Can the Center Hold?

Date Published: 06/30/2010

If Elena Kagan is confirmed as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, the court will have six Roman Catholics and three Jews but no Protestants. This is just one sign of the changing cultural landscape for the United States in the twenty-first century. On the one hand, some have expressed deep concern at what seems to be the loss of a shared value core for this society. On the other hand, the U.S. Constitution and democratic values preclude a religious test for public office.

A generically Protestant cultural consensus informed the development of the Constitution in 1789. This does not imply either widespread authentic Christian faith nor any sort of theocratic model for government. As immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe brought substantial Roman Catholic and Jewish populations to the United States, the cultural consensus gradually broadened to become generically Judeo-Christian. Since the last half of the twentieth century, the portion of the population has grown that would have to be considered secular. Some are convinced atheists, but most are people who are just indifferent to religion. Along with that has come a growth among those who practice non-Judeo-Christian religions. Some are immigrants but many are long-time Americans who have adopted these religious practices and worldviews.

As the cultural consensus that defined the American identity becomes broader (more truly secular people in a more pluralistic society with a growing non-Judeo-Christian population) our society is becoming increasingly fragmented and polarized. My analysis of some of the movements on the political right is that they are attempting to re-establish a specifically Protestant cultural consensus (with or without actual Christian faith). And some of the movements on the political left are attempting to preserve protection from religious coercion whether by act of law or force of culture.

Many of us, for whom our faith in Jesus Christ is the defining core of our lives, find this cultural shift unsettling. For generations we have been comfortable in a society that welcomes and reflects at least some minimal version of Christianity, even though we know it does not produce authentic Christian faith. We fear that our way of life is becoming marginalized. Some even fear that what we think of as America cannot survive without some residue of Protestant cultural consensus.

My own perspective is that as the society in which I live (the commonality of the Americas and Europe) becomes increasingly secular and pluralistic, it becomes more and more similar to what the early Church experienced before the “conversion” of Constantine and the “Christianization” of the Roman Empire. For the spiritual health and well-being of the Church, I suggest that we Christians not invest our energy in trying to return to Christendom or a Protestant cultural consensus, but that we devote our attention and energy to learning how to live and speak as an outside voice, how to become alternative society in which only Jesus is Lord.

That will not be a unified program or movement. Rather it will be conscientious conversations among ourselves and in the public square of some very different questions than are now receiving attention (more heat than light) in both political and religious circles.

1. Can the center hold?
2. What is a legitimate cultural center for a large diverse country like the United States?
3. What can Christians contribute to defining the cultural center of a secular, pluralistic society?
4. If the center does not hold, how should Christians conduct their own lives, their churches and live with their neighbors?