Debate: Do We Need a Religious Revival?

129 snips

Mar 20, 2025

Guest

Ross Douthat, a New York Times columnist and author on religion, shares insights alongside Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a prominent activist focused on women's rights and immigration. Michael Shermer, founder of Skeptic magazine, argues the case for secularism while comedian Adam Carolla brings humor to a serious debate. They discuss the recent rise in Christian affiliation, the effects of declining religious beliefs on societal cohesion, and whether a religious revival can address contemporary moral crises.

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INSIGHT

Loss of Community and Rise of Extremism

Removing religious community leads people to seek solidarity in harmful ideologies.
This includes identity politics and conspiracy theories like QAnon.

INSIGHT

Fine-Tuning Argument

Atheism's prediction about the universe's accidental nature is challenged by fine-tuning.
This fine-tuning in physics suggests a higher purpose.

INSIGHT

Pre-Christian Cultural Values

Western cultural values existed before Christianity, as seen in ancient civilizations.
These civilizations produced art, architecture, and literature without Christian influence.

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The other week Bari traveled to Austin, Texas, to host a debate on a simple little topic: religion and whether we need more of it.

There’s a line from Proverbs that has guided believers for at least the past 2,000 or so years. It goes like this: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” But for most of our lives, this message has been turned on its head.

We can’t entirely blame the so-called New Atheists, who dominated the American intellectual scene in the first part of this century, for the death of God—for that, we’d need to go back to Nietzsche or Darwin or the Enlightenment. But the point is that for people of Bari’s generation and cohort, to be an educated, sophisticated, respectable person was to be an atheist. Or at the very least, an agnostic.

The percentage of Americans who identify as Christian fell from 90 percent in 1972 to 64 percent in 2022, while the religiously unaffiliated (the so-called “nones”) rose from 5 percent to 30 percent in the same period, according to Pew Research.The shift toward secularism has been even more pronounced across the Atlantic. Among Europeans ages 16 to 29, 70 percent say they never attend religious services.

But after years of decline, this trend may be starting to reverse. A massive new Pew survey found that the share of Americans identifying as Christian has, after many years of decline, finally started to rise again. And the share of Americans identifying with other religions is actually increasing.

So are we better off with or without God?

The other night in Austin Bari sat down with Ross Douthat, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Michael Shermer, and Adam Carolla. They came together to debate the following resolution: Does the West need a religious revival?

Ross and Ayaan argued yes. Ross is a New York Times opinion columnist. His most recent book is Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious. Ayaan is an activist and best-selling author of many books including Prey: Immigration, Islam, and the Erosion of Women’s Rights.

On the other side, Michael Shermer and Adam Carolla argued no, we do not need a religious revival. Michael is the founding publisher of Skeptic magazine and the host of The Michael Shermer Show. He, too, is the author of multiple New York Times bestsellers on science, psychology, and faith. Adam Carolla is a comedian, actor, radio personality, TV host, and best-selling author. He currently hosts The Adam Carolla Show.

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