An electorate irrationally devoted to secularism

(Centennial Fellow) Pundits say that Hispanics, single women, young people, and blacks delivered a victory for President Obama’s re-election. However, these are only external differences that do little to explain the internal unity that each group shares in their irrational devotion to secularism.

Secularism is the worldview that elevates the state as a source of redemption. Secularists strongly adhere to a moral construct based upon moral relativism. Secularists favor government intervention in markets. They also believe in legal positivism (the Constitution is a living document that evolves based upon the interpretation of activist judges.) They also believe in social justice, a state intervention that exchanges freedom for equality. This exchange has never ended well throughout history. It invites a form of utopianism. Students of history understand that utopianism always leads to tyranny.

The irrational devotion to secularism in the 2012 Presidential election can be seen from the following facts:

  1. The month after he took office the unemployment rate rose above 8 percent and stayed there for his term.[1]
  2. Real median household income has decreased over $4,000 during Obama’s term.[2]
  3. When Barack Obama took office, the average price of a gallon of gasoline was $1.85. Today, the average price of a gallon of gasoline is over $3.71.[3]
  4. Since becoming president, the number of long-term unemployed Americans has risen 2.5 million.[4]
  5. For the first time in the post-World War II era, the employment-population ratio has not recovered after a recession. The percentage of working age Americans with a job has been below 59 percent for three years in a row.[5]
  6. The number of Americans on food stamps has grown from 31.9 million to almost 47 million.[6]
  7. The U.S. government has run a budget deficit of well over a trillion dollars every year under Obama.[7]
  8. U.S. debt was downgraded from AAA status for the first time ever.
  9. Since Obama took office, the U.S. national debt has increased by almost 60%.
  10. The combination of high unemployment, increased debt, division based upon identity politics, establishment of an unprecedented number of czars that circumvent congressional review, the appointment of two secular Supreme Court justices, the inability to submit a budget, the reverence for redistribution, the bowing before other heads of state, the denial of America being a Christian nation, the radical associations before taking office, the radical appointments after taking office, etc. all clearly suggest that President Obama is a secularist who believes that man was born good and simply requires the state to perfect his existence. He has even stated that he believes his salvation is tied to “collective salvation” based upon a utopian secular ideal.[8] Despite stating that he is a Christian (with the doctrinal requirement that salvation is through Christ alone) President Obama has stated he believes his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham (an avowed atheist) is in heaven and that Christ may not be the only way to heaven.[9] Obama’s theological confusion arises from the fact that he is a secularist.

Given the foregoing record of failures, it is difficult to make a case that this president has a better plan for the next four years than he did for the last four. Certainly his re-election does not solve the problems in the economy. Why would people rationally vote for more of the same? The reason that he won the election is that a majority of Americans have now embraced the philosophical construct of secularism with its component attributes of government intervention and entitlements, as well as, moral relativism. This is why the Democratic leadership wrestled with the inclusion of God in its platform, elevated abortion to a state funded right, and attacked the capitalism of the Republican nominee. The Obama strategy is not about addressing the economic challenges overwhelming the country. It is not about targeting different demographics. It is about the promises of the secularist worldview which is the unifying principle of these different groups.

Unfortunately, this strategy was pursued by Europe over the past few decades with disastrous results. America had a similar affinity with secularism after the Revolutionary War when the church going population dropped substantially, prompting Thomas Jefferson to state that the evangelical religion would be replaced by Unitarianism.[10] Within 10 years of Jefferson’s flawed prophecy, America entered the Second Great Awakening.[11] Jefferson was largely secular in his worldview and was clearly no prophet.

Recent Barna Group research indicates that approximately 19% of Christians have a Biblical worldview and Pew says that 73% of Americans are Christian.[12]. If 19% of 73% have a Biblical worldview, this equates to approximately 14% of Americans with a Biblical worldview. Recent Pew survey data indicates that approximately 20% of Americans are “secular.”[13] Consequently, it is clear that secularists (20%) exceed the number of Christians with a “Biblical worldview” at 14%. This explains why secularists are driving elections and why Obama won re-election.

Future success for Republicans does not depend upon targeting the “externals”, i.e., the demography of different groups and making promises that can’t be kept. It is about focusing on the “internals”, i.e., worldview-graphics that reflect the common worldview of the many groups. The problem arises in that if Americans are truly secular in their worldview, it will be difficult for Republicans to win national elections from a population that is in process of abandoning the Judeo-Christian worldview (which has dominated America for more than the past two centuries.)

There are many similarities between the formation of Israel and the formation of the United States. Both countries were established under the guiding principles of a transcendent God. The Old Testament of the Bible is clear in its teaching regarding the relationship between God and Israel. The pattern goes something like this. Israel rebels. God intervenes with retributive justice. Israel repents. God rewards their repentance with restoration. Rebellion brings judgment which yields repentance followed by restoration. If you believe that model and that America has become increasingly secular, it should be no surprise that God’s judgment may be the next step in America’s journey. Questions about what form would such a judgment take, when will it happen, is there anything we can do to stop it, etc. can not be answered here and are for the reader to ponder.

The secularism that enabled President Obama to win re-election from so many groups interested in their own secular agenda (immigration amnesty, abortion rights, social justice, utopianism, etc.) may actually be his own undoing. He will not be able to satisfy their expectations. In fact, economic conditions are likely to deteriorate in a way that resembles other European countries such as Greece, Spain, etc. Republicans would be prudent to consider worldview analysis in their political strategy if they seek to return to national prominence. All Americans would be prudent to examine their own moral condition and ask if the Bible is correct in Proverbs 14:34, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people.” It is unlikely that secularists (who survey the national landscape) would state that our nation is a healthy and righteous one. Yet, it is a blind faith that secularists pursue in their election of President Obama to a second term. A successful faith depends upon the object in which the faith is placed. Placing that faith in a second Obama term represents long odds that even gambling addicts would be hard pressed to justify.










[10] FRC Lecture Series: Os Guinness – Can Freedom Last Forever?



[13] Ibid.

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