"The End of Christian America"...or is it?

As I was logging out of my email two weeks ago, I noticed an intriguing Newsweek article in the MSN homepage: “The End of Christian America”. The article is all about the decline of religion in the United States. As I have become much less religious myself in recent years, I was very interested to see an article suggesting that I am not alone. In the article’s first paragraph it states, “the number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly doubled since 1990, rising from 8 to 15 percent”. This shift has been greeted with some very different opinions. While many “rationalists” embrace the shift away from a Christian nation, others are afraid of America become too secular. For example, the article quotes Albert Mohler Jr, the president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, who describes the decline of Christianity in America as a “culture crisis which threatens the very heart of our culture”. I was definitely struck by this word choice of a “culture crisis”. In my opinion, a secular America would be better for the progress of American politics. In Bill Maher’s movie “Religulus”, he interviews a God-fearing politician and questions him on his belief in God. I agree with Maher, a proud agnostic, who states that he is troubled by the prospect of having his country run by people “who believe in the talking snake”. This article addresses the separation of church and state, taking a very middle ground stance. According to the reporter, religion and politics will inevitably mix, but church and state should be kept separate. At first this seemed completely contradictory to me, but really this just means that people’s religious beliefs will inevitably influence their political beliefs, however religious doctrine should not be carried out through government.
In this way I think the article makes a good point. The United States was founded on the ideal of religious freedom, which includes the option to be religious or non-religious. Furthermore, the idea of America being a “Christian Nation” is false, because no country can be truly Christian—only people can. I think the point where this view becomes too simplistic happens in cases like George Bush beginning his cabinet meetings with prayer or Sarah Palin saying that it was God’s will for her to be Governor. It is unsettling for those of us who are non-religious to have those who are religious bring their beliefs into settings that affect the nation as a whole. Yes, we are lucky to live in a state committed to religious freedom. At the same time, different religions means different opinions and as the article points out that religion inevitably seeps into politics, that freedom can turn into a gift and a curse. I’m not saying that I’d rather the United States not have such a strong commitment to religious freedom. It’s just makes American politics messier…and more interesting.
What is comforting about all this is that while I may feel uncomfortable in a Christian influenced America, religious influences are constantly changing. It is now turning out to be Christians who feel uncomfortable in an increasingly less spiritual America. One of my favorite quotes from the Newsweek article was from JFK, saying, “For while this year it may be a Catholic against whom the finger of suspicion is pointed, in other years it has been, and may someday be again, a Jew—or a Quaker—or a Unitarian—or a Baptist…Today I may be the victim—but tomorrow it may be you—until the whole fabric of our harmonious society is ripped”. It seems to me that the decline of Christian mentality that this Newsweek article is reporting on is just a natural shift between conservative and liberal religious thought. And the beauty is, the pendulum will continue just as it always has.