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Jim Guth quoted in Reuters about religious rhetoric surrounding the war in Iran

Jim Guth, Department of Politics and International Affairs.

Last updated April 13, 2026
Published April 8, 2026


Tina T. Underwood

As tensions rise in the Middle East, so too is the religious rhetoric surrounding the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran. In church communities across the nation and even in the White House, the war is increasingly being framed as a battle between good and evil, with frequent invocations of God. Furman University’s Jim Guth explains the phenomena in an article first published by Reuters and carried by other news organizations like Digest Wire, Economic Times, WISC-TV and Bangor Daily News.

Guth, the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Politics and International Affairs, says Trump’s base remains influenced by faith-based narratives. “Look at Mr. Trump’s standing in the polls and recognize he only has a little more than a third of the public on his side,” Guth says. “A big part of that constituency is made up of white evangelical Christians.”

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