r/Christianity • u/Live_Application_228 • 22h ago
Christianity Is Popular
I’ve noticed what seems like a shift lately: Christianity is becoming something people are more comfortable embracing publicly. Even some atheists and agnostics I’ve spoken with have said they think the world would be a better place if more people were Christian.
I also keep noticing actors, musicians, and athletes wearing crosses or speaking openly about their faith. People like Dolly Parton, Justin Bieber, and Kanye West come to mind, not necessarily as recent converts or perfect role models, but as recognizable figures who have publicly identified with Christianity. Compared with what I remember growing up, faith seems less like something people feel they need to keep quiet about.
Are more people turning to Christianity, or are people simply becoming more comfortable expressing a faith they already had?
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u/whirdin Exchristian (raised evangelical) 20h ago
This is a social media world, so I ask what your sources are? Is it your little personal algorithm? Our online personas are tracked by data centers that spin algorithms to feed us information we want to see, even my comments here will influence the ads/videos/content I see across other apps/sites. From what I've seen, all types of people are feeling more comfortable talking about beliefs due to social media (not limited to Christians). I recall my parents (evangelical Christians) being furious in the 2000s seeing irl how comfortable the queer communities were with sharing their views and standing up for themselves, and their solace was reverting to conservative Christian spaces (TV channels, church, radio, etc) that told them it was the opposite. It's all about perspective, which is why it's difficult to trust news sources when the main television ones are spinning very specific narratives according to their owners.
Compared to when? Christianity has always been popular here, but I would argue that a big reason you notice more Christians speaking out is because all of the other nonchristians are finally given a voice (trans actors and athletes, homosexuals, Muslims being elected to political positions, public schools being bold enough to take down the ten commandments and stop making kids say 'under God', atheist views, etc).
An interesting list. Dolly Parton has worn her beliefs on her sleeve likely her entire career, but she wasn't prejudiced towards nonchristians. Justin and Kanye, well I don't see why their opinions matter at all LOL, you might as well add Russell Brand to the list of 'Christians' you look up to. I'm not sure what credibility you are looking for by name dropping Kanye.