church influence
Clergy's societal power
Church influence is the power religious institutions exert over society, politics, or individuals.
It may operate through direct involvement in governance, moral authority over communities, or shaping cultural values: The church's influence over medieval Europe was nearly absolute.
The phrase often appears in debates about separation of church and state: Critics worry about growing church influence in public schools.
- theocracyRule by religious authority
- clericalismClergy's political overreach
- lobbyingAdvocating to decision-makers
- doctrineEstablished body of teachings
- civic engagementActive citizenship in community
morality · governance · moral authority · pastoral care · concordat · activism · theology · diplomacy · monarchy · legislation · blue laws · seminary · community · conscience · political endorsements · religious right · school prayer · preaching
- EcuadorQuito, Guayaquil, Galapagos, Andes, Amazon region
- education historypublic schooling, education reforms, school reform, educational reforms, one-room school
- religious educationreligious education, Bible college, Bible stories, religious instruction, Sunday school
- CrusadesFirst Crusade, crusade, crusader, Third Crusade, Knights Templar
- Bessarabian historyMolotov-Ribbentrop Pact, Soviet rule, imperial rule, Russification, collectivization
- ArmeniaYerevan, Mount Ararat, Ararat, Etchmiadzin, Armenian Genocide
church influencesecularism
Separation of faith, state
state authority · civil authority · separation of church and state · secular humanism · civic institutions
church influencesecularization
Religion losing social significance
anticlericalism · dechristianization · irreligion · godlessness
church influenceindividual conscience
One's private moral judgment