We had a guest speaker at my university last week. He was invited to train our faculty on integrating our teaching with biblical truth more richly and comprehensively.

His presentations were excellent, but at one point, he put up a slide that my heart palpitate a bit.

He showed us data from a recent large Pew survey that asked the question, “What do Americans count as religious extremism?”

The survey described different actions an evangelical might take (for example, trying to convert someone, waiting to have sex until marriage, or tithing) and asked different groups of people whether that specific act is an example of religious extremism. The bar graph represented three different groups: self-proclaimed evangelicals, skeptics (people who are antagonistic toward Christianity), and then just the average US adult (with no particular religious leanings).

The first question was: Does “attempting to convert others” count as religious extremism? 10% of the evangelicals surveyed said yes, while 82% of skeptics and 60% of average citizens said yes. The least controversial question was whether the practice of tithing counts as religious extremism. Zero percent of evangelicals thought so; only 13% of skeptics and 12% of the average group thought so. It is expected and uncontroversial to give money to one’s church or faith community.

The speaker’s main point was that many of our students, even those who consider themselves Christians, are probably coming in with a worldview that closely mirrors the average U.S. adult. In other words, they might think evangelism is weird, waiting until marriage to have sex is nice but not necessary, and tithing is acceptable.

However, there was one set of bars on the graph that got my blood boiling like it was the year 2020 all over again. I felt my pulse quicken as I looked at the question because its answer has been bothering me ever since COVID swept our globe.

Out of all the questions in the survey, there was one that professing Christians conceived as the most extreme religious act, even more so than proselytizing or quitting one’s job to move to another country for missions…

The question: Is it an example of religious extremism to “protest government policies that conflict with your religion?” 15% of evangelical respondents said yes! More than the 10% that said proselytizing was extreme; more than the 13% that said quitting one’s job to move to another country for missions is extreme.

You may say, “Okay, well it was only 15% of evangelicals, it’s not that big of deal…” but that means 1 out of every 6 or 7 Christians thinks this way… and I would argue that it’s actually a higher number than that.

A horrifyingly large portion of American Christians think it’s “wrong to protest the government if they enact policies that conflict with your religious beliefs.” This was the question where evangelicals are most closely aligned with those who are skeptical of the Christian faith.

This statistic explains everything we’ve endured for the past four years and the reason the church in America is the soft, progressive bowl of mush that it is now.

And please note that this only asked about “protesting” the government — which I imagine to mean speaking out against the state, asking pressing questions, or perhaps holding up a sign in front of the capitol. This did not even ask about civil disobedience or rebelling against government policies that force one to disobey God.

I don’t think most evangelicals can even imagine a world where they would rebel against the state. That level of conviction and courage is a mystery to them.

This is why so many Christians endured closed churches for months on end. This is why many Christians, even when their churches opened, followed the health “authorities” and chose to stay home and watch service on a laptop.

This is why most Christians cringe when you speak up about your very valid concerns.

Vaccine mandates.

Abortion.

“Gender-affirming care.”

These things are clearly wrong according to God’s Word, yet your fellow evangelicals would prefer you to remain silent. Don’t ask questions. Don’t act on your convictions. And don’t you dare hold up a sign, stand on a street corner, or post your opinion on the internet.

Such an act of religious extremism would be embarrassing. And, haven’t you noticed? The church is trying to be cool.

Ironically, we live in one of the few countries that allows its citizens to lawfully protest. Our government was built on the idea that people can and should speak freely, even in pointing out the government’s errors. You need not be religious to enjoy this great freedom, but if you are religious, you are a fool not to embrace this liberty to follow your God.

Christians are quick to parrot the people online who rant about “democracy being threatened!!” (mostly likely by Trump), and yet these same Christians don’t have a democratic bone in their bodies. They don’t want a government by the people for the people. They want the government to tell them what to do. And to tell you what to do. And please shut up if you don’t like that.

Oddly enough, we live in a nation of Protestants who have forgotten how to protest.