Posted by
peripheral on Friday, April 10, 2009 6:42:49 AM
From My Perspective - - -
The April 13, 2009 Cover of Newsweek asserts: “THE DECLINE AND FALL OF CHRISTIAN AMERICA…”
and headlines the lead story: “The End of Christian America”. The
article is written by Jon Meacham and states: “The percentage of
self-identified Christians has fallen 10 points in the past two
decades…It was a small detail, a point of comparison buried in the
fifth paragraph on the 17th page of a 24-page summary of the 2009
American Religious Identification Survey…” Albert Mohler, President of
the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary reaction and response is
noted as: “…the central news of the survey was troubling enough: the
number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation has nearly
doubled since 1990, rising from 8 to 15 percent. Then came the point he
could not get out of his mind: while the unaffiliated have historically
been concentrated in the Pacific Northwest…this pattern has now
changed, and the Northeast emerged in 2008 as the new stronghold of the
religiously unidentified…the historic foundation of America's religious
culture was cracking….”
Mohler wrote in his online column: “A
remarkable culture-shift has taken place around us…The most basic
contours of American culture have been radically altered. The so-called
Judeo-Christian consensus of the last millennium has given way to a
post-modern, post-Christian, post-Western cultural crisis which
threatens the very heart of our culture…Clearly, there is a new
narrative, a post-Christian narrative, that is animating large portions
of this society…” Meacham then summarizes: “This is not to say that the
Christian God is dead, but that he is less of a force in American
politics and culture than at any other time in recent memory. To the
surprise of liberals who fear the advent of an evangelical theocracy
and to the dismay of religious conservatives who long to see their
faith more fully expressed in public life, Christians are now making up
a declining percentage of the American population. According to the
American Religious Identification Survey that got Mohler's attention,
the percentage of self-identified Christians has fallen 10 percentage
points since 1990, from 86 to 76 percent.”
President Obama
shocked some this past week when he declared: “America is not a
Christian nation; it is not a Jewish nation; it is not a Muslim nation;
etc.” The question for the President is: On what basis have you
determined America is not a Christian nation? A number greater than a
simple majority would disagree with his statement and conclusion. To
give some perspective, in our nation currently the Jewish population is
1.2 percent and the Muslim is 0.6 percent.
Consider these
things with me - - - As we navigate through uncertain times in our
nation, it is difficult to understand why a media outlet - Newsweek,
and a national figure – the President, would seek to either undermine
or remove the Christian foundation of this nation. In a day when one
hears of redistribution of wealth; increased taxes; long-term national
indebtedness; legislated national programs that will be funded by
taxation; involvement in war (with other potential trouble spots on the
horizon) – why would the foundational hope of millions be declared as
waning or no longer true for this nation? A former President, Gerald
Ford, once said: “A government big enough to give you everything you
want, is strong enough to take everything you have.” Could that
possibly include ones Christian beliefs? Psalm 11 should be ones source
of hope and confidence: “In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to
my soul, Flee like a bird to your mountain, for behold, the wicked bend
the bow; they have fitted their arrow to the string to shoot in the
dark at the upright in heart; if the foundations are destroyed, what
can the righteous do? The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord's throne
is in heaven; His eyes see, His eyelids test the children of man. The
Lord tests the righteous, but His soul hates the wicked and the one who
loves violence. Let Him rain coals on the wicked; fire and sulfur and a
scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. For the Lord is
righteous; He loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold His
face.” Have Faith In God! Lean on His everlasting Arms. Let the Lord be
your Refuge and Fortress in troubled and troubling times!