W. Bradford Wilcox writes at The Public Discourse about More Government, Less God: What the Obama Revolution Means for Religion in America. The focus is on the growth of the welfare state and its impact on religion. There will always be core of religious believers.
But other individuals only turn to churches, synagogues, temples, and
mosques when their needs for social or material security are not being
met by the market or state. In an environment characterized by ordinary
levels of social or economic insecurity, many of these individuals will
turn to local congregations for social, economic, and emotional
support. At times of high insecurity, such as the current recession,
religious demand goes even higher.
Many who begin their interest in religious communities also become true believers down the road. High welfare states become not only more secular, but in the long run they experience more social pathologies:
The problem with this Scandinavian-style welfare dependency is that
many Scandinavians, especially young adults who have grown up taking
the welfare state for granted, are markedly less likely to attend to
the social, material, and emotional needs of family and friends than
earlier generations. As a consequence, social solidarity is down and
social pathology—from drinking to crime—is up.
The state is leviathan. Do not Feed the Leviathan!
And now, Obama wants to limit the amount of money that can be deducted on donations to charitable organizations. All money hitherto must be funneled through Washington. Lord have mercy.
Posted by: NTBH | March 09, 2009 at 01:17 PM