Donald Trump and religion
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Life and business 45th and 47th President of the United States Tenure
Impeachments Civil and criminal prosecutions |
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The religious views of Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of the United States, have been a matter for discussion among observers and the American public. Trump was raised in his Scottish-born mother's Presbyterian faith, and publicly identified with it for most of his adult life, including during his 2016 presidential campaign. However, in October 2020, Trump declared that he no longer identified as Presbyterian and now considered himself a nondenominational Christian. Despite this, through his personal relationships, especially those with his formative mentors, he has been identified with "positive thinking" and charismatic Christianity. He attended Marble Collegiate Church under Norman Vincent Peale, whose emphasis on a positive mental attitude shaped Trump.
Many have questioned the depth of his religious affiliations. A survey during Trump's first presidency (2017–2021) showed that 63% of Americans did not believe he was religious, despite his professed Christian affiliation, and that only 44% of Americans believed that Trump was a Christian. Some of Trump's comments on the Bible or Christian practice have led critical observers to suggest that his knowledge of Christianity is superficial or erroneous, and few biographers have described Trump as deeply or even particularly religious. He does not regularly attend church services.
Nevertheless, throughout his political career Trump has made appeals to conservative Christianity and the Christian right, particularly evangelicals, and said in 2016 that he has "great relationships" with Christian ministers. He has had a long association with Paula White-Cain, a charismatic minister whom he has called his "personal pastor" and whose prosperity theology aligns with his outlook. White delivered the invocation prayer at Trump's first inauguration and joined the White House staff in 2019 to work on religious outreach issues. The fusion of political Christianity with Trump's own views has been described as "Christian Trumpism". Despite his outreach to the above, Trump's staunchest Christian support would come from those who identified as Pentecostal and charismatic, and is credited with mainstreaming their theology in politics, having historically been alienated by the mainstream Christian right.
After 2020, Trump increasingly embraced Christian nationalism in rhetoric and imagery, selling Bibles, framing his campaigns as spiritual battles, and creating a federal task force on anti-Christian discrimination. While supporters highlight his alignment with evangelical causes, critics argue that Trump's faith functions more as a political tool than a deeply held spiritual commitment. Since 2025, Trump has repeatedly expressed doubt if he will go to Heaven.