The Christian Nation with a Declining Christian Majority

Our country is often referred to as a Christian nation despite the principle of a separate

church and state. “In God We Trust” decorates our currency, and “one nation under God” is

recited in our Pledge of Allegiance. With an overwhelming majority of citizens falling under the

Christian faith, these religious ideals slip into our government and policies. However, the

Christian majority is changing. Numbers of citizens choosing not to identify with any particular

religion are growing while numbers identifying with traditional Christian factions are shrinking.

It appears that overall, especially in the Millennial generation, people are moving away from

some of the more dogmatic religious principles.

According to a demographic study by Pew Research Center, the Christian majority

declined 7.8% from 2007 to 2014 (78.4% to 70.6%). This striking decline came with increased

numbers among non-Christian faiths such as Islam and Hinduism and, most notably, numbers of

those unaffiliated. The study mainly connected falling Christian numbers with rising unaffiliated

numbers and stated that non-Christian faiths have grown modestly. Although a majority of those

unaffiliated did not identify as atheist or agnostic, the percent atheist/agnostic among those

unaffiliated did increase 6%.

Where is the change?

Michael Lipka, editor with a focus on religion at Pew Research Center, identifies

Millennials as driving this change in religious demographics. Of the younger section born 1990-

1996, 36% identified as unaffiliated with religion, and of the older born 1981-1989, 34%

identified as unaffiliated. While it is commonly held that younger people to be less interested in

religion in general, these numbers still represent a real and substantial cultural shift in America.

Only 17% of Baby Boomers were unaffiliated when surveyed at the same age as Millennials

today. Modern youth doubles that percentage and triples the percentage of the Silent Generation.

Any way you slice it, the religious nones are rising.

What is the change to?

Despite speculation that the decrease in religious affiliation does not necessarily

constitute a decrease in spirituality, Professor Jean M. Twenge of San Diego State University led

a study showing that spirituality has declined as well. The study analyzed results from four

nationally representative surveys. It included 11.2 million respondents age 13-18 from the years

1966 to 2014 and concluded that the religious shift is generational and not simply due to age.

Millennials not only identified as unaffiliated with religion, but they were less likely to rank

religion as having a high importance in their lives. They were less spiritual and less likely to

spend time praying or meditating. Because of this information, it appears the Christian religion

isn’t simply changing into a more liberal and less dogmatic religion, but that it is indeed

declining overall. Not only are the unaffiliated rising, but the percent unaffiliated are becoming

more secular. This cultural shift seems to show not only an increase in the unaffiliated but an

increase in the nonreligious.

Why the change?

Professor Twenge equated the generational change with the rise in individualism.

Because organized religion often follows a set of rules that may be seen as restricting personal

freedoms, a drop in religious affiliation correlates with heightened value on individualism. In an

article published in Salon, Valerie Tarico argues that the decline is due to the internet and the

Information Age. For many, although certainly not all, enculturation is the reason behind their

religion. Being able to access outside information easily has caused some to cast off the faith of

their families.

With the internet, access to scientific information as well as information regarding other

religions is able to be widespread. Many religious individuals consider science integral in

understanding and modernizing their own religious beliefs, but science has posed a challenge to

fundamentalists and those favoring a literal interpretation of religious texts. Even when religion

has not been cast off due to scientific information, it has, in many ways, been made more

progressive. A number of the Christians I know in my generation do not adhere to the same

religious principles as their parents. They doubt what they have learned in churches and think

critically on issues such as reproductive rights, equal marriage, and gender roles. In this way,

their beliefs are not a product of enculturation and dogma but of their own questioning and

critical thinking. Having access to the internet and scientific research I believe shapes the

religious of this generation as well as leading some to reject their religion all together.

Another possibility is the support for those leaving their religion. America still has an

overwhelmingly negative attitude towards the nonreligious. Technically in my home state and

six others, it is illegal for an atheist to hold public office. That being said, most universities and

many high schools now have organizations such as the Secular Student Alliance that offer a safe

place and community for those without a church community. UCF’s Secular Student Alliance has

a mission “to organize, unite, educate, and serve students and student communities that promote

the ideals of scientific rationality, secularism, democracy, and human-based ethics,” and “to

encourage critical thinking and erode the influence of dogmatism, bigotry, and superstition in our

society.” The club also has a chapter called Recovering from Religion meant to support those

doubting their religion, wanting to leave their religion, or who have already left. The widespread

opinion is still negative towards doubters, skeptics, and the irreligious, but support groups such

as these allow for more people to come out of the closet regarding religious doubts.

How does a secular nation benefit the religious?

For an individual, being secular means having attitudes not based on religious or spiritual

principles. For a country, it means keeping any one group’s religion out of government policies.

Nationwide secularism is inclusive of all religions. It goes back to the idea of separation of

church and state. Not only does this provide a society inclusive of the irreligious, but it is more

inclusive of all religious beliefs. The Christian ideals that work their way into campaigns are not

encompassing of all citizens. They are not even encompassing of all Christians. A nation led by

any group’s doctrine is a nation excluding other religions. With a secular nation, religious ideals

and values do not need to vanish or be hidden. In fact, a secular nation with no religious

preference allows the free speech of all groups. This is why Christians, Muslims, Hindus,

Buddhists and other religions along with atheists and agnostics should all push for a more secular

society. We do not need to come together as one nation under one God. We can come together

on our shared human values such as love, compassion, kindness, tolerance, and acceptance.

Secularism may separate the church and the state, but it does not need to separate the religious

from the nones.