Politics & Government
Christian Leaders-Signs of 4th 'Great Awakening' Millions go to Jesus
'Millions Realizing Woke Ideologies are Destructive Attempts to Re-Found the USA per a New Civic Religion that Parodies+Persecutes Believers
"I see what is happening [as] more of an Awakening. An Awakening occurs when the irreligious come to faith in Christ." So said Wade Burleson, retired pastor and president of Istoria Ministries in remarks to the Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF) as provided by the WND News Center to this writer for MHProNews and this Patch. Following this item provided in Part I will be additional information in Part II that will shed additional light on the subjects and concerns raised.
Part I
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'Resurgence': Christian leaders see a 4th 'Great Awakening' as Americans flock to Jesus
'Millions are now realizing that woke ideologies are, in fact, destructive attempts to re-found the nation according to a new civic religion which both parodies and persecutes Christianity'
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By Jaryn Crouson, Daily Caller News Foundation | December 4, 2024
More Americans are leaning into their Christian faith in what some religious leaders and scholars are calling a "fourth Great Awakening."
Bible sales in the United States have skyrocketed in 2024, religious colleges are seeing enrollment boosts despite overall declines in higher education attendance and several states are pushing for Bible-based curriculum in public schools. Some Bible scholars believe this may mark a significant cultural shift.
"While it has been apparent to a few of us for some time, millions are now realizing that 'woke' ideologies are, in fact, destructive attempts to re-found the nation according to a new civic religion which both parodies and persecutes Christianity," Chad Pecknold, theologian and professor at The Catholic University of America, told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Despite overall book sales increasing by only 1% compared to 2023, Bible sales in the U.S. have reached an impressive 22% increase as of October 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Cardinal Newman Society in October reported that enrollment at Catholic colleges has risen in 2024 despite an overall enrollment decrease at other institutions, with several schools such as Ave Maria University in Florida and Benedictine College in Kansas seeing record growth, increasing attendance by more than 20% over the last 10 years.
"There is a resurgence of Christianity among young people," Wade Burleson, retired pastor and president of Istoria Ministries, told the DCNF. "I see what is happening [as] more of an Awakening. An Awakening occurs when the irreligious come to faith in Christ."
Burleson pointed to several instances of young people coming into faith in doves in recent years, with hundreds of students being baptized on campuses across the nation, including several members of the four-time national champion Oklahoma University women's softball team.
"There have been three Great Awakenings in America, and a few smaller ones," Burleson continued. "I believe we are in the beginning of a fourth Great Awakening and it is a response to inflation (financial panic), pandemics (Covid), wars (global), and the sudden death of stability in America. There is no anchor in life better than the Anchor of Hope, and when the ship of life is tossed to and fro, faith awakens."
Pecknold shared this sentiment, arguing that far-left politics have driven Americans towards Christianity.
"Democrats, and the corporations and institutions they controlled, embraced this pseudo-civic religion in their attempt to take total control over the American republic," Pecknold said. "The American people saw their totalitarian appetites on display in everything from forced vaccinations to extreme racialism to the redefinition of marriage and the denial of sexual difference, all under the ever-evolving banner of 'the Progress Flag.'"
"This is when the Democrats were defeated so thoroughly on November 5th, it was not only seen as a political victory, but also as a religious victory: it was a repudiation of the ersatz civic religion that Democrats had used to re-found the country."
Catholic voters played a pivotal role in the 2024 presidential election, making up approximately 25% of the vote and overwhelmingly siding with President-elect Donald Trump, with other Christian voters following suit.
This was a surprising revelation considering tens of millions of Christians were expected to refrain from voting, citing a dislike of both candidates and general uninterest in politics, according to Relevant Magazine. Some religious organizations, however, made efforts to warn voters prior to the election that the Democratic ticket was "patently anti-religious."
Greg Boyd, theologian and Pastor at Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, Minnesota is less convinced of this religious revival.
"My concern is that a lot of it seems to be wrapped up with nationalism," Boyd told the DCNF. "And it concerns me because whenever the Christian faith has gotten too close to political power, it's been transformed by the political power, and we have Christians trying to control others and conquer others, the same as we've had throughout history. And in my opinion, that doesn't look anything [like] what we find in the Gospel."
Boyd pointed to examples of states like Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma approving the implementation of Bible lessons into public school lessons. Texas' law is meant to help "students to better understand the connection of history, art, community, literature, and religion on pivotal events" in history and Oklahoma's is similarly meant "as an instructional support into the curriculum."
"Where did Jesus ever impose himself on others?" the pastor asked.
"I mean, I would love to see a revival in the country," Boyd said. "The evidence of that would be, I would think, people become more Christ-like, they become more loving. They would be trying to turn the other cheek, trying to reach out across the aisle and build bridges instead of walls. And I don't see any of that happening with the church as a whole. Seems like it's kind of gone deeply into political polarization."
