Editing Jack Chick (section)

== Themes ==
Chick is known for his conspiratorial views and his belief that secret groups, such as the Illuminati, exert influence on the world to advance evil. In "The Broken Cross," Chick introduces [[John Todd (conspiracy theorist)|John Todd]], a former grand druid priest who claims that secret groups, including witches and the Illuminati, are working to advance evil. Chick's version of Christianity emphasizes the role of Satan and his minions, portraying them as the principal evils in his comic. He sees Satan as the one behind all major events, including biblical occurrences like Adam and Eve and the Great Flood, as part of his ongoing battle for control. In this worldview, God's actions are seen as reactions to the Devil's actions, creating a dynamic game between the two sides for the fate of humanity.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Vahia Malliagros |first1=Thiago |title=Druids, the devil, and the hope for salvation: piecing together Jack Chick's 'The Broken Cross' |url=https://www.skeptic.org.uk/2022/12/druids-the-devil-and-the-hope-for-salvation-piecing-together-jack-chicks-the-broken-cross/ |website=The Skeptic |date=December 7, 2022 |access-date=16 May 2023}}</ref>

Some scholars, such as Jason C. Bivins, have identified Chick  with the [[new Christian right]] (NCR) due to areas of theological overlap with figures in the movement such as [[Tim LaHaye]] or [[Jerry Falwell]]: in particular, their views on [[Christian eschatology|eschatology]] and [[biblical inerrancy]]. Nathan Saunders, however, argues that Chick's beliefs about Roman Catholicism as a demonic, false gospel separate him from the group, which included a number of Catholics such as [[Phyllis Schlafly]] and [[Paul Weyrich]]. "Chick consequently refused to follow his fellow fundamentalists when they compromised doctrinal purity by making a pact with the Devil. Doctrinal compromise rendered the NCR at best ineffective and at worst satanic."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Saunders |first=Nathan |date=2018 |title=Conservative Chick? Conservative Culture Warriors at War |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26803641 |journal=Journal of American Studies |volume=52 |issue=3 |pages=738–765 |issn=0021-8758}}</ref>

''[[Catholic Answers]]'' has called Chick "savagely [[Anti-Catholicism|anti-Catholic]]",<ref name="CatholicAnswersWeb">{{cite web |last=Newkirk |first=Terrye |title=Who's @fr@id of the Big Bad Web?: A Guide for Catholic Newbies |url=http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1997/9702fea2.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071022155856/http://catholic.com/thisrock/1997/9702fea2.asp |archive-date=October 22, 2007 |access-date=February 21, 2008 |publisher=Catholic Answers}}</ref> describes Chick's statements about the Catholic Church as "bizarre"<ref name="cajtc">{{cite web |title=The Nightmare World of Jack T. Chick |url=http://www.catholic.com/documents/the-nightmare-world-of-jack-t-chick |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140108154607/http://www.catholic.com/documents/the-nightmare-world-of-jack-t-chick |archive-date=January 8, 2014 |access-date=June 25, 2014 |publisher=Catholic Answers |df=mdy-all}}</ref> and "often grotesque in their arguments",<ref name="CatholicAnswersHistory">{{cite web |last=Keating |first=Karl |author-link=Karl Keating |title=Burden of History |url=http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2000/0004up.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214205923/http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2000/0004up.asp |archive-date=February 14, 2008 |access-date=February 21, 2008 |work=Up Front |publisher=Catholic Answers}}</ref> and calls for the tracts to be pulled from the market and corrected.<ref name="cajtc" /> In the early 1980s, Chick's stance on Catholicism led some Christian bookstores to stop stocking his tracts, and he withdrew from the [[CBA (Christian trade association)|Christian Booksellers Association]] after the association considered expelling him.<ref name="CBA">{{cite magazine |date=October 23, 1981 |title=Booksellers' Group May Expel Chick |magazine=Christianity Today |page=62}}</ref> ''[[Christianity Today]]'' described Chick as an example of "the world of ordinary, nonlearned evangelicals", for whom "atavistic anti-Catholicism remains as colorful and unmistakable as ever".<ref name="ChristianityToday">{{cite magazine |last1=Mark |first1=Noll |author-link=Mark Noll |last2=Nystrom |first2=Carolyn |date=July 1, 2005 |title=Is the Reformation Over? (Registration and payment required for online access) |url=http://www.ctlibrary.com/bc/2005/julaug/1.10.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080213212708/http://www.ctlibrary.com/bc/2005/julaug/1.10.html |archive-date=February 13, 2008 |magazine=Christianity Today |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Michael Ian Borer, a sociology professor of [[Furman University]] at the time, showed Chick's strong [[Anti-Catholicism in the United States|anti-Catholic themes]] in a 2007 [[American Sociological Association]] presentation<ref>Borer, Michael (2007). [http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p181814_index.html "Drawing Religious Battle Lines: The "Culture Wars Work" of Jack Chick's Anti-Catholic Cartoons"] Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, New York City City, August 11, 2007</ref> and in a [[Peer review|peer-reviewed]] article the next year in ''[[Religion and American Culture]]''.<ref name="cajtc" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Borer |first1=Michael Ian |last2=Murphree |first2=Adam |date=Winter 2008 |title=Framing Catholicism: Jack Chick's Anti-Catholic Cartoons and the Flexible Boundaries of the Culture Wars |journal=Religion and American Culture |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=95–112 |doi=10.1525/rac.2008.18.1.95 |s2cid=145414303}}</ref> Chick responded to these accusations by saying that he was opposed to the Roman Catholic Church as a sociopolitical organization, but not to its individual members. On his "Roman Catholicism FAQ", Chick said he began publishing his theories about the Roman Catholic Church because "he loves Catholics and wants them to be saved through faith in Jesus".<ref name="CatholicFAQ">{{cite web |last=Chick |first=Jack |title=Roman Catholicism FAQ |url=http://www.chick.com/information/religions/catholicism/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100205120457/http://www.chick.com/information/religions/catholicism/ |archive-date=February 5, 2010 |access-date=February 7, 2010 |publisher=Chick Publications |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Six of Chick's full-size comics feature [[Alberto Rivera (activist)|Alberto Rivera]], specifically: ''Alberto'', ''Double Cross'', ''The Godfathers'', ''The Force'', ''Four Horsemen'', and ''The Prophet''. Rivera was an [[Anti-Catholicism|anti-Catholic]] religious activist who claimed to have been a Jesuit priest before becoming a [[Fundamentalist Christianity|fundamentalist]] [[Protestant]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hunter |first=Sidney |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kz1o4Y_hfN8C |title=Is Alberto for Real? |date=2011 |publisher=Chick Publications |isbn=978-0-7589-0840-7 |language=en}}</ref> Rivera was the source of many of the [[conspiracy theories]] about the [[Roman Curia|Vatican]] and the [[Society of Jesus|Jesuits]] espoused by Jack Chick.

[[Wicca]]n author Kerr Cuhulain has described Chick and his theories as being "[[Antifeminism|anti-feminist]]" and "anti-[[Modern Paganism|Pagan]]", noted that a Chick Publications comic book was the source of a [[Rapid City, South Dakota]] police detective's presentation on the history of [[Satanism]] given in 1989, and describes him as "easily the least reputable source of reliable information on religious groups".<ref name="Cuhulain">{{Cite news | last = Cuhulain | first = Kerr | author-link = Kerr Cuhulain | title = Jack Chick: Tracts for Every Occasion | newspaper = Pagan Protection Center | page = 4 | date = August 26, 2002 | url = http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a=cabc&c=whs&id=4639 | access-date = February 20, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080204212408/http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a=cabc&c=whs&id=4639 | archive-date = February 4, 2008 | url-status = live | df = mdy-all }}</ref>