Decline in Christianity Among Democrats Brings Steep Polarization

 

A Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Telephonic poll conducted January 13, 2022, has given a shock to many Republicans about the views of average Democrats regarding basic rights. The survey showed that around half of Democrat voters (48%) believe government should be able to imprison and/or fine those who question the efficacy of vaccines, while only 27% of all Americans would support such infringement of free speech.

 

 

Though 58% of American voters would oppose government fines on the unvaccinated, 55% of Democrats support such measures. Disturbingly, 59% of Democratic voters support confining the unvaccinated to their homes at all times, while the vast majority of American voters oppose such a draconian infringement of rights. Almost a third of Democrats (29%) even support using force by removing custody of the children of the unvaccinated, and 47% support forced tracking devises on the unvaccinated. Republicans, vaccinated or not, have been shocked, while Democrats generally don’t see the problem. Most Americans are starting to wonder about the source of such divergent values and worldview and the lack of understanding. This dangerous polarization has followed an increasingly steep trend with the Democratic Party becoming secularized in recent years. Let me explain.

 

First, the secularization of America is picking up steam and bringing profound change in values. A December 14, 2021, Pew Research Poll showed that between 2007 and 2021, the number of Americans identifying as Christian plummeted from 78% to only 63%. During that same period, the percentage of religiously unaffiliated almost doubled from 16% to 29%. In 2007, 58% of Americans prayed daily, and yet that number is now 45%, while those who hold religion as “very important” in their lives sank from 56% to 41%. The percent of Protestant Americans fell 10% in the past 10 years to only 40% today. These numbers seem to be increasing, as the numbers of Americans who attend religious services at least monthly fell 2% (33% to 31%) last year. By some estimates, around a third of Churches will be shutting down from the start of the pandemic to today.

 

Though alarming, this decline in Christianity is primarily a dynamic of the Democratic party. Pew Research finds that the number of Republicans who believe in God has remained relatively consistent at 73%, while Democrat believers dropped to 55%. Republicans are double (58% to 28%) the number of Democrats who identify as Evangelical. The number of Republicans who attend church weekly is substantially higher than that of Democrats (44% to 29%). For those who hold religion as “very important” in their lives, Republicans outnumber Democrats 61% to 47%. Most important when it comes to the connection of religiosity to worldview about rights and values, Republicans are significantly above Democrats in two key areas. According to the Pew polls, Republicans look to religion for moral guidance over Democrats by a whopping 44% to 29%. Further, Republicans believe in absolute standards of right and wrong at over double the numbers of Democrats (47% to 23%).

Going back a couple of decades, both parties showed comparative numbers of those who looked to religion as a source of moral guidance and believed in absolute standards of right and wrong. In the American experience, both parties generally agreed with the importance of individual rights as being from God or “endowed by our Creator” as we told King George III. Religion provided firm moral guidance on the respect for each individual and individual rights that political majorities should not infringe. The Christian belief in original sin, and therefore the danger of corruption of power, has driven the value of limiting the power of government.

 

Six-time Socialist Party candidate for U.S. President, Norman Thomas, in a 1944 speech said:

“The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But, under the name of ‘liberalism,’ they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until one day America will be a socialist nation, without knowing how it happened… I no longer need to run as a Presidential Candidate for the Socialist Party. The Democratic Party has adopted our platform.”

 

The more secularized the Democrat Party has become, the more Democrats appear willing to infringe on previously held sacred rights in deference to government power. The more faith the have placed in government (over God), the more willing Democrats have been to wield power against individual rights. Republicans generally put faith in God over government and therefore put primary value in the rights of individual.

The way out of the polarization appears to be with the Democratic party moving back from secularization and to unity of values. Alternatively, the Republican party can begin repudiating God as a source of moral guidance, but most Americans would agree that’s the way to ruin. Americans have a choice to make with our values. Is it government control over individual liberty? Does the value of the “collective” outweigh the value of individuals? Religion is at the root of the answers. For me, I stand with Joshua when he reasoned with his people about these issues and concluded: “as for me and my house, we choose the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

 

Bill Connor, is an Orangeburg, S.C. attorney, Army Infantry Colonel and author of the book “Articles from War.” 

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