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Christianity in decline in America

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  • Originally published July 18, 2008 at 5:33 p.m., updated July 18, 2008 at 5:33 p.m.

How many people do you know who went searching for God? Most of us were taught about God as a child or we were confronted with God through some person or some difficulty in life.

Mark Mittelberg has written a book entitled, “Choosing Your Faith in a World of Spiritual Options.” Since even the possibility of the existence of an almighty God should cause people to take the time to seek him as a number one priority in life, why do so many people fail to do so? As Blaise Pascal has said, “Man’s sensitivity to trivia, and his insensitivity to matters of major importance reveal he has a strange disorder.”

The inspiration for this article is taken from Dennis McCallum’s book, “Christianity, The Faith That Makes Sense.” After studying the world’s religions, Christianity is certainly the one that makes sense. I write this however, at a time when increasing numbers of people are getting involved with strange religions, the occult and satanism. Today, unfortunately, because of materialism, the ACLU, a liberal media and less religious influence in public education, Christianity is in decline in America and even more so in Europe. On the other hand, it is growing apace in Central and South America and Africa.

The Christian religion can best be appreciated by recalling the real nature of the world we live in. Intelligent design tells us there is a God who created all things. We see that good and evil exist side by side and we know that we have a free will to do as we choose. We know there is a moral order and we know that when we fail to live up to it we are said to sin. We sense that there is life beyond the grave. If we are honest with ourselves, why should we have a problem choosing the religion that best relates to the real world? Here are the elements of strength of the Christian religion taken from the book, “The World’s Living Religions”: (1) An acknowledgement of God as a loving heavenly father. (2) The practical and life-changing teachings of its founder, Jesus. (3) Jesus’ teaching concerning the Kingdom of God. (4) Its confidence that death does not check the future development of human life. (5) Its scriptures, teachings and prophecies that go back to the beginning of recorded history. (6) Its practical teachings that help man cope with the realities of life. (7) Its civilizing influence. (8) Its offer of a solution to the problem of evil and sin through Christ’s plan of redemption. (9) Its appeal to reason, not blind obedience. (10) Its provision of an eminently workable plan of morality. (11) That it is a living and not a dead religion. (12) That it places a high value on human life and human responsibility. (13) That it does not place burdensome religious exercises and rituals on its followers.

Does not this religion most closely meet men’s needs when compared to other world religions?

Raymond F. Smith is a deacon at Fellowship Bible Church in Victoria and President of Strong Families of Victoria



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