The Cracks In Our Secular Culture—and the Hope Rising

“God is Dead.”

Those were the words of 19th century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.

While Nietzsche was most known for his critiques of traditional morality and religion, he did not mean those words in a derogatory sense to insist that God had literally died.

He was diagnosing a collapsing worldview that modern society no longer relied on religious foundations for morality and meaning. He was concerned that without a spiritual and transcendant framework, humanity would struggle to create lasting meaning or morality, akin to building life on sand.

In many ways, Nietzsche turned out to be right. Philosopher Charles Taylor would describe this cultural shift as “secularism” in his work “A Secular Age.” 

But if Nietzsche were able to see the current cultural landscape I can’t help but wonder if he would say, “God is rising from the dead.”

The Malfunctioning of Secularism

“My truth.”

“I create my own identity.”

“I can’t believe in a God I can’t see and certainly not one who won’t see the suffering I see.”

These attitudes reflect the downstream effect of secularism.

And while modern folk were led to believe that the subtraction of religious thinking combined with the addition of a new attitude of “contestability” (Taylor’s word) of different worldviews (ie. expressive individualism, postmodernism) would lead to a utopian society of human progress, I can’t help but wonder if the secular balloon has been popping before our very eyes.

Our culture has been reeling from a mental health crisis and a loneliness epidemic. We’re technology accelerated like never before (AI), interconnected like never before (social media), and experience a hyper self-aware individualism like never before. But instead of true liberation, it seems to be leaving us more suffocated than ever before.

Life devoid of trancendance and truth, what Taylor coined as the “immanent frame” that our naturalistic (non-spiritual, non-transcendant) lives is all there is, is showing itself as defective and inoperative.

The Growing Curiosity and Longing For More

With the growing cracks around the foundations of secularism, I can’t help but wonder if people all around us may be asking, “Is there more to life than this?” in a way that wasn’t entertained previously.

I can’t help but see the longing for “more” all around me.

Recently, podcasters and comedians like Joe Rogan and Andrew Shulz invited and interviewed Christian apologist Wesley Huff and asked questions about Christianity. Huff wasn’t brought on to be ridiculed. They were in serious conversation. I never thought I’d see these kinds of platforms having real conversations about the Bible and Biblical spirituality.

There also appears to be more coverage on the supernatural recently with those curious about the nature of the demonic and angelic beings.

Most clearly however, is the plateaued decline in church attendance in America. For some reason, people are starting to go to church again.

What This Means For Followers of Jesus

1. This is not a time to shrink back but to advance forward with humble boldness.

Invite the co-worker to church. Ask if you could pray for your neighbor. Pray that God would rescue your family member. Volunteer at your church.

God has always worked in the convergence of space, time, historical events which have presented divine opportunities. How do we not know that we’re currently living in one of those convergences?

2. This is not a time to let the lingering sinfulness in our lives ruin our witness before a watching world.

There are fewer better gifts a follower can give to a watching world than a holy and godly life. So what’s the issue the good Lord is currently confronting you with? Let’s repent sincerely. Confess willingly. It’s put our sin to death passionately so that the name of Christ will avoid reproach.

God in Jesus was resurrected over 2,000 years ago. He is alive and is at work in our midst. Let’s pay attention and work the advance the good news of Jesus.