Oh Noes! – Newsweek declares the End of Christian America

I had a reaction when I read this article, I will get into that after the quote and link here:

It was a small detail, a point of comparison buried in the fifth paragraph on the 17th page of a 24-page summary of the 2009 American Religious Identification Survey. But as R. Albert Mohler Jr.—president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, one of the largest on

No Church?

earth—read over the document after its release in March, he was struck by a single sentence. For a believer like Mohler—a starched, unflinchingly conservative Christian, steeped in the theology of his particular province of the faith, devoted to producing Ministers who will preach the inerrancy of the Bible and the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the only means to eternal life—the central news of the survey was troubling enough: the number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled since 1990, rising from 8 to 15 percent. Then came the point he could not get out of his mind: while the unaffiliated have historically been concentrated in the Pacific Northwest, the report said, “this pattern has now changed, and the Northeast emerged in 2008 as the new stronghold of the religiously unidentified.” As Mohler saw it, the historic foundation of America’s religious culture was cracking.

“That really hit me hard,” he told me last week. “The Northwest was never as religious, never as congregationalized, as the Northeast, which was the foundation, the home base, of American religion. To lose New England struck me as momentous.” Turning the report over in his mind, Mohler posted a despairing online column on the eve of Holy Week lamenting the decline—and, by implication, the imminent fall—of an America shaped and suffused by Christianity. “A remarkable culture-shift has taken place around us,” Mohler wrote. “The most basic contours of American culture have been radically altered. The so-called Judeo-Christian consensus of the last millennium has given way to a post-modern, post-Christian, post-Western cultural crisis which threatens the very heart of our culture.” When Mohler and I spoke in the days after he wrote this, he had grown even gloomier. “Clearly, there is a new narrative, a post-Christian narrative, that is animating large portions of this society,” he said from his office on campus in Louisville, Ky.

via Meacham: The End of Christian America | Newsweek Religion | Newsweek.com.

Before I get into my reaction of this rather interesting piece. Let me get some full disclosure type housekeeping out the way here; If you will kindly head over to my “about me” section, you’ll see where I am coming from here. Honestly, When I read this,  The first I said to myself was, “Where the heck has this guy been living for the last thirty years, under a rock?!?!”

As someone who basically grew in Church in the 1980’s and in the 1990’s; (Except for a period between 1992-3’ish and 1997, when I was very much away from “The Lord” as we Christian folks call it.) I can tell you without an ounce of doubt that there has been a huge tectonic shift in the culture in the country; away from the Church, Christianity and the like. America has swung hard and quite fast away from the Traditional values of the 1940’s and 1950’s. The first wave of it, was in the late 1960’s, second was in the 1970’s, third was the 1980’s and by the 1990’s we were really into the Liberalism feared by many today.

The Church, much like our Nation’s supreme court is a active reflection of society itself. The legalization of Abortion being a prime example of this. The legalizing of the systematic slaughter of innocent unborn, was one of the worst events that ever happened in this Country.  The only thing that has surpassed that, is the moronic attempt by the religious right to reverse that decision; at a federal level, of which it should have never been set up in the first place. I am speaking like a federalist, in case any of you are confused at this point.  While I am very sympathetic to the Christians and thier mission to protect the unborn in this Country. I cannot support thier quest to return power to the Federal Government in this fashion. If the religious right or “Pro-Life” as they are called, want to stop abortion, do it at the State level, not the Federal. The less centralized government, the better.

Of course, there are a ton more examples that I could trot out here, but I do not want to scare of the secular Conservatives that do visit this Blog. Instead, I will simply quote a few Bible verses:

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was. But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (2 Timothy 3:1-17 –King James Version)

and in a little something more Modern:

But you should know this:  There will be terrible times in the last days  [of the Christian age].  (2)  For people will be lovers of themselves,  lovers of money,  boastful,  arrogant,  abusive talkers,  disobedient to their parents,  ungrateful,  unholy,  (3)  lacking in natural affection,  unwilling to be reconciled  [to their enemies],  slanderers,  lacking self-control,  brutal,  haters of what is good,  (4)  treacherous  [i.e.,  betrayers],  reckless,  conceited,  [and]  lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.  (5)  [These people]  maintain an appearance of being godly,  but they have denied its power;  [you should]  turn away from such people.  (6)  They are the kind of people who enter homes and influence  [morally]  weak-willed women,  loaded down with sins,  [and]  led on by all kinds of evil desires.  (7)  They are constantly learning and  [yet]  never able to arrive at a  [full]  knowledge of the truth.  (8)  These people oppose the truth just like Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses.  They have corrupt minds and are worthless as far as the faith is concerned.  (9)  But they will not advance any farther  [in their sin]  because their foolish ways will become obvious to everyone,  just as those of Jannes and Jambres were.  (10)  But you have followed  [Note:  These words mean “to observe closely,  have a keen interest in”]  my teaching,  conduct,  purpose,  faith,  patience,  love,  perseverance,  (11)  persecutions and sufferings.  You know what kind of things happened to me at Antioch,  Iconium and Lystra  [See Acts 13:13-14:23],  and what  [severe]  persecutions I experienced  [there].  But the Lord rescued me from all of them.  (12)  In fact,  everyone who wants to live a godly life in  [the service of]  Christ will be persecuted.  (13)  But evil people and impostors will go from bad to worse  [in their behavior],  deceiving people and being deceived by them.  (14)  But you should continue  [to believe and practice]  what you have learned and been convinced of,  knowing those from whom you learned it.  [Note:  These persons would include Lois and Eunice  (See 1:5),  as well as Paul himself].  (15)  And  [remember]  that,  from childhood,  you have known the sacred Scriptures which are able to make you wise  [enough]  to be saved through faith in Christ Jesus.  (16)  All Scripture is inspired by God  [Note:  Literally,  this word means “breathed out by God”]  and is useful for teaching  [truth],  rebuking  [wrongdoing],  correcting  [error]  and for providing instruction  [i.e.,  training]  on how to live right,  (17)  so that the man of God will be thoroughly equipped for  [doing]  every good deed.  – 2 Timothy 3:1-17 from The New Testament: An Understandable Version, by William E. Paul,

I think that about covers it. 😀