The Falling Away: Reflections on the Decline of Christianity in America

It was 1975, the best of times. I was a senior in high school. During my early years, television became a household commodity in our Minneapolis suburb. And much of it was now in color! I can still remember my early years waiting for the NBC peacock to show off her vibrant feathers.

The fall of Saigon marked the end of the Vietnam War. Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen. We wouldn't realize it yet, but this would be a game changer! The hit movie Jaws was released scaring many from swimming in the big blue ocean! Bruce Springsteen and Fleetwood Mac rocked the airwaves. Captain and Tennille had the top song of 1975, 'Love Will Keep Us Together.' Originally it was written and performed by Neil Sedaka. The most watched television shows were All in the Family, Rich Man, Poor Man, and Laverne and Shirley.

I digress, but for me the seventies represented an innocence. I knew what the rules were. Everyone did. We were taught to respect our elders. We were taught to tell the truth. The Ten Commandments were taught in families, as attending church was a common practice.

Now 50 years have passed. And I wonder. What changed?

In comparison to the 1970's, research is much easier these days, a Google search sends me to an AI Overview and I have oodles of information at my fingertips!

We'll start at a time that I remember, a time when folks read their newspapers AND their Bibles. We'll journey from there up to today. We can each one come to our own conclusions. My question is this, how did we come from a place of rules, order, respect and safety to today, a time filled with lawlessness? I remind you that this series started with the Minneapolis Tragedy. https://www.standingontruth.org/post/a-minneapolis-tragedy

A tragedy, indeed. Our prayers continue to go out over the injured, families and our communities.

I recently wrote about Madalyn O'Hair's mission to rid the American school of prayer. But I wonder, what about Christianity? Some say we are no longer "just" a Christian nation. What does that mean? What does that look like?

According to a Gallup News article, in 1973, 87% of adults in America identified with a Christian religion, 6% identified with non-Christian or other and 5% did not have any religious preferences. https://news.gallup.com/poll/358364/religious-americans.aspx

This article suggests that in 2023 Gallup polling finds that 3 in 4 Americans identify with a specific religious faith. The breakdown is 68% identify with a Christian religion. Seven percent identify with non Christian religion. Following up with 22% of Americans that said they have no religious preference. Three percent did not answer the question.

That's a drop of nineteen percent. In 1973 there were 19 % more Americans who believed in Christianity than in 2023. Could this be part of the reason that we're seeing so much violence and hatred today?

*In 2006, President Barack Obama announced that the United States is no longer "just" a Christian nation due to the increasing diversity of America's population. He argued that we should find common ground.

At a press conference in 2009, Barack Obama concluded that "Americans do not consider ourselves a Christian nation, or a Muslim nation, but rather a nation of citizens who are bound by a set of values."

What are those values? And who gets to determine what they are? I wonder if these words spoken by the man of highest authority in America, at the time, became a turning point for this nation.

At its conception, America has been one nation under God. I wonder, have we lost the favor of the Almighty God? I hope not. I pray that God's Church will come together in unity, love and strength.

This is a call to the Christian Church. For it is up to us, to walk in obedience to this word found in II Chronicles 7:14.

"If MY people, who are CALLED BY MY NAME, will HUMBLE themselves and PRAY and SEEK MY FACE and TURN from their wicked ways, then I WILL HEAR from heaven, and I WILL forgive their sins and will heal their land." RSV (emphasis mine

Lord, we pray for this nation. We ask that you will hear our prayers. We bow before you, seeking your face. We admit that we have fallen far from you and your ways. We haven't lived as ones who reverently fear you. We repent of our sin and the sins of this country. We turn away from ungodliness and turn towards you. May you have your way with the Christian Church. Please draw us together in unity and grant us wisdom so that we would leave a better America for our children. Thank you for this country. Thank you that your Word promises that you will never leave your children. We ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

*https://justfacts.votesmart.org/public-statement/509820/issue-position-america-a-christian-nation