A-Infos (en) Italy, UCADI, #206 - Confessional democracies in search of hegemony (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

The main actors operating on the fronts of the war in Ukraine and the 
Middle East, which institutionally are characterized as "confessional 
democracies," sometimes non-clerical, which, while maintaining formal 
governing structures typical of democracies such as elections use 
authoritarian methods, limiting fundamental freedoms, and concentrating 
power in the executive branch, use religion as a tool of legitimacy and 
social cohesion, a common thread throughout their storytelling . The aim 
of this narrative is to tell stories that move, engage, and connect with 
populations, transforming information into memorable, messianic 
narratives, fueled by religious messages and justified by divine will. 
To do this, they use narratives, conflicts, and passions, enhanced and 
fueled by a religious aura, including by providing updated versions of 
"sacred texts" supposedly containing religious and prophetic messages, 
such as the Bible, the Gospels, and the Quran.
In this form, theocracy as a method of government has returned to the 
forefront, in a revised and partly watered-down version, in which 
political power is exercised in the name of a deity, sometimes by a 
priestly caste, but even more frequently by politicians who subordinate 
civil law to the laws and symbols of religion, ensuring that the 
narrative of their actions is presented as the realization of a divine plan.

Millennial Trumpism

Devoid of any ideology, but eager to pursue the economic interests of 
his family clan and, secondarily, those of the United States, Trump and 
the MAGA movement that supports him have secured the support of the 
"Evangelical Churches," a group of millenarian denominations founded on 
beliefs rooted in the Book of Revelation and predicting the return of 
the last prophet to reign over the Earth for a thousand years, 
establishing a period of peace and justice before the final judgment. 
This prophecy is based on the Book of Revelation, verses 16 and 16, 
which foretell the coming of Armageddon, the final battle between God 
and the human governments opposed to his sovereignty, which these 
"Churches" identify with nuclear war. Originating in early Christianity, 
this eschatological vision advocates a radical subversion of the social 
order and was incorporated as a foundational element in the "welfare 
theology" that constituted the doctrinal body of these "churches," 
crafted by US intelligence agencies at the request of Richard Nixon,1 
also exploiting the profound crisis of the historic evangelical 
churches, particularly the Quakers. In recent times, it was revived by 
the MAGA movement and earned Trump the support of the pastors and 
faithful of approximately 300 different churches, each with thousands of 
followers.

Evangelical pastors at work

Given these premises, it's not surprising that for a segment of the US 
establishment, the current wars, particularly the one against Iran, 
constitute a fundamental stage in the advent of Armageddon and pave the 
way for the coming of the last prophet, according to a prophecy 
converging with some visions of the most fundamentalist Judaism. This is 
enough to provide ideological support for a structural alliance between 
the United States and the Zionist government of Israel, one that is, in 
practice, greatly strengthened by economic and geostrategic interests 
and the network of influence built by Epstein, exploiting the 
perversions of the US establishment. It's more than likely that the 
fixer was deeply connected to Israeli intelligence and, as such, would 
have provided Israel with every possible tool for blackmailing Donald 
Trump and his henchmen. All this means that, in pursuing its hegemonic 
agenda, the United States uses and declares its pursuit of a messianic 
mission that involves nuclear holocaust, understood as the price to pay 
for the advent of the kingdom of "God."

