A new figure is appearing on the political horizon that does not bode well for the conservative movement in America. That figure is the cultural Christian.
For decades, culture and Christians have been associated with the Culture War centered on the hot-button issues of abortion, marriage and other moral topics. Christianity provided the dynamic component in this war, bringing many a victory to the conservative movement. What made this effort effective were Christians who refused to compromise on morals and faith.
The Rise of the Cultural Christian
The new cultural Christian represents an entirely different mixture of culture and faith. Such individuals do not see religion as a profession of faith or even the following of a moral code. They do not practice but merely identify with the faith.
Theirs is a secularized Christianity that is reduced to a “cultural identity marker” without any special spiritual commitment. Their attachment to Christianity is limited to those cultural values that prove helpful in opposing today’s suffocating woke agenda and liberal culture. Thus, they have little regard for adoration of the One True God or faithful obedience to His Law. These newcomers tend to abandon the old Culture War.
This misguided strategy of promoting these shallow Christians will end in disaster. This trend dilutes the Christian message so that cultural Christians enjoy all the trappings of Christianity without the observance of its strict moral code.
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The leftist magazine, The New Republic, warns these individuals without firm beliefs are taking over the conservative movement.
A Dangerous Trend
What makes the trend so dangerous is just how little it takes to be a cultural Christian. The label can apply to just about anyone under the least pretext. Those who show any slight sympathy for vague Christian values can earn the title. Even the most scandalous personal life can be overlooked when pursued with this moniker.
Thus, the cultural Christian label applies to a vast array of positions that radically depart from traditional Christianity.
For example, the most noted self-identified cultural Christian is Elon Musk. He is reported to be the father of twelve children (eight through IVF) from three women. He is heralded as part of this movement because he says he appreciates some vague Christian values.
Others do not even have to self-identify as a cultural Christian to qualify. It is enough for celebrities and influencers to make offhand religious comments to have people grant them the cultural Christian badge. This is the case of the foul-mouthed podcaster Joe Rogan, who some see as a cultural Christian because he recently told one guest, “We need Jesus.”
One need not be Christian to be a cultural Christian. It suffices to be spiritual. Despite his Hindu bona fides, proclaiming “God is real” at a campaign stop earned Vivek Ramaswamy a place in the ranks.
Finally, a person does not even need to believe in God to be a cultural Christian. The supreme example is famous atheist Richard Dawkins, who now self-identifies as a cultural Christian because he thinks Christianity does some good in society. He is joined by the atheist pop Jungian psychologist Jordan Peterson, who resonates with some Christian tenets but never converts.
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Such shallow commitments to Christianity and corresponding questionable personal lives can never play the transformative role needed to bring about profound changes in society.
Putting Religion into a Cultural Box
The rise of the cultural Christians reflects an effort to shift the narrative from religious and moral issues toward cultural perspectives. These figures admit there is nothing wrong with religion as long as it fits into a cultural box.
“We should understand religion, not as the moral foundation upon which the nation’s culture and morality are constructed,” writes national conservative writer Oren Cass, “but as the form into which many ideas and much experience were poured—shaping them and holding them upright.”
Thus, religion becomes an identity, a label or a box with a great cultural value but without any need for faith or morals. Cultural Christians claim this framework helps both believers and non-believers oppose the corrosive forces of woke ideologies and chaos that threaten the world.
Cultural Christians, especially non-believers, embrace the immensely fruitful cultural effects of Christianity without returning to the cause. They see no need to worship God or keep His Law. Changing the external culture suffices.
Excluding God from History
This conclusion is where the cultural Christians go wrong. By limiting themselves to promoting the effects of Christianity, they effectively exclude God and His action upon society from the debate.
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Thus, the reaction to woke tyranny is gutted of its most dynamic elements. As Catholic thinker Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira notes, the grace of God and the practice of virtue are the driving forces of any counter-revolutionary reaction.
In cultural Christianity, all official recourse to God is discarded in this secular vision that denies supernatural reality and forces Christians to act as if God does not exist.
But, of course, God does exist, and in His Providence, He safeguards His people. Christians should act accordingly by embracing, not denying, His action.
There can be no Christianity without Christ. From the very beginning, Christians have always changed the culture. However, the greater danger is when a secularized culture pretends to be friendly and tries to change Christians to its image and likeness.