From the earliest days of settlement to the drafting of the Constitution, Christianity has played an undeniable role in shaping American identity and values. America was the first country to be explicitly founded on Christian values, drawing inspiration from the Ten Commandments, the Bible, English common law, and the Magna Carta, all emphasizing individual rights given by a higher power.
Despite pressure from societal trends, the influence of Christianity remains profound, with a majority of Americans still identifying with the faith. While mainstream media headlines often proclaim the decline of religious affiliation and church attendance, the reality is more nuanced. Recent data from a Pew Research survey underscores this point, revealing that more than 65 percent of Americans identify as Christians; the United States is still a majority Christian nation.
The trend is also global. It is estimated that 2.38 billion of the world’s population, or more than 31 percent, are Christians—the largest of any religious group worldwide. Christianity is also growing and has experienced a significant surge over the past few decades in regions such as China and Africa. Much of that growth can be attributed to the influence of churches that uphold staunch values and conventional perspectives.
However, Christianity faces unique challenges within the affluent West, particularly from within. Continued attacks by anti-Christians and the rise of Progressive Christianity pose a significant ideological threat to traditional conservative organizations.
Catholicism has grappled with leftist movements for decades, with “Liberation Theology” emerging in 1960s Latin America, blending socio-economic politics with an overt concern for the poor and oppressed peoples. Embracing such theology became a stepping stone to prominence for most Latin American Catholic officials, showcasing a trend whereby ideological elites corrupt institutions for personal gain. This trend persists in academia and corporate leadership today, where embracing narratives of the moment often increases economic prospects.
Much like the Catholic Church, it seems the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), the world’s largest Baptist denomination, is suffering from insider attacks.
Perhaps the clearest example of wokeness infiltrating the SBC is the evident transformation of the early 20th-century Social Gospel into a modern iteration. Initiatives such as critical race theory sharply contrast with Christian principles. By stating inherent racism lies within whiteness through concepts such as white supremacy, and by suggesting that success achieved through hard work and perseverance is hindered by systemic oppressors, it directly contradicts the core tenets of Christianity.
Despite the SBC’s rejection of theories prioritizing “group identity” at the 2021 annual meeting, efforts to push the church into a modern progressive era persist. It’s as if a new breed of church officials view themselves as political organizers instead of leaders of the faith.
William Wolfe, a former Trump official and Baptist theologian, highlights organized progressive efforts to infiltrate and undermine conservative denominations such as the SBC. He emphasizes the pivotal role Christianity plays in safeguarding America against cultural Marxism.
In my conversation with Mr. Wolfe about this subject, he emphasized the crucial role of authentic Christianity.
“The left comprehends the pivotal role authentic Christianity plays in safeguarding America against veering into cultural Marxism. Why not the right? For America to preserve its freedom and prosperity, the church must remain steadfast, not swayed by woke ideologies. The insidious ‘long march through the institutions’ by Marxist forces must cease here if America is to endure in its current form.”
One of the bigger problems I see within the SBC is the internal struggle between the overzealous modernizers and the traditionalists. The potential for global growth is with the traditionalists. Ecclesiastical beliefs aside, officials need to stay with tradition for the sake of growth and not fall victim to the false flag of progressivism like the Episcopalians or the Methodists, ultimately appeasing very small numbers of people and capitulating growth prospects or, even worse, appearing confused and misguided on the global stage. Some institutions should be immune to cultural pressure.
Social justice activists relentlessly tear down traditional fabrics in America for their benefit, epitomizing a race to the bottom where ideologies usurp institutions, serving as whistleblowers for the woke. There is a history of such throughout America. Whenever a scandal arises, activists and self-labeled change-makers rush to the forefront, grasping for power and exploiting the situation for personal gain. Social justice activism used to be a cottage industry, but it’s fast becoming the next big startup with unlimited scale.
Those striving for change within traditional faith-based organizations should consider leaving and establishing progressive sectors independently or, in the case of the Southern Baptists, joining other denominations. There’s no point in pushing every traditional organization to the brink of transient trends. Allowing continued attacks and attempts to force change from within is the opposite of freedom.
