A Secular Religion of Social Consciousness?

Frank Rich, in yesterdays New York Times, wrote a provocative op-ed piece about the waning of the so-called culture wars. ("The Culture Warriors Get Laid Off.") He drew parallels between the 1930s' New Deal politics of FDR and 2009's actions by Barack Obama: "Once again, both president and the country are following New-Deal era precedent." The precedent was a retreat of the churches in personal lives and cultural influence and a sort of secular religion of social consciousness emerged.

Mr. Rich sees a continuing decline in the influence of religion and boldy asserts: "...Obama has far more moral authority than any religious leader in America with the possible exception of his sometime ally, the Rev. Rick Warren."

And, pulling no punches Mr. Rich concludes, " History is cyclical, and it would be foolhardy to assume that the culture wars will never return. But after the humiliations of the Scopes trial and the repeal of Prohibition, it did take a good four decades for the religious right to begin its comeback in the 1970s. In our tough times, when any happy news can be counted as a miracle, a 40-year exodus for these ayatollahs can pass for an answer to America’s prayers."

In my estimation Mr. Rich's remarks point to an ever-more-apparent shift, as well as that shift's consequences, regarding religion and the American experience.

I'm starting to ponder what will be the new "secular" religion, if "secular" religion isn't oxymoronic. Will it be a contemporary form of the 1930s social consciousness?