In 2021, I published “The Fight for the Soul of America,” an op-ed warning that our country was not simply in political turmoil — it was in spiritual crisis. Four years later, that warning has proved tragically prescient.
Today, I am releasing two major follow-up essays — “Christian Witness in an Age of Change and Collapse” and “Devouring Itself: Nihilism and the Fall of the American Empire” — as part of the Institute for Black Church Studies’ ongoing effort to equip churches and leaders for a new kind of ministry in a rapidly unraveling world.
Lewis Brogdon
These articles are not written for scholars alone. They are for pastors, ministry leaders and Christians who sense that “business as usual” no longer will do. As climate disasters, ideological extremism and spiritual confusion intensify, these essays help churches discern the times and recover a bold, compassionate and prophetic public witness. They speak to the soul of the nation — and the soul of the church.
“Christian Witness in an Age of Change and Collapse” helps leaders understand the intersecting global and local crises that shape our ministry contexts today. Drawing on Scripture and social analysis, it issues a clarion call: We must recover the ability to interpret our moment with spiritual clarity and moral courage.
“Devouring Itself” confronts the deeper threat behind our national disintegration — not just economic inequality or political division, but a soul-sick nihilism that has hollowed out our institutions and poisoned our moral imagination. White nihilism, in particular, has distorted Christian identity, calcified injustice has blinded many to the collapse unfolding before us.
These pieces build on the theological vision I’ve advanced through the Institute and in venues like the Courier Journal, Christian Ethics Today, and national forums including the Vatican and the White House. They are offered not simply as critiques, but as tools — for reflection, reformation and action.
We are not just in a time of decline. We are in a kairos moment — a decisive time that demands discernment and faithful response. I urge church leaders, seminarians and communities of faith to engage these articles deeply. Let them challenge your assumptions. Let them inform your preaching and ministry planