Q devotees co-opt emotionally charged topics like ‘Save the Children’ alongside biblical language to draw ordinary Christians into the movement. This can act as a ‘red pill’ moment, or an ‘awakening’ to the alleged conspiracy around them.
By adopting this narrative alongside biblical language in propagandist posts, Q is able to relate to a wide range of devout Christians by connecting Q drops directly to the bible and integrating itself into devout Christians’ core belief system.
After the fall of Trump, these adherents are looking for hope and guidance, having fallen down the rabbit hole into Q conspiratorial thinking, and the radical-right have taken advantage to absorb supporters into the wider neo-fascist movement.
Posters on 4Chan see this as an ideal moment for Nat Soc (National Socialist) propaganda in Q groups as they attempt to cling to some form of hope and faith; while another thread believed it “wasn’t a stretch” to convince Trump acolytes that the shadow government he has been fighting against all along has been ‘The International Jew’.
The Church of Q?
Religious language and themes may appeal to some American churchgoers, but the QAnon conspiracy is doing more than just pandering to Christians. It presents itself as a kind of replacement faith that may appropriate some elements of Christianity, but is ultimately a syncretic movement that amalgamates these with wild conspiracy theories of a global satanic cabal.
Q him (or her) self is portrayed as a mystic postmodern prophet with online ‘drops’ acting as sacred texts synonymous with bible verses by acolytes. Similarly, Donald Trump is depicted as a modern-day messianic figure heralding ‘The Storm”; an apocalyptic end date witnessing enemies exposed and defeated. Much like any divine figure, Q is presented as an omniscient entity with a prophetic plan, replete with a Manichaean struggle between the forces of good and evil.
Invoking Trump’s words as he left office, “the best is yet to come”, the QAnon conspiracy continues to fill its followers with hope and faith that apocalyptic retribution is coming, so they must remain steadfast. This is especially a challenge for Q followers, with disappointment peaking after the failed insurrection of 6 January.
Conspiracy theories need to have believable challenges. With QAnon, the notion of “disinformation is necessary” attempts to explain why supposed prophecies fail to materialise as Q deliberately posts false intelligence in an attempt to misdirect their enemies, while also acting as a prepared excuse if things don’t go to plan; in this case, as part of a wider strategy of outing alleged enemies.