Buruma: The growing threat of messianic politics

Leave it to others with more expertise to assess the validity of the reasons but agree with the threat as we see in so many places:

…The reason why so many democracies are now threatened by messianic politics is not because organized religion has gained in strength. In fact, I think the opposite is true. In most Western democracies, at least, church authority has almost entirely collapsed. This is true even in the U.S.: while most people still consider themselves to be believers in one faith or another, many American Christians, especially those who are drawn to Trump as a saviour, follow freelance preachers or spiritual entrepreneurs.

In many parts of Europe, where right-wing populism is on the rise, the erosion of church authority starting in the 1960s cast adrift people who used to go to church regularly and looked to their priests and pastors to tell them how to vote. Today, they are anxious and bewildered by demographic, political, social, sexual, and economic changes, and are seeking a saviour to lead them to a simpler, more certain, and more secure world. There are plenty of power-hungry demagogues more than willing to cater to this desire.

Source: The growing threat of messianic politics