economic, political, and family life.[14] He sees women as ontologically maternal, but this distinctively feminine nature does not limit women to only a few roles in society but shapes all of the ways that women participate in the world. Cahill has also observed that John Paul II not only does not endorse the subordination of women as divinely planned but views it as an injustice.[15]
More recent teaching from Pope Francis has softened the teaching on complementarity, moving beyond John Paul II’s connection of femininity to home life. Despite using the language of complementarity, Francis was adamant that family life should be shaped by the particular gifts and characteristics of persons, not specific gendered roles: “a husband’s way of being masculine can be flexibly adapted to the wife’s work schedule. Taking on domestic chores or some aspects of raising children does not make him any less masculine or imply failure, irresponsibility or cause of shame.”[16] And despite speaking negatively of “gender ideologies” and calling feminism “machismo with a skirt,” he praised the women’s movement as the work of the Holy Spirit in Amoris Laetitia.
Moreover, the church’s social teaching offers us a richer notion of all persons’, including women’s, connection to public life than found in the views of Christian nationalists. The church affirms the rights and responsibilities of persons to participate in economic, political, and social life for the sake of working toward the common good. This tradition does not delineate roles and responsibilities on behalf of the Church’s leavening mission according to gender.
It is worth highlighting that feminist theologians, activists, and many everyday Catholics critique the Church’s teaching on complementarity and the many positions it is used to justify. I too would like to see the teaching on gender complementarity be soundly rejected.
In this current moment, given the global rise of various authoritarian ideologies, it is critically important to name that the Catholic Church does not teach in favor of gendered hierarchy and the traditionalist views of gender and family endorsed by Christian nationalism. Often, these kinds of attitudes about women and men are called “traditional” and accepted as typical of Christianity. This perception is furthered by the silence of Catholic leadership in the face of patriarchal attitudes about women, public facing clergy speaking about the need to promote masculinity while also appearing with advocates of Christian nationalism, and diocesan enforcement of rigid gender categories.[17] Many may be misled to think that since the Catholic Church has rightly publicly defended the rights and dignity of immigrants who are under attack, its silence on this matter means the Church affirms Christian nationalism’s approach to gender, marriage, and family life as indicative of God’s will. In order to avoid the appearance of sacralizing Christian nationalism, including its authoritarian, xenophobic, racist, and sexist attitudes and policy goals, the Church in the United States has a responsibility to clearly denounce traditionalist gender and family values, particularly when presented as if they are authentic representations of the tradition and the teaching of the Church.
Bibliography
Axelrod, Jim. “Children ‘held like criminals’ inside ICE detention center.” CBS News. May 31, 2026. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/children-held-like-criminals-inside-ice-detention-center/.
Cahill, Lisa Sowle. “The Feminist Pope.” In Does Christianity Teach Male Headship? Wm.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 2004.
“Chiefs kicker Butker congratulates women graduates and says most are more excited about motherhood.” Associated Press. May 16, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/kansas-city-chiefs-harrison-butker-e00f6ee45955c99ef1e809ec447239e0.
Epstein, Kayla and Nada Tawfik. “New Jersey alleges ‘unsanitary’ conditions at migrant facility rocked by protests.” BBC News. June 2, 2026. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czx2l9nn79no.
Francis, Amoris Laetitia. March 19, 2016. https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20160319_amoris-laetitia.html.
John Paul II. Familiaris Consortio. November 22, 1981. https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_19811122_familiaris-consortio.html.
John Paul II. “Letter to Women.” June 29, 1995. https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/letters/1995/documents/hf_jp-ii_let_29061995_women.html.
Leo XIII. Arcanum Divinae. February 10, 1880. https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_10021880_arcanum.html
Pius XI. Casti Connubii. December 31, 1930. https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_19301231_casti-connubii.html.
Roewe, Brian. “Milwaukee Archdiocese takes aim at trans persons in sweeping new policy.” National Catholic Reporter. June 26, 1992. https://www.ncronline.org/news/people/milwaukee-archdiocese-takes-aim-trans-persons-sweeping-new-policy.
Schlitz, Heather. “Catholic leaders bring communion to immigration detainees near Chicago after court win.” Reuters. February 19, 2026. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/catholic-leaders-bring-communion-immigration-detainees-near-chicago-after-court-2026-02-19/.
Whitehead, Andrew L., and Samuel L. Perry. “Is a ‘Christian America’ a More Patriarchal America? Religion, Politics, and Traditionalist Gender Ideology.” Canadian Review of Sociology 56, no. 2 (2019).
Winters, Michael Sean. “3 cardinals stand with Pope Leo XIV in unprecedented interview.” National Catholic Reporter. April 13, 2026. https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/ncr-voices/three-cardinals-stand-pope-leo-xiv-unprecedented-interview
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[1] Andrew L. Whitehead and Samuel L. Perry, “Is a ‘Christian America’ a More Patriarchal America? Religion, Politics, and Traditionalist Gender Ideology,” Canadian Review of Sociology 56, no. 2 (2019): 152.
[2] Whitehead and Perry, “Is a ‘Christian America’ a More Patriarchal America? Religion, Politics, and Traditionalist Gender Ideology,” 154.
[3] Kayla Epstein and Nada Tawfik, “New Jersey alleges ‘unsanitary’ conditions at migrant facility rocked by protests,” BBC News, June 2, 2026, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czx2l9nn79no.
[4] Jim Axelrod, “Children ‘held like criminals’ inside ICE detention center,” CBS News, May 31, 2026, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/children-held-like-criminals-inside-ice-detention-center/.
[5] Heather Schlitz, “Catholic leaders bring communion to immigration detainees near Chicago after court win,” Reuters, February 19, 2026, https://www.reuters.com/world/us/catholic-leaders-bring-communion-immigration-detainees-near-chicago-after-court-2026-02-19/.
[6] Michael Sean Winters, “3 cardinals stand with Pope Leo XIV in unprecedented interview,” National Catholic Reporter, April 13, 2026, https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/ncr-voices/three-cardinals-stand-pope-leo-xiv-unprecedented-interview.
[7] Whitehead and Perry, “Is a ‘Christian America’ a More Patriarchal America? Religion, Politics, and Traditionalist Gender Ideology,” 158.
[8] “Chiefs kicker Butker congratulates women graduates and says most are more excited about motherhood,” Associated Press, May 16, 2024, https://apnews.com/article/kansas-city-chiefs-harrison-butker-e00f6ee45955c99ef1e809ec447239e0.
[9] Leo XIII, Arcanum Divinae (February 10, 1880), https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_10021880_arcanum.html
[10] Pius XI, Casti Connubii (December 31, 1930), https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_19301231_casti-connubii.html
[11] John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio (November 22, 1981), https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_19811122_familiaris-consortio.html.
[12] Lisa Sowle Cahill, “The Feminist Pope,” in Does Christianity Teach Male Headship? (Wm.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 2004), 41.
[13] John Paul II, “Letter to Women” (June 29, 1995), § 2, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/letters/1995/documents/hf_jp-ii_let_29061995_women.html.
[14] John Paul II, “Letter to Women, § 4.
[15] Cahill, “The Feminist Pope,” 45.
[16] Francis, Amoris Laetitia (March 19, 2016) § 286, https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20160319_amoris-laetitia.html
[17] Brian Roewe, “Milwaukee Archdiocese takes aim at trans persons in sweeping new policy,” National Catholic Reporter, June 26, 1992, https://www.ncronline.org/news/people/milwaukee-archdiocese-takes-aim-trans-persons-sweeping-new-policy.