As someone who grew up in Soviet Russia, don't let America turn into a Godless nation
Soviet Union banned all organized religion, clamped down on those who dared to worship
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former President Trump recently declared that he would not sign a national abortion ban if reelected and such a bill passed Congress, stressing in an interaction with reporters that abortion policy should be determined by individual states.
Trump, who was raised as a Presbyterian but didn’t exactly lead the life of a devout man, appears to focus his policies firmly on defending the Judeo-Christian principles that have served as the foundation of American culture since its inception. This is in stark contrast to President Biden, ostensibly a cradle Catholic but whose views on abortion prompted some of his fellow Catholics to call for Biden’s disqualification from communion. Indeed, the policies of the 46th president and his fellow Democrats appear to contribute to, if not drive, the transformation of our country into a Godless nation.
A massive change is underway in the spiritual landscape of the nation that has in its very Constitution guaranteed complete religious freedom. Modern America is steadily moving away from its religious heritage. Not only is religiosity steadily disappearing from American culture and society, people of faith increasingly have their rights undermined by the state.
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As an immigrant from Soviet Russia, where religion was outlawed and believers were persecuted, I’m gravely concerned about our society’s drift toward secularism and the government’s efforts to suppress our constitutionally guaranteed freedom to pursue an authentic devout way of life.
The latest and the most direct and egregious affront to people of faith was President Biden’s proclamation of March 31, 2024, which fell on Easter Sunday, as Transgender Day of Visibility.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Easter is the most sacred holiday of the year for Christians, who comprise approximately 63% (or 210 million) of the U.S. population. It’s been celebrated here since the Civil War. Transgender Day of Visibility, on the other hand, was created in 2009 to raise awareness about and draw attention to transgender people.
President Biden meets with the Rev. Richard Gibbons on April 14, 2023, in Dublin, Ireland. (Julien Behal/Irish Government via Getty Images)
Transgender persons comprise 1.64 million Americans, according to a 2022 study conducted by a UCLA Law School think tank, which used data from surveys done by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Adding insult to injury, the White House prohibited religious-themed designs from the art contest held for children of the National Guard during the Easter Egg Roll on the White House lawn.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This is not the first time the state wields its power to promote secularization of our society. Last December, some government apparatchiks across the country sought to take Christ out of Christmas. Some jurisdictions introduced guidelines for "inclusive decorating practices" and "neutral language" to mark the holiday season.
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Two trans people hold hands while marching under a trans pride flag in the New York City Pride Parade on June 26, 2022. (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
Local government officials instructed their staff to replace the red and green colors with neutral tones, avoid religious ornaments, and use gender-neutral nouns such as "snow people" instead of "snowmen" in order not to offend some members of the community. Are religious Americans no longer part of the so-called community? Evidently, it’s OK to offend those Americans, trample on their constitutional right to properly celebrate Christmas, a religious holiday, using religious symbols.
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Some in the Democratic Party have been promoting anti-God sentiment, offending devout Americans, for several election cycles as it is courting religiously unaffiliated voters. In 2019, the Democratic National Committee passed a resolution praising the party’s religious "nones." The document called on Democratic leaders to listen to the concerns of "religiously unaffiliated Americans," characterizing them as a group that "advocates for rational public policy based on sound science and universal humanistic values."
People attend the annual March for Life rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 19, 2024. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
In contrast, the narratives coming out of the Democratic Party messaging machine portray churchgoing Americans as stupid, old-fashioned, nationalistic and radical in their views. Christian nationalism is a new term that’s frequently attached by the Democrats and leftist media to the Christian faith. Such commonsense concepts as two genders, marriage between a man and a woman, pro-life, mother and father, parental rights are portrayed as radical ideas.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Protesters rally in support of abortion rights on May 3, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
Under Biden’s presidency, attacks on religious liberty and Americans of faith have reached unprecedented levels. Biden’s 2021 Build Back Better legislation reportedly blocked religious facilities, such as churches, synagogues and schools, from using infrastructure funds for improvements. In November 2021, Biden reversed a Trump-era rule that protects the religious liberty of faith-based organizations that contract with the federal government, allowing them to hire people who specifically hold their faith beliefs.
In March 2021, Biden’s then-press secretary, Jen Psaki, refused to say if Biden would force doctors with religious objections to perform abortions. In his 2022 budget, Biden called for the repeal of the Hyde Amendment, which protects American taxpayers from being forced to fund abortion.
Flowers bloom in front of the Salt Lake Temple in Salt Lake City in August 2015. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has the highest attendance rate among U.S. religious groups, according to a recent Gallup survey. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
It is little wonder that America appears to be on the trajectory of becoming more and more secular. Church membership has been on the decline for the past two decades, but in 2020, it fell below the majority for the first time. According to a March 2021 Gallup poll, 47% of Americans said they belonged to a church, synagogue or mosque, down from 50% in 2018 and 70% in 1999.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Indeed, last month's Gallup research showed attendance at religious services had declined in most U.S. religious groups. Only three in 10 Americans say they attend religious services every week (21%). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the most observant, with two-thirds attending church weekly or nearly weekly. Protestants rank second, with 44% attending services regularly, followed by Muslims (38%) and Catholics (33%), according to Gallup.
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Contributions to religious organizations remain at a historical low of 44%, and volunteering is down.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}As Biden is gearing up for the 2024 election this November, there are no signs that, if re-elected, America’s chief executive and the Democratic Party would halt their assault on Christians and religious freedom.