3 Threats to Secularism in the West

In this commentary, I reflect on my recent trip to Copenhagen, Denmark, and the broader implications of living in the post-Christendom West. Walking the ancient streets and talking to seasoned church leaders I pondered two major factors that contribute to secularism, and how Protestantism has become a victim of its own success. Yet some European countries and U.S. regions buck the secular trend. Why? Considering the story of secularism—and resilient Christianity—helps us pass down a robust, durable faith to the next generation. ———In This Episode04:00 – Faith and decadence on Copenhagen’s streets08:00 – From opt-out to opt-in belief12:00 – America’s exception and slow convergence18:00 – Faith thrives under tension23:00 – The problem with establishment30:00 – Reform, burnout, and secular substitutes36:00 – Postwar humanism and its cracks45:00 – Reality intrudes on secular optimism49:00 – Three pressures on secularism and gospel hope Resources MentionedGraph of Religious Importance and Corresponding GDPGraph of Religious Attendance in the US and EuropeA Secular Age by Charles TaylorDestroyer of the gods by Larry W. HurtadoDominion by Tom HollandThe Age of Hitler and How We Will Survive It by Alec Ryrie The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis———SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen ThingsHelp The Gospel Coalition renew and unify the contemporary church in the ancient gospel: Donate TodayDon’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen:Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTubeTGC Updates Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Imagine you could save your life through one simple, regular act. You wouldn’t always want to do it. Every week you’d come up with multiple excuses. The night before would often be a struggle. Same with the morning before. Every time you finish you feel refreshed, energized, eager to undertake that day’s agenda. But then when it came time to do it again, somehow you’d still struggle to do it.Ok. I don’t know what comes to mind for you. Maybe the gym. Maybe a quiet time of Bible reading and prayer. Maybe a call or meeting with a family member or friend. But I’m talking about church and a new book by Rebecca McLaughlin, How Church Could (Literally) Save Your Life, published by Crossway and TGC.Rebecca is widely known to Gospelbound viewers and listeners as author of several of the most encouraging and successful books in TGC history, including Confronting Christianity, The Secular Creed, and Jesus through the Eyes of Women. She’s also a fellow with The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics. She returns to Gospelbound to discuss the life-changing research on what makes church good for your health.In This Episode04:30 – What Makes Church Unique08:00 – How many modern moral values come directly from Christianity 16:00 – Real Benefits, Real Belief23:00 – The Church as Family30:00 – Sharing Faith in a Skeptical World45:00 – Healing from Church Hurt48:00 – A Practical Vision for Believers Guest  ResourcesHow Church Could Literally Save Your Life by Rebecca McLaughlinRebbeca’s WebsiteConfronting Christianity PodcastFollow Rebecca——SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen ThingsHelp The Gospel Coalition renew and unify the contemporary church in the ancient gospel: Donate TodayDon’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen:Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTubeTGC Updates Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

When I see whiffle ball, and I hear the piano, I know we’re probably doing ok as a family. And when I turn on the news and see what Meta has been programming AI to engage in sensual conversations with children, I don’t feel bad about keeping my children away from social media. I wouldn’t have my job if not for social media. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve made and maintained many friends. I would miss social media. But I’m glad I had a childhood without it. Just a computer with internet contributed to enough problems. If we as parents could see what our children see on social media, we wouldn’t hesitate to keep them away. That’s why Clare Morell calls for a tech exit: “no smartphones, social media, tablets, or video games during childhood.”Morell is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and director of its Technology and Human Flourishing Project. You met her husband earlier this year on Gospelbound as Caleb Morell wrote about the history of Capitol Hill Baptist Church.In her book The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones, Clare says we’ve reached a tipping point in the fight against letting smartphones take over childhood. The key is preserving something better, something more valuable: the chance for our children to contribute to their family and community, to enjoy the bonds of families and the boundaries of neighborhoods. Clare writes, “It turns out that screens cost children more than just their time; they also cause them to lose their appetite for things of the real world.” In This Episode00:00 – Why kids need a “tech exit” in the age of AI chatbots02:52 – Addictive by design: dopamine, algorithms, and broken parental controls08:42 – Christian hope and human flourishing: forming persons, not consumers15:20 – The five-step family plan for smartphone-free childhood22:52 – Policy momentum: bans, age restrictions, and global lessons32:33 – Practical guidance for families, churches, and schools45:24 – Parents as models: rhythms, phone boxes, and screen-free communityMentioned ResourcesThe Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones by Clare MorellClare's SubstackMore from ClareAlternative “tools-only” phones:BarkGabbPinwheelWisephone SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen ThingsHelp The Gospel Coalition renew and unify the contemporary church in the ancient gospel: Donate TodayDon’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen:Apple PodcastsSpotifyYouTubeTGC Updates Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

