religion

A Massachusetts school committee has approved a Hispanic church’s application for a religious private school known as the Real Life Learning Center.

According to a national study by Ipsos and the Episcopal Church, nearly 4 in 10 American adults believe that religion in the U.S. makes the country stronger.

Is it possible for Christians to be discerning without being cynical? If so, how? Are there ways to respect authority without being duped? Can we recognize the collapse of our institutions without wholly abandoning them, and perhaps seek to restore them? Christians must answer these questions as part of our cultural witness. 

According to Pew Research Center, the percentage of American Christians has fallen about 12 percent over the last ten years, from 75 percent in 2011 to around 63 percent today. The surprising thing here isn’t that Americans are leaving organized religion behind. That’s been happening at about the same rate for a while now. However, it is newsworthy that this trend continued unabated in the face of a global pandemic. Historically, catastrophic events that bring uncertainty, stress, or political chaos tend to draw people to reconsider faith.

The gospel is true because it is true, whether secular science can prove its claims or not. Such proof may be compelling for secular people; for example, Paul quoted Greek philosophers when reasoning with Greek philosophers (Acts 17:28). But if God’s word is truth (John 17:17), no secular experiments can make it less true.

All people are created by God with a “Christ-shaped emptiness” (paraphrasing Pascal), whether they know it or not. When lost people meet Christians in whose lives Christ is active, empowering, gracious, and compelling, what they are missing draws them to the only One who can satisfy the deep hunger of their souls.

Baylor historian Philip Jenkins predicts that in the people will think about church in terms of “BC…Before Coronavirus,” and after.

The key factor in Jenkin’s fascinating analysis is what we might call “pre-existing conditions.” In other words, in many ways, the coronavirus hasn’t so much created problems for the Church as it has revealed and accelerated them.

A new study shows that despite the decline in religiosity in America, the United States is still one of the most religious countries in the world.

A recent Pew Research Center study finds that most Americans believe that President Trump is either not all that religious or not religious at all.