Boyd agreed that many issues in politics have driven people to view current affairs through a religious lens.
Cultural issues such as abortion, gender ideology and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) have been hot topics dividing Americans' opinions, especially religious Americans. The ongoing war in Gaza, as well as the hundreds of protests that spanned the U.S. in response, also impacted Christians' perspective, with many viewing the apparent prosecution of Jews on college campuses as an infringement on religious freedom as a whole.
Church attendance among Christians remains relatively low in the United States, with only 30% of Protestants and 23% of Catholics attending church every week, according to a March Gallup poll. However, more Americans than ever are consuming religious content, with the Hallow prayer app becoming the first religious app to top Apple's App Store in 2024 and Fr. Mike Schmitz's Bible In A Year podcast consistently topping charts in recent years, according to National Review.
Young men in particular are maintaining their devotion to faith, with more Gen Z men identifying as Christian than women for the first time, according to the New York Times.
"We are currently seeing a kind of clarity about the civilizational conflict that 'woke' ideologies provoked," Pecknold told the DCNF. "In brief, the people are fed up with this fake religion, and even if they aren't Christian themselves, they're realizing that Christianity provides a far better 'unwritten constitution' for the nation than anti-Christian wokism can supply. There's a simple realization at work here."
"Christianity is an ordering principle which elevates and ennobles souls, families, and societies — it's inherently public, and cannot be 'privatized,' relegated to the margins, or separated from questions of education, heritage, public morality, family policy, law, or the aspirations of nations," Pecknold said. "We still date time by the Incarnation because, deep down, everyone knows that Christianity is objectively true and good for all people — it roots us in reality, it helps us to promote the truly good, and avoid those evils which cause so much suffering — it elevates us by the Light of Christ. Public Christianity is literally what makes civilizational renewal possible. The fact that Americans are remembering this, and having the courage to state it, is a sign of great hope for the nation."
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Part II - Additional Insights, Facts, and Analysis
In the third-week of this ongoing series on this Patch a similar topic was raised.
More recently, this writer provides sources that went into more detail on the subject of the most read books, which is led by the Christian version of the Holy Bible.
https://patch.com/florida/lake...
Some who are unchurched, including believers, may be surprised to realize that the U.S.A. is still largely a Christian nation. Even in 'deep blue' states like California or New York, if believers simply voted their values consistently and showed up to vote, it is unlikely that the far-left shift in the Democratic Party could survive. Why? Because political parties sooner or later can become pragmatic. There was a time when pro-life views, for example, were not uncommon among Democrats. That is largely no longer tolerated by left-leaning leaders who press an agenda that is often un-Christian and un-Biblical on its face.
As evidence for that, consider what Kamala Harris (D) did during the closing weeks of her recent campaign to be president.
But more recently, Kamala Harris' campaign leaders made some surprising revelations that also support that point.
https://patch.com/florida/lake...
Per that report linked above, David Plouffe (D) said the following.
“It’s always worth reminding people: It’s really hard for Democrats to win battleground states, OK? Let’s look at Pennsylvania: 25 percent of the electorate is liberal, roughly, 34 percent is conservative,” Plouffe said.
“So in every battleground state, there’s more conservatives than liberals.” The Hill said the Plouffe comments came in “an interview was on Crooked Media’s “Pod Save America,” hosted by former Obama aides, Plouffe joined his 2024 campaign colleagues to reflect on what went wrong in the race.”
“In Pennsylvania, if exits are to be believed, Trump won conservatives 91-8. Harris won Liberals 93–6. Moderates, Harris won 56-43. But you kind of got to win 60 percent of them, right?” Plouffe said. “So, you know, for Democrats to win battleground states, to Quentin and Jen’s point, it is a false choice.”
From time to time, this writer for this Patch, made similar points, which Plouffe confirmed.
The seemingly confusing can actually become quite simple, IF people understand the truths of faith which Scripture and centuries of Christian history reveal. It is only because people have drifted from the practice of faith that was far more common, say, in the 1950s than they are today that so many social problems have become commonplace.
To be more precise, government shouldn't and can't realistically become our small 'g' god. There is only one true God, once we understand what that means. It is still on my 'to do' list for this Patch, but until I can make the time, evidence for the existence of God is found at the article linked here. God gave humanity free will. We have the ability to choose between right and wrong, between good and evil, or between things that don't involve good or evil (for example, personal taste in food is not normally 'evil' unless harmful).
People want clarity.
True faith offers that clarity.
More on these topics, along with fun, serious, lighthearted, and thought provoking columns are coming here in the days ahead. Stay tuned.
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https://patch.com/florida/lake...
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