Gallup: “The 17-point drop in the percentage of U.S. adults who say religion is an important part of their daily life — from 66% in 2015 to 49% today — ranks among the largest Gallup has recorded in any country over any 10-year period since 2007.”
“About half of Americans now say religion is not an important part of their daily life.”
Vice President JD Vance, who drew scrutiny this week by saying he hopes his Hindu wife converts to Christianity, pushed back against critics, accusing them of “anti-Christian bigotry,” the Washington Post reports.
Said Vance: “Most Sundays, Usha will come with me to church. Do I hope eventually that she is somehow moved by the same thing that I was moved in by church? Yeah, I honestly do wish that. Because I believe in the Christian Gospel, and I hope eventually my wife comes to see it the same way.”
“The Anglican Church in North America — forged from the headline-grabbing conservative revolt against the Episcopal Church’s first openly gay bishop — is now confronting allegations by clergy and parishioners against two of its top leaders: One is accused of sexual misconduct, while the other allegedly abused his power by allowing men with troubling histories into the church,” the Washington Post reports.
Tech billionaire Peter Thiel recently warned that Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and critics of technology or artificial intelligence are “legionnaires of the Antichrist” in private lectures on Christianity that connected government oversight of Silicon Valley to an apocalyptic future, the Washington Post reports.
“In the four, roughly two-hour lectures, which began last month and culminated Monday at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Thiel laid out his religious views to a sold-out audience told to keep the contents ‘off-the-record.'”
“He argued that those who propose limits on technology development not only hinder business but threaten to usher in the destruction of the United States and an era of global totalitarian rule, according to the recordings.”
The poorest countries are also the most religious. And the countries with higher GDP are more secular.
However, there’s a pretty big outlier: The United States.
“Someone who says ‘I’m against abortion’, but is in favor of the death penalty, is not really pro-life. Someone who says ‘I’m against abortion, but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants who are in the United States’, I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”
— Pope Leo, quoted by the Catholic News Service.
“Peter Thiel, the billionaire investor in data, AI, defense and weapons development technology companies, wants everyone to think more about the end of the world,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“For about a year now, Thiel has been publicly laying out his understanding of biblical prophecies and the potential for the rapid advance of technology to bring about an apocalyptic future.”
“In a lecture Monday, he encouraged an audience to continue working toward scientific progress, whether in AI or other forms of technology. Fearing or regulating it, or opposing technological progress, would hasten the coming of the Antichrist, Thiel said.”
“Charlie Kirk’s memorial service Sunday left little doubt that his Turning Point USA organization would outlive him as a force in conservative politics — but with more attention than ever to a supercharged evangelical Christian message,” Axios reports.
“The five-hour service, webcast to millions and broadcast at one point by all major networks, was a call to action more than to grief. It canonized the 31-year-old conservative icon as not just a martyr to free speech, but to his faith as well.”
Washington Post: Charlie Kirk’s Christianity-infused politics appear poised to ascend within the GOP.
“For millions of conservative Christians, Charlie Kirk was the ultimate disciple. He symbolized the hope of the new Christian right, breaking down the borders between right-wing politics and evangelical faith to transform the next generation of America,” the New York Times reports.
“Now, he is considered a martyr.”
“As shock over Mr. Kirk’s assassination on Wednesday spread, the meaning for many of his followers was immediate and nearly universal. Evangelical pastors, activists and young conservatives felt his death personally, because of his influence on their lives and because they saw him dying while fulfilling a greater purpose.”
Valentina Gomez, a Republican running for Congress in Texas, shared a video of her burning the Koran with a flamethrower as part of her effort to “end Islam,” the Daily Beast reports.
Said Gomez: “Your daughters will be raped and your sons beheaded, unless we stop Islam once and for all. America is a Christian nation, so those terrorist Muslims can fuck off to any of the 57 Muslim nations. There is only one true God, and that is the God of Israel.”
Philip Elliot: “Dobson’s passing comes as the current Republican Party has shifted away from its faith-grounded conservative impulses to one that is fighting culture wars based on grievance more than Gospel. Gone are the days when someone like Dwight D. Eisenhower, who did not join a church until after his election as President, could capture the GOP nomination.”
“Now, Republican candidates trip over themselves in displays of public faith to kowtow to the hardcore base that sees the show as a substitute for substance. Dobson’s feverish crusades against pornography, gambling, divorce, and even SpongeBob SquarePants now seem almost quaint in a party that has fully embraced Trumpism.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is a follower of self-described Christian nationalist pastor Douglas Wilson, one of an ascendent group of Christian religious leaders finding influence among MAGA conservatives, CNN reports.
“In his first half-year in office — amid his tariff campaign, government-slashing moves and immigration crackdown — President Donald Trump has also repeatedly delivered for conservative Christians, who form the bedrock of his Republican support,” the AP reports.
“The Trump administration has green-lit political endorsements from the pulpit and encouraged religion in the federal workplace. Trump has established faith-focused entities with numerous influential Christian appointees. He’s energized supporters with assaults on cultural and academic targets long seen as liberal bastions. His administration and his Supreme Court appointees have expanded areas for religious exemptions and expression in the public square.”
Gallup: “Among 14 prominent U.S. and global figures, Pope Leo XIV has the most positive image by far, with many more Americans viewing him favorably than unfavorably. His 57% favorable rating and 11% unfavorable rating result in a +46 net-favorable score, far ahead of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (+18) and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (+11).”
The Economist: “Some 56% of those surveyed agreed that the church should support the rights of refugees and migrants, even if that conflicts with national border laws. Views on migrants varied widely across countries: Catholics in Europe, where immigration is a contentious political issue, were markedly less sympathetic than those in Africa, Asia and South America. A majority of Catholics surveyed (55%) supported the church being more welcoming to gay and transgender people. Kenya was the only country where opposition outweighed support (around a fifth of respondents globally were ambivalent on the issue). Just over half (51%) of those surveyed supported women becoming ordained deacons; and 46% were in favour of allowing priests to marry. In each case, because a large share of Catholics were undecided, opponents were in the minority.”
“Catholics from Argentina, Francis’s birthplace, were consistently among the most open to change. The late pope’s views may have had greater influence there. Many Catholics in the relatively liberal country—Argentina was the first in Latin America to legalise same-sex marriage, in 2010—are also not particularly devout. At least two-thirds of Argentinians identify as Catholic, but only around 20% of the population attends mass regularly.”
“Federal employees can display religious items at work, pray in groups while not on duty and encourage co-workers to adopt their faith, according to guidance released Monday by the Office of Personnel Management, which manages the federal civilian workforce,” the Washington Post reports.
“The Diocese of San Bernardino is the first in the nation to formally lift the obligation for Catholics to attend Mass in response to immigration detentions on church property,” NPR reports.
“The IRS said on Monday that churches and other houses of worship should be allowed to endorse political candidates to their congregations, carving out an exemption in a decades-old ban on political activity by tax-exempt nonprofits,” the New York Times reports.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.