A country without God is pointless.
A life without God is pointless.
Trade deals without God are pointless.
Laws made without thinking of God are pointless.
Are you surprised that we, in America, have the most lenient abortions in the entire world? Well, it is because it is becoming the norm to have a life without God. According to Pew Research, there has been a 12% decline in American adults who describe themselves as Christian in the last decade! Why is this the case? Is it because we have a high standard of living? Is it because of left-wing college institutions? Probably. However, the leading cause is the ABSENCE OF GOD IN OUR COUNTRY.
American Politicians have a storied history of using Christianity as a mere political tool to appeal to those who have a firmer footing on their faith. They love God and then vote for the worst abortion bill the world has seen. They will say they love God and then never attend a church service. It is without question a byproduct of the protestant “predestination,” this notion that “I believe in God, therefore I’m saved” or “Confession for Thee and Not for Me.” This way of thinking has plagued all denominations, including Catholicism. Occasionally we may see populist movements considering themselves Christian, but these politicos use faith as an auxiliary to their goals. Devout Christians, Catholic or otherwise, must transition from supporting “God-Loving” politicians to “God-Fearing” politicians.
What is the reasoning behind this line of thinking? Matthew 9:24.
“Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
The rich man does not fear God because he is the arbiter of his life. If he wants to eat? He buys food with his riches. If he wants a new wife, he pays her dowry with her riches. In modernity, this rich man can have his prison sentence abolished based on his wealth. The riches instill a false sense of deification. They can part the seas because of their wealth. How is this different for politicians? It is not. Politicians write the laws they vote on; poor investments are all but guaranteed bailouts. Perverse incentives are the name of the game.
Nevertheless, here is your whitepill. The Amish community, which is very much a God-centered community, has doubled its population in the last decade. When the data comes out, I am sure we will also see a similar trend within the traditional catholic circles. It is apparent whenever I attend mass on Sunday. There is almost always a new baby every month.
As Pope Benedict XVI, then Cardinal Ratzinger, explained in an interview published in 1997 for Ignatius Press:
“Maybe we are facing a new and different kind of epoch in the church’s history, where Christianity will again be characterized more by the mustard seed, where it will exist in small, seemingly insignificant groups that nonetheless live an intense struggle against evil and bring good into the world — that let God in.”
Is such pruning necessary? Unless Godless individuals procreate, the ground is fertile for the faithful remnant. The God-loving and God-fearing still in the pews must hold fast to the truth of the Gospels, to be the shining city of a hill. Perhaps we need a smaller, more authentic church to help foster such an awakening.
We must never forget that the Holy Spirit guides us. One thing is evident: we must pray. Only through a spiritual revival and flowering of the faithful, however slow to bloom, will we see a genuine Springtime of Evangelization.
