I wanted to comment on one of the articles I didn’t include in today’s links. The article is called “The Future of Faith.” Diane Butler Bass looks at the future of Christianity and notes two cultural forces that are shaping religion in the United States: the increased number of religiously unaffiliated people and the growing religious pluralism in this country.

Then she says

The first group, the unaffiliated, is largely uninterested in conventional religion, embracing humanism, non-specific forms of spirituality, or post-institutional forms of community. Their concern with old-fashioned religious questions is waning, as is their commitment to religious structures of the past. They are, by all reports, angry at the admixture of religion and politics that has roiled American life over the last three decades, and prefer more inclusive, less dogmatic but more pragmatic politics.

Why yes, I did fell like yelling “Amen, Sistah.”

Note that this is the opinion of one who studies social research, so it should be taken as that. Educated opinion, but opinion none the less. But it’s opinion I highly agree with. The church is damaging itself through political activity. The more we point that out, the more political people become.

There’s an article in the links today on pastors’ views of global warming. In the article, Scott McConnell, director of LifeWay Research, says, “Pastor opinions on global warming reflect their own political beliefs.”

What? You mean Republican pastors doubt global warming and Democratic pastors believe in it? Can’t be. Ministers’ views aren’t shaped by political parties but by religious conviction. Aren’t they?

I guess the comfort in all of this is the hope that as the church dwindles, maybe the political party she chooses to give her strength to will gain in power. That’s what matters, right?

I’ll end with one more quote from today’s links, by Stephen Mattson. In his article on what’s wrong with American Christianity, Mattson notes

Power-hungry Christians view their faith as a battle, a series of wins and losses. Control and influence is valued above all else, and Christianity’s success is measured by research, statistics, attendance and the success of church-supported laws at the state and federal level. Success is hardly gauged by the fruits of the Spirit or by how well we’re following Christ’s example.
A thirst for power results in Christians who prefer political might over spiritual strength, legal enforcement over personal choice, conscription over evangelism, punishment over grace, fear over hope, and control over love. In extreme cases, even violence and aggression is viewed as a necessary means of gaining power.