“Does it feel like you should be happy, you want to be happy, and you try to be happy, but somehow you can’t?” What a simple, common, yet poignant question. It’s in the preface to the new book Everything Is Never Enough: Ecclesiastes’ Surprising Path to Resilient Happiness, written by Bobby Jamieson. He is the senior pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He earned his PhD from the University of Cambridge and previously served on the pastoral staff of Capitol Hill Baptist Church.This is a book about happiness that explains you’re probably looking for it in all the wrong places. Jamieson brings us into the world of Ecclesiastes and its enigmatic author, Qohelet, the world of hevel, or absurdity. His inspired words help us see our biggest problem with life is death. The epitome of pride is believing we can overcome it. We’ll never be happy until we surrender in humility to its inevitability. Jamieson guides us through three stories that guide on a life well lived: the contentment of limits, the joys of resonance, and happiness you can’t lose in this world because it comes from another. He helps us see, “Happiness is not striving for gain from life but receiving life itself as a gift.”In This Episode00:00 – Introducing Everything Is Never Enough05:30 – Who is the Preacher of Ecclesiastes?07:00 – Vanity, absurdity, and the search for meaning13:30 – Modern thinkers on money, time, and ambition22:00 – How Ecclesiastes shaped Jamieson’s life and ministry35:00 – Preaching Ecclesiastes and pointing to ChristMentioned ResourcesEverything Is Never Enough: Ecclesiastes’ Surprising Path to Resilient HappinessHartmut Rosa, The Uncontrollability of the WorldByung-Chul Han, The Burnout SocietyMichael Sandel, What Money Can’t BuyAndy Crouch, The Life We’re Looking ForC. S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters— — —📫 SIGN UP for my newsletter, Unseen Things🎁 Help The Gospel Coalition build up a renewed church for tomorrow. Let's Build Together: Donate Today🎧 Don’t miss an episode of Gospelbound with Collin Hansen▫ Apple Podcasts▫ Spotify✅ SUBSCRIBE: ▫ YouTube▫ TGC Updates Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Music and family have always been connected for me. My grandfather taught me the Christian faith largely through our Welsh heritage of signing. Shortly before he died, our family gathered around the piano as my mother played and we sang many of his favorites from the Methodist hymnal. Every night with my own family we open the hymnal and sing some of these famous Welsh hymns, including “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah.” The great Methodist hymn writer Charles Wesley wrote “Jesus, Lover of My Soul,” commonly set to the Welsh tune “Aberystwyth” (a-ber-ist-with). If you’re a fan of the TV show The Crown, you’ll recognize this song from the episode “Aberfan.”So you can see I’m partial to the old hymns. But unfortunately, we’ve worn out the binding on my old Methodist hymnal. And when I’m singing with my family, I want to include some newer songs they sing in church, songs that have played such a big role in my own generation’s faith: songs like “In Christ Alone,” “Speak O Lord,” and “The Lord Is My Salvation,” written by Keith Getty, my guest on this episode of Gospelbound.We’re talking about one of the most anticipated releases I can remember, the brand-new Sing! Hymnal, published with Crossway. In their introduction, Keith and his wife Kristyn write, “Hymns are the heart language of the church, used to sing truth to the Lord and to one another in every season of the soul. This has always been the way. . . . Our hymns hold us, inspire us, comfort us—and form us.”You know Keith Getty as songwriter of some of your most beloved songs. A choir director. A musician. A movement leader. Hopefully you’ve sung with Keith and Kristyn at one of several TGC national conferences. He joins me today on Gospelbound to discuss changes in church music, liturgy, and the legacy of this hymnal.Learn More About the Sing! HymnalSinghymnal.comSubscribe to my newsletter, Unseen ThingsTo learn more about The Gospel Coalition and our other podcasts, visit www.tgc.org Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In a special crossover episode of The Everyday Pastorand Gospelbound, Wesley Huff joins Lig, Matt, and Collin to discuss the role of apologetics in pastoral ministry. How can pastors excel in giving a compelling reason for the hope within us—and train others to do the same? Drawing from both academic expertise and personal experience, Huff offers various cautions and tips for everyday pastors and believers. He shares examples of good apologists today, recommends books, and answers a lightning round of classic objections to the Christian faith. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Summer is a time for reading. Work slows down a bit, at least for some. I’m not traveling as much to speak and teach. School’s out. I spend more time at the lake. In fact, I have probably spent more time reading on a couch next to a lake than any other place. I’ve read everything from history to fiction to theology on that couch that helps put my mind in the right place to relax then concentrate.One of my favorite guests is back on Gospelbound to talk about summer reading as we close out the spring 2025 season. Melissa Kruger is the vice president for discipleship programming at TGC and co-host of the hit new podcast, The Deep Dish. We talked about why we love reading, and why reading still matters with social media and AI. And we offered dozens of book recommendations in many different genres. Summer Reading RecommendationsCollin's Summer Reading List:Godric by Frederick BuechnerThe Fate of the Day by Rick AtkinsonThe Space Trilogy by C. S. LewisMelissa's Summer Reading List:Homecoming by Kate MortonThe Lord's Work in the Lord's Way and No Little People by Francis A. SchaefferThe Expulsive Power of a New Affection by Thomas ChalmersFor the full list of book recommendations mentioned in this episode, visit our website. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode of Gospelbound, Collin Hansen looks back on the decade since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in the 2015 Obergefell decision. He explores why support for same-sex marriage is now declining and why transgender activism hasn't followed the same trajectory. Hansen also reflects on how the church responded to this cultural upheaval and why many ministries didn’t cave under pressure. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode of Gospelbound, Collin Hansen talks with Molly Worthen about her new book Spellbound, which explores how charisma has shaped American history. Worthen explains charisma not just as charm, but as a powerful story that invites followers into something morally meaningful. She traces its roots from the New Testament to modern politics and culture, showing how our desire for control—and to give it up—reveals the stories and idols that shape us. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Collin Hansen speaks with Matt McCullough about his book Remember Heaven, exploring the themes of vulnerability in our future, the relevance of heaven in Christian life, and the motivations behind our longing for heaven. They discuss the disconnect many Christians feel towards heaven, the role of suffering, and the significance of Judgment Day. McCullough emphasizes the importance of understanding heaven not just as a distant hope but as a central aspect of Christian faith that shapes our lives today. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.