Political and religious leaders claim that America is entering a new era of faith revival. Surveys raise doubts about this assertion, though, and affirm the strong secularist trend in the country.

ven with a slight bump in the rate of church attendance following the September 11 terrorist attacks, surveys now reveal that levels are "back to normal" despite the claims -- and hopes -- of some political and religious leaders.

   Since the hijackings, President Bush has used religion as a tool in rallying the nation for his international war on terrorism, and to build support for domestic legislation including new security measures and his faith-based funding initiative. Congress has passed resolutions urging everything from display of religious symbols to a "Day of Reconciliation" slated for this Tuesday. Meanwhile, clerical leaders like Franklin Graham and Pat Robertson have proclaimed that the nation is entering the throes of a religious resurgence, comparable to the revivals of the 19th and early 20th century. Speaking recently on CNN, Robertson hailed the events of September 11 for "bringing about one of the greatest spiritual revivals in the history of America.

   "People are turning to God," exclaimed Robertson. "The churches are full."

   Maybe not. The New York Times recently noted that evidence from churches and other houses of worship along with several polling studies reveals, "that for most people the spiritual storm has passed, except perhaps in New York, where the pain of the attack in most intense."

   ¶    Figures measuring church attendance -- one of several possible indicators of a religious revival across the country -- did rise after September 11 according to the Gallup Poll. For several decades, surveys have reflected that somewhere between 39% and 43% of respondents claimed to have attended services within the previous week. In the ten days following the terrorist plane hijackings, that figure climbed to 47% -- "a noticeable rise," noted the Times, "but no more than what is usually seen during the Christmas or Easter seasons. " By early November, attendance had dropped back to 42%.

   Other studies have noted that the approximately 40% figure which has characterized responses for church attendance, may itself be inflated. A more realistic figure may be as low as 26% say some pollsters.

   ¶    Despite the claims of revival, or premature reports of a surge in the number of Americans converting to the Muslim faith, the nation's equilibrium in respect to religion remains the same, says Robert Wuthnow of the Center for the Study of Religion at Princeton University.

   "We are in some ways a very religious community," he told the Times, "But we're of two minds, and the other mind is that we really are pretty secular. We are very much a country of consumers and shoppers, and we're quite materialistic. And as long as we can kind of paste together a sense of control through our ordinary work and our ordinary purchases, we're pretty happy to do that."

   ¶    Anecdotal reports in the media reflect this same trend, where religious attendance bumped slightly after the September 11 incident, but has now returned to previous levels. The Times, for instance, noted worship rates at the Highview Baptist Church, the largest SBC congregation in Louisville, Kentucky. The Sunday following September 11, the church counted 2,626 participants, up from an average of about 2,300. That number has gradually subsided and according to associate pastor Norman Coe, is now back to the pre-attack levels.

   "The quick climb and falloff in attendance held across most religions," adds the Times.

   ¶    Christianity Today notes that while Americans are not necessarily traipsing off to church, temple or other religious services, faith seems to have become slightly more important over the past several weeks. Gallup pollsters found that just days after the September 11 attacks, 64% of respondents said that religion was "very important." That reflects only a 2% rise, though, over the 1998 figures.

   ¶    Another barometer of religious fervor is the Barna survey which found a slightly greater rise in church and Sunday school attendance figures. A November 26 report noted the "disappointment" of Christian leaders who had been expecting widespread religious revivals and soaring attendance at houses of worship. George Barna, though, noted that following the September 11 attacks, "millions of nominally churched or generally irreligious Americans were desperately seeking something that would restore stability and a sense of meaning to life." While "many" in this cohort allegedly turned to religious services, "few of them experienced anything that was sufficiently life-changing to capture their attention and their allegiance."

   The survey also found no increase in 11 of 13 key indexes of religiosity bracketing the date of the terrorist attacks. The Times reported that "Even the number of those who said religious faith was very important in their lives stayed the same."

   ¶    Rather than ignite a sweeping religious fervor, the September 11 attacks may have had somewhat of an opposite effect. One causality could be the current wave of the "clean living movement," which in past eras has emphasized everything from sexual chastity and healthy eating habits to temperance. Ruth Engs, professor of applied health science at Indiana University has studied health reform movements. She recently told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the tragedies in New York and Washington "will bring an early end to the clean living movement." She noted that societal turning points like the Civil War and World War I ended the first (1830-1860) and second (1880-1920) waves, which were often characterized by strong religious revival. "As people get concerned for survival, they're not going to worry about chocolate and their diet."

   ¶    Most striking in all of this is the disconnect between the levels of faith and church attendance, and the agenda of political leaders who have embraced the events of September 11 in hopes of enacting a flood of constitutionally suspect legislative items. President Bush, for instance, has used speaking opportunities to hammer away at the need to pass his controversial faith-based funding initiative. Other items in Congress have dealt with display of the Ten Commandments, making "God Bless America" an official, national "hymn," and celebration of a so-called "National Day of Reconciliation" slated for this Tuesday which is to include a prayer-revival session on Capitol Hill. Indeed, while Americans may see the need to combat international terrorism, that impulse does not seem to be translating into a widespread surge of religiosity within the culture. As Barna told the New York Times, "I hope Pat Robertson is right, but we don't see any evidence of it. I think it confirms that for the most part we take faith for granted, and we turn to religion in times of crisis. But after the immediate crisis passes, so does our flirtation with any kind of deeper faith."

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