The dangerous paradox of the religious polarization of American politics

A key factor driving political polarization in the United States today is religion — not what religion you are, but how religious you are.

Here’s the paradox: Americans have been losing their religion for years.

The Pew Research Center reports that “the country has been growing less religious over time,” evidenced by a decline in the share of the population identifying as “Christian” from about 90 percent in the early 1990s to a little over 60 percent in 2022, plus a growing number of Americans who claim no religious affiliation (those with “no religion,” atheists and agnostics now...