Security Threat -- The Decline of American Christianity

Security Threat--The Decline of American Christianity by Bill Wilson Several polls tracking faith in America show a dramatic decline in religious beliefs across all demographics except Republicans. Gallup Poll reports that “Among party groups, Republicans are the most likely to identify as religious, with 61% doing so, while 28% say they are spiritual. More independents say they are religious (44%) than spiritual (32%), while Democrats are about equally as likely to say they are spiritual (41%) as religious (37%). Twenty-one percent of both Democrats and independents say they are neither religious nor spiritual, compared with 8% of Republicans.” When Gallup first asked this in 1999, 60% of Democrats and 62% of Republicans identified as religious. But it gets worse. While Republicans remained about the same with their religiosity, Democrats’ identification as religious declined by 23 points. Those Democrats identifying as neither spiritual or religious increased from 7% in 1999 to 21% today—a 300% increase. Independents remained steady in their identification as religious with 44% saying so in both 1999 and the present, but their numbers also increase from 13% to 21%, identifying as neither spiritual or religious—a 38% increase. From a political perspective, this demonstrates that those who identify as more liberal on the political spectrum are less likely to be religious. In 2022, another Gallup survey found “Belief in God has fallen the most in recent years among young adults and people on the left of the political spectrum (liberals and Democrats). “These groups show drops of 10 or more percentage points comparing the 2022 figures to an average of the 2013-2017 polls. Most other key subgroups have experienced at least a modest decline, although conservatives and married adults have had essentially no change. The groups with the largest declines are also the groups that are currently least likely to believe in God, including liberals (62%), young adults (68%) and Democrats (72%). Belief in God is highest among political conservatives (94%) and Republicans (92%), reflecting that religiosity is a major determinant of political divisions in the U.S.” In 2019, Gallup reported that some 43% of Americans viewed socialism as a good thing for America. This compared with 25% in 1942. Gallup said “a majority of Democrats have said they view socialism positively in Gallup polling since 2010, including 57% in the most recent measure in 2018.” The Communist Manifesto says, “But communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis; it therefore acts in contradiction to all past historical experience." Socialism and communism depend on replacing God with government. This does not bode well for the national security of the United States. As Isaiah 7:9 says, “If you will not believe, surely you shall not be made secure.” Let us believe. Let us stand. Let us prevail with grace and wisdom. And action.