Religious Politics and Political Religion: Christian Nationalism in Contemporary Zambia, 2017-2020

This project explored the efforts of Chrsitian nationalist activists and government officials to "actualize" the constitutional declaration that Zambia is a "Christian nation." The central component of the data are field notes from four months of participant-observation in Zambia’s government Ministry of National Guidance and Religious Affairs. In addition to this material are further fieldnotes outlining participant-observation at the 2018 National Day of Prayer, church-sponsored prayer meetings, and notes from interviews with church and government leaders. Finally, there are notes and recordings of a radio call-in show sponsored by the project. This live broadcast featured church leaders and political commentators debating the meaning of the declaration of Zambia as a Christian nation, as well as comments from the national audience who phoned into the show.