In writing recently about Atlantic contributor Jeffrey Tayler’s longing to see religious believers placed in “straitjackets,” I was reminded once again of the astounding recent triumphalism from the secular Left. If 2015 has a culture-war theme so far, it might be “the year of the liberal gloat” — and not without some justification. First, the Pew Research Center’s Religious Landscape Survey saw large-scale increases in the “nones” — those people who declare no religious affiliation — and corresponding decreases in Christian religious identification. As a result, America seems to be moving inexorably left on key social issues. Second, in large-scale culture clashes — such as the religious-liberty battles in Indiana and Arkansas — the combination of secular media, social media, and corporate pressure put conservative politicians to flight. And then, of course, the Supreme Court not only created a constitutional right to same-sex marriage out of whole cloth, it did so in a manner that all but established a new civic religion.

The collective picture is one of a nation in a process of deep and profound change, with orthodox Christians guarding an ever-shrinking cultural, political, and spiritual perimeter. But that’s not the entire story. What if America, instead of simply secularizing, were becoming simultaneously more secular and more religious?
Source: David French, http://www.nationalreview.com