Authored by Joel Kotkin, Bheki Mahlobo via RealClearInvestigations,
The decline of religion remains a fundamental reality in most Western countries, particularly inEurope,where over 50% of those under age 40 do not identify with any faith.Even in more religious America, some estimate thatas many as 100,000 churches will closein the near future. Meanwhile,the ranks of “Nones,”those outside religious communities, have grown so large that their numbers rival those of Catholics and evangelical Protestants.
Yet, as we document in a new report for the Chapman Center for Demographics and Policy,there are signs that religion is enjoying more than a nascent revival. Data emerging from the 2020s suggest that we are witnessing a complex spiritual restructuring that intersects with economic mobility, demographic resilience, and a profound intellectual realignment.
For the first time in decades, Pew Research notes,in the U.S. at least, Christianity hasstopped its nosediveas more people begin to see the efficacy, and the rewards, of religious faith and practice.
This fragile development is especially noteworthy as it exposes growing divides and fault lines in American politics and culture. Drawing on a vast array of longitudinal studies, interviews, and other sources, one startling finding in both America and abroad is that, contrary to past assertions, today the faithful are not poor and ignorant but increasingly from the educated upper middle class.
Even the cognitive elites are experiencing a growing trend to embrace religious activity. Indeed, in a rebuke of the aggressiveNew Atheismof the early 2000sadvanced by thought leaders such as Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens,a counter-movement appears to be growing among scientists, philosophers, and public intellectuals who view religious tradition not as a delusion to be eradicated but as a sustainable civilizational operating system.
As our politics splinter along gender –with women increasingly forming the base for Democrats and men, for Republicans – it is men who are leading the return to church.Reversing a 25-year-long trend, men reported higher church attendance than women in 2025. This growing divide may continue to separate men and women, with grave implications at a time when rates of marriage and parenthood are declining.
Even in places where religion continues to decline, the remaining faithful are shifting away from more liberal faiths to those hewing closer to traditional values. For many, more orthodox sects provide existential security and create a sustainable sense of community.
As our report makes clear,the budding religious revival taking place in the U.S. reflects a global trend, especially strong in Africa, which is now the most demographically robust place on the planet.
The implications and promise of this trend cannot be overstated. Data show that religious communities function as potent engines of human capital accumulation, risk mitigation, and social capital. These mechanisms effectively propel adherents up the socioeconomic ladder.
Source: ZeroHedge News
