Seth Udinski, FISM News
According to a recent poll from Pew Research Center, Christianity will no longer be the dominant faith among Americans as soon as the year 2070.
Many Christians will not be surprised by this prediction, as the nation and western civilization as a whole has barreled down a path towards radical secularism for the last several generations. However, it is jarring to see how soon experts believe this shift could happen.
The research team conducted the poll by creating four different possible future scenarios as to the changing nature of religion in America over the next several decades. For reference, according to the poll, 64% of Americans claimed the name of Christ in the year 2020.
The scenarios are as follows: The first is no switching, where no American citizen will change their religious affiliation. The second is steady switching, which appears to be the most likely trend. In this trend, there is a small but consistent migration away from traditional Christianity among younger generations. The third scenario is rising disaffiliation with limits, which predicts many Christians leave the faith before age 30 but puts a stop on all potential migration away from Christianity at 50%. The final is rising disaffiliation without limits, which is the same as scenario three, but with no 50% limit.
The best case scenario is no switching, and this also appears to be the least likely. The most likely scenario based on past data appears to be steady switching, which predicts that only 46% of Americans will be Christians by 2070. In scenario three, also a likely possibility, only 39% would claim the name of Christ, and in scenario four, a paltry 35% of Americans would consider themselves Christian.
Conversely, the poll predicts a rise in the religious category of “nones,” or those who claim not to be affiliated with any religion. In the likely scenario of steady switching, nones would sit at 48% of the population, superseding the population of Christians by 2%.
Author’s Biblical Analysis:
What are Christians to do with this data? It is important to remember that, while this study is based on evidence from previous generations, it is only a prediction and should be treated as such.
There are many Christians who would despair of the news that the nation is being engulfed in secularism. I would agree that Christians should mourn the rising tide of godlessness, and we must, with all our might, fight for the values of the Judeo-Christian worldview to be restored in this country.
At the same time, Christians mourn this trend with a strong sense of hope. We need to turn our eyes back on the history of the Church and remember an encouraging, albeit nerve-wracking, trend — more often than not, the Church has flourished under fire.
In ancient Rome, the Church spread like wildfire, despite the severe persecution from multiple sides, not just the ruling pagan Empire but also a Jewish contingent that viewed Jesus as a blasphemer and Christians as degenerate cultists.
It was very similar in the Reformation era in Europe when Christians rediscovered the truths of the gospel and of justification by faith alone. Many of them, men like William Tyndale and women like Jane Grey, paid for it with their lives, while others like Martin Luther lived with a lifelong death sentence.
Conversely, there have been times in history, certainly not always, but definitely prevalent, when biblical Christianity became stagnant, despite the established church being the dominant force in society.
Church historians agree that the most egregious time period in Christian history was the Middle Ages, especially the later period leading up to the Reformation, where the Church was the dominant force in Europe. During this time period, the Church as a whole failed in preaching the gospel and became infamous for indulgence sales, works-based rule-keeping, lavish and licentious living among the clergy, and a universal abandonment of the teachings of scripture.
Should we pray for hardship and persecution? Certainly not. That is a foolish prayer and a waste of time in the throne room of God. Hardship and persecution will come upon us if we follow the Lord Jesus Christ. He promised it would in John 15:18-19:
If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
Therefore, we must face a growing wave of godlessness with courage, humility, and confidence in God that He will grow His Church in the midst of trial, as he has done before. Christians need not fear the secular wave, even as we stand to fight against godlessness in our country.
We must remember that the battle belongs to the Lord, which means victory also belongs to the Lord. Our champion Jesus Christ felled the giant of evil on our behalf when he died and rose again, giving us a full share in the victory as well. We march forward in confidence, knowing the battle belongs to the Lord and that the final victory is his.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)