For more than two decades, sociologists have recognized that politics has contributed to America’s religious decline. Liberal confidence in organized religion plummeted as the Christian Right's political priorities became ascendant. Younger Americans raised in religious homes left over negative treatment of gay and lesbian people. The disappearance of liberal and moderate worshippers has transformed American churches, especially those with predominantly white congregations.
White Christians, especially white evangelicals, have become overwhelmingly Republican. (Believe it or not, in 2007 only 50 percent of white evangelicals were Republican.) The transition has occurred with surprising rapidity. Gallup surveys show that three-quarters of white Americans who attend religious services weekly or more often now identify as Republican or lean towards the Republican Party. Democrats make up just one in five weekly attenders, a remarkable shift. Even as American Christianity grows more racia…