The Israeli theocracy

The operation of the Israeli theocracy is closely linked and 
instrumental to this objective. Given that the theocratic nature of the 
Israeli state is genetic and indelibly inscribed in its origins and 
reaffirmed in every decision of its political leaders, both right and 
left, this translates into Netanyahu's current administration of power, 
which pursues the biblical plan of creating a "greater Israel," that is, 
regaining control of the Jewish state over those territories and borders 
supposedly drawn by the Bible, regardless of the peoples currently 
inhabiting that territory and their religious and political orientation: 
an ethnic, racial, and genocidal objective. It is clearly false to claim 
that the State of Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East 
because this entity has evolved over time as a criminal group hostile to 
humanity, donning the shroud of anti-Semitism to mask its ferocity and 
atrocities. To expose this atrocity, it's enough to consider that both 
the Palestinians and the Jews, whom the Israelis oppress and 
exterminate, are a Semitic population!
Here too, as befits any theocratic state, religion is used as an 
instrumentum regni and presides over, and is aimed at granting political 
power a strength and legitimacy it would otherwise lack. In other words, 
it constitutes the foundation of the state and guarantees the social 
cohesion of this entity, which, precisely because of its religious and 
racial foundation, claims to have no borders, organizes and acts as a 
lobby, and prevails over the affiliation of all those who declare 
themselves Jews to any national entity, providing well-founded reasons 
for distrust in the national apparatuses of various countries.
The Israeli entity, exploiting the guilt of the European populations and 
their shame over the Holocaust, thrives and speculates on the blood and 
sacrifice of all those who are Jews, together with communists, 
anarchists and homosexuals, locked up in Nazi concentration camps, to 
appropriate the memory of the Holocaust and justify every action, 
however heinous it may be.

The Russian theocracy

After the end of the Soviet Union, the Russian state, lacking a 
political ideology of its own to motivate its goals and existence, also 
reappropriated the tools of theocracy, rediscovering and rebuilding the 
symphonic relationship that in Orthodox-majority states regulates 
relations between the state and religious denominations.

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and Vladimir Putin

The Russian leader's constant and fraternal embrace with Patriarch 
Kirill of the Orthodox Church of Moscow is aimed at legitimizing and 
strengthening the power of the Russian state. The catechism and social 
doctrine of the Russian Patriarchate form the basis of the "Russkij Mir" 
("Russian world" but also "peace"). This formula summarizes the profound 
mission of the Russian state, identifying the mending of relations with 
the Russian diaspora around the world as its mission, with the 
fundamental and primary task of guaranteeing their rights in all 
situations where their ethnic or linguistic characteristics were the 
source of discrimination by
national authorities.
A system of concentric circles was thus envisioned, which was gradually 
extended to include Orthodox Christians and, more generally, Eastern 
Christians, as well as so-called "compatriots," eventually encompassing 
all those who feel a spiritual and cultural connection with Russia. It 
is no coincidence that the eponymous foundation that promotes it, 
established in 2007, includes the Russian Ministries of Foreign Affairs 
and Education, as well as the Orthodox Church. In 2016, it was decided 
that "the state's foreign policy activities must aim to ensure
comprehensive and effective protection of the legitimate rights and 
interests of Russian citizens and compatriots living abroad."
This role of religion in relation to the state, tailored according to 
the principle of symphony, derived from Orthodox tradition and theology, 
is also applied and shared extensively with Muslims, given that Islam 
(the country's second-largest religion) affects approximately 15% of the 
global population and has over 5,000 registered organizations.
Churches and the state collaborate in promoting sacrifice in the name of 
belonging, tradition, the gift of life for one's country, and honor in 
defense of oneself and one's ancestors all values that, taken together, 
constitute a strong element of social cohesion, allowing political 
leaders to operate with a long-term perspective.

The Iranian theocracy

The highly complex theocratic form of government that characterizes the 
Iranian state has distinctly different characteristics, yet convergent 
results. This form of government is rooted in Shi'ism, which it 
embraces. It is based on the velayat-e faqih (protection of the Islamic 
jurist), conceived by Khomeini. This doctrine assigns supreme power to 
jurists expert in Islamic law (imams), designing and implementing 
certain governing bodies pending the return of the hidden Imam, making 
religion the foundation of law and the state. In the Islamic Republic of 
Iran, these bodies have taken on a specific configuration, creating a 
form of balance of power with the Supreme Leader, both a religious and 
political leader, at the helm. For Shi'ites, every good Muslim has 
declared a holy war, which is fought in pursuit of martyrdom (in memory 
of the martyrdom of Hussein) and represents a conscious choice to be 
ready to die in order to reclaim justice, honor, and dignity.

Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei

This set of values constitutes a powerful instrument of social cohesion, 
leading to the acceptance of even life-or-death sacrifices to defend 
traditional values, which, according to Shiite clergy, are grounded in 
the Quran. Therefore, Shia Islam places particular importance on the 
Imams' interpretation of Islamic law, also for the purpose of 
formulating an evolutionary interpretation.
In the Islamic Republic of Iran, this component of Islam has developed a 
complex institutional structure that, however, places at its center the 
economic and social structure of the Hobus, who manage the economy and 
shape public opinion, effectively controlling the population 
economically and socially, bound to these structures by a relationship 
of subordination and client-like subjection.

The role of religion in Ukraine's governing structure

At first glance, it might seem that Ukraine's current form of government 
bears no resemblance to the institutional models described above. 
However, a more in-depth examination of the institutional relations 
between state and religion in contemporary Ukraine clearly reveals that 
the creation of an autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox Church has proceeded 
hand in hand with the ongoing civil war, alongside the war between 
Ukraine and Russia. Thus, it becomes clear that the creation of the 
Autocephalous Orthodox Church in Ukraine in 2019 was one of the 
contributing factors to the outbreak of the civil war and helped 
strengthen the state's identity, legitimizing its existence according to 
the principles of the harmonious relationship that governs relations 
between state and religion in countries with an Orthodox tradition. The 
establishment of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church marked the 
transition of the Ukrainian legal system from separatism to 
neo-confessional jurisdictionalism, the adoption of a state church, the 
denial of religious freedom, and the persecution, in particular, of the 
canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, federated with the Moscow 
Patriarchate but independent from it. The sectarianism established in 
the country between the Autocephalous Orthodox Church and the state has 
led the legal system to adopt measures deriving from religious 
persecution and has affected relations between Churches and States in 
numerous European Union countries, especially the Baltic countries, 
leading them to renounce separatism and adopt neo-confessional relations 
with a handful of minority Churches, artfully established with the aid 
of the state and the cover of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, upon 
payment of appropriate royalties in order to counter the populations' 
historical affiliation to religious denominations that do not conform to 
current government policies.

Final considerations

From this brief examination, it is clear that the international legal 
system is retreating as it relates to relations between states and 
religious denominations, and that religion is reasserting its role in 
social control, social cohesion, and political direction in the 
functioning of states.
This trend is part of a more general trend characterized by the 
overcoming of the separation of powers, typical of liberal democracies, 
towards a centralized and authoritarian form of state and government, 
governed by powerful forces and ideologies, committed to the adoption of 
security policies and the repression of individual and collective 
freedoms, which sometimes take the form of democracy.
The silence, or at least the muffled voice, of the Catholic Church is 
striking, also due to a Pope who is today colorless and faded, and a 
group of traditional Protestant churches, experiencing a crisis of 
identity and faithful, increasingly overwhelmed and eroded by the 
Evangelical Churches.

[1]Richard Nixon, who was among the American presidents influenced by 
the figure of Norman Vincent Peale (1898-1993), a pastor known for 
having outlined an early "prosperity gospel" or theology of well-being, 
gave orders to the CIA to support the development of "evangelical 
churches" as a tool to counter liberation theology, which had developed 
in the Catholic sphere, especially in Latin America, and to act as a 
theoretical substrate for imperialism and colonialism in crisis. An 
evolution of this "theology" is represented by the so-called 
transhumanism supported by Peter Thiel and his company Palantir which 
manages the development of AI and provides espionage and monitoring 
services to the detriment of citizens.

https://www.ucadi.org/2026/03/28/le-democrature-confessioniste-alla-ricerca-dellegemonia/
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