American Culture

“Strange Rites explores and analyzes seven different movements in contemporary modern American life, all of which function—at some level—as new faith systems after the decline of mainline Protestantism. The current age, for Burton, is decidedly not secular.” - John Ehrett

“The leftists who are in ascendancy in the Democratic party are motivated by a strong sense of the moral rectitude of their cause. …their moral convictions about human equality and the worth of each person derive directly from the Christian and Jewish religions. And yet, for the most part, they reject those religions.

“In a new study from the American Enterprise Institute, however, researcher Lyman Stone finds a different answer. After consolidating data from a 400-year period, he identifies ‘two compelling explanations: the expansion of secular education and the decline in marriage.’” - Acton

“Arguments tend to be focused on facts and logic…. A person presents arguments in the hope that someone else will have their understanding or thinking altered as they consider the arguments…. Narratives, on the other hand, tend to be focused on personal stories and experiences. … Increasingly, the discourse in our culture is bereft of arguments but filled with competing narratives.” - Ben Edwards

“…according to a recent survey, over half of American adults (58%) say you get to decide what’s right and wrong for yourself. And it’s not just those outside the church who think this way—it’s prevalent even among those who attend evangelical churches, with 46% rejecting the idea of absolute moral truth.” - AiG

“A new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll sheds light on perceptions of Trump and religion after his widely criticized photo op outside a church.” - Politico

“That’s coming from the Left. But prominent figures from the Right have been saying something similar. …Some conservatives are saying that our ideology of freedom has led to the destruction of the morality that is necessary for any society….Some conservative intellectuals have gone so far as to advocate a non-democratic authoritarian government.” - Gene Veith

“Derek Rishmawy and Cameron Cole discuss whether or not evangelism will change as America becomes post-Christian. They address: Growing trends…Careful, intentional use of our Christian language…The confusion of Christian jargon…” - TGC

“In 2019, the U.S. saw a rate of 58.2 births per 1,000 women ages 15–44, according to statistics from CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. The number of births in 2019 was about 3.75 million, the lowest number of total births in 35 years.” - NR

My recent research, with Cary Wu, explores whether differences in social capital across counties can help explain the differences in the severity of the pandemic. … Although there are many definitions, social capital refers to the norms and relationships that facilitate coordination and resilience within a community.” - The Public Discourse