Bible Belt (Superior)
| Bible Belt | |
|---|---|
| Cultural region of Superior | |
 The area roughly considered to constitute Superior's Bible Belt | |
| Country |
 Superior |
| States |
 Dakota  Frontier  Helena  Montana  Wyoming and parts of  Lakota  Nebraska |
The Bible Belt is a region of western Superior where socially conservative Christianity, mainly forms of Evangelical Protestantism, plays a strong role in society, politics, and everyday life. Church attendance is much higher in the Bible Belt than in any other part of the country. The region contrasts to the religiously diversified eastern Superior, and the dominantly Avignonese Catholic southeast.
Whereas the states with the highest number of irreligious residents are located in the East (with Minnesota having the highest irreligious rate at 29%), every state considered apart of the Bible Belt have a Christian population well over 50%. The states of Wyoming, Dakota, and Montana are some of the most Christian states in Superior, with each state having well over 80% of their populations identifying as a adherent to form of Christianity. Lutheranism and Evangelism are dominant in states of the Bible Belt, with Dakota being considered the "Lutheran homeland" of Superior.
Typically, states located in the Bible Belt are known as some of the most conservative states in Superior. The United Conservative Party, the Christian Democratic Party, the Constitution and Unionist Party, along with many other socially conservative political parties typically see large amounts of support in federal and state elections from the Bible Belt. Isaac Dillon, Charles Griffith, and Anietta Johnson, the leaders of the Conservative Coalition in the Parliament of Superior were all born and raised in the Bible Belt, with Dillon and Johnson being from Wyoming and Griffith from Dakota.
History
Prior to the establishment of Superior, many German settlers traveled to the future nation, then the northwestern regions of the United States including in the modern day western states. Many settlers in these regions established many communities and communes where local Christian churches, mainly Lutheran ones, governed and led them easing the difficulty of administration by state governments. When Superior was declared an independent nation, Lutheran churches continued to lead their respective communes and settlements with the practice continuing long after the Superian Revolution. During the early years of Superior's independence, the federal government worked with the National Lutheran Church of Superior in aiding with the settlement of the western territories and communities allowing church-run settlements to exist so long as they followed the laws of the federal and state governments and avoided taking on the functions of a government.
Due to the sparse populations in the western states in early Superior, the state governments, the church and other religious groups and institutions played a major role in the settlement and ensuring the ability of the state governments to administer and aid said communities when needed. As this occurred during the Third Great Awakening, ministers and pastors, especially Protestant ones, played a major role in settling the western states and ensured the influence of Protestant Christianity as a major force in public life. As Evangelicalism grew, so did its influence in the region, more so than in the rest of the country despite Christianity playing a major role in public and private life in Superior. Even as the population of Superior grew, including in the west, Protestantism still had a major influence in the region and would be the focal point of future religious events in the country and Anglo-America like the Fourth Great Awakening decades later. During the 1920s, an evangelical wing of the National Lutheran Church would grow and become prominent in the west and would be the main home of the Evangelical Lutheran Church upon its formation in 1950 and its split from the National Lutheran Church.
Geography
Buckle
Political context
There have been numerous studies linking evangelical Protestantism towards social conservatism in the country. The Sociological Association of Superior has studied the region frequently and has labeled it the most conservative region of the country with evangelical Protestant votersbeing the most conservative voting bloc in the country. In 1926, President Andrew J. Black told Catholic leaders in a letter that he would appoint an ambassador to the Vatican, but that it would "cause anger from voters in the Bible Belt".
Since the 1980s, the Bible Belt has consistently aligned with conservative parties with most parliamentary seats being held by conservative House Delegates. Since 1985, electoral districts of the House of Delegates have been dominated by conservative MPs, at the time by the Conservative Party of Superior and the United Popular Front. After its creation in 2002, the United Conservative Party has been the dominant party in the western states. Other parties in the Conservative Coalition, the Christian Democrats and Constitutional Unionists, have also found much of their support coming from the Bible Belt and is where their strongest state parties are present in. As of 2022, a strong majority of western seats are controlled by parties of the Conservative Coalition, with the Liberal Democratic Party being the only party of the Progressive Bloc active in the Bible Belt.