Of Swedes and Indians
R eligion News Service reports on a Pew survey of the religious makeup of the 115th Congress: “Nearly 91 percent of members of the 115th Congress convening Tuesday (Jan. 3) describe themselves as Christian, compared to 95 percent of Congress members serving from 1961 to 1962, according to congressional data compiled by CQ Roll Call and analyzed by Pew.”
The trend is downward, but not dramatically so. Meanwhile, in the hinterlands, only 71 percent of Americans now identify as Christians. In short, “as a whole, Congress is far more religiously affiliated than the general public.”
Peter Berger once quipped that America is a nation of intensely religious Indians ruled by secular Swedes. Rulers and ruled have switched places, and we seem to be increasingly a nation of Swedes ruled by Indians - with DC, stunningly, the Indian capital!
Peter Leithart
Peter J. Leithart is President of Theopolis Institute. He is the author of numerous books on theology, literature, and culture, including Theopolitan, Defending Constantine, and Baptized Body.
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