Q&A Article for May 2009
Has Christianity in America Failed?
Last year a reporter from the New York Times came to Wichita to do a story about my ministry in Wichita, and how politics were a part of the message that I preached from my pulpit—and in pulpits across the country. They ran the story in their paper’s magazine; I received invitations for interviews from all over the world. The article was discussed in hundreds of blogs and was debated in seminaries across the world. The point of the article was that religious conservatives are losing the battle for traditional values and turning away from a biblical worldview. They argued that “value voters” would continue to lose influence in the days ahead and that liberalism would reign in America. Were they right? Some would say they were correct because of the election of President Barack Obama, an unashamed, self-proclaimed liberal.
A recent NewsWeek magazine featured an article entitled The End of Christian America. They stated that the number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has doubled since 1990. Fewer people now think of the United States as a Christian nation than when George W. Bush was President. Two-thirds of the public (68%) now say religion is losing influence in America. Those who think religion can answer all or most of today’s problems are now at a historic low of 48%. During the Bush and Clinton years, the figure never dropped below 58%. President Obama recently proclaimed that America is not a Christian nation. I don’t think that we, in the religious community, can ignore or dispute these findings. Even if they are partially correct, the influence of Christianity in America is changing—and is losing ground. This however, does not have to continue. But before we can change this direction, we have to diagnose the problem. What is causing this downward trend in America? I think this can be found in some key platforms in our country.
The first platform being that many pastors have stopped preaching controversial messages—they do not want to be seen as being “political” in the pulpit. They are afraid that they might offend some of their church-goers or leaders in the church who give money and have influence. I have been threatened in my own ministry throughout the years and told to stop preaching the entire Bible—that they were tired of hearing about hot topics such as abortion, gay marriage, and evolution. I’m glad that I didn’t listen and chose to stay faithful in preaching all of the Word of God. Political Correctness is weakening our pulpits and its affect is being felt in the pews across America.
The second platform in the downward trend is in our schools. For many years now liberal thinking has controlled our educational system. We see this movement all the way from our early education through our colleges, and even our seminaries. In many cases, they have denied such things as absolute truth. Often they have misled and even re-written historical facts about the spiritual foundation of America and the spirituality of our fore-fathers. Conservative points of view are mocked, or are not even allowed. I have come to believe that liberalism is like a cancer. If liberalism is not stopped, it will damage and will eventually destroy the heritage of our great nation.
The third platform that is aiding in the downward trend is seen in the self-righteous judges who are trying to make laws rather than interpret and enforce the laws. Our American system was not designed for this to happen. Gay marriage has been refused in election after election (except in one state—Vermont), but rebellious and activist judges keep imposing their morality on the people. Morality in our culture should be defined by the people and not these judges.
In conclusion, we see that America is changing. The less spiritual we become, the more violent, vicious, and divided we become. I remember, growing up, that it was okay not to lock your doors at night. You could leave the keys in your car. Teachers could teach in the classroom and be respected. In our schools the day began with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. Preachers and policemen were held in high regard. A family could sit and watch TV without being embarrassed about the programming. There was pride and sovereignty in America. Our borders meant something. Law and traditional values were cherished. Please forgive me, but I miss that America. Yes, America may have fewer Christians, but is that really what we want? Perhaps what we need is an old-fashioned revival and a spiritual awakening—that’s what we are working and praying for at the Summit.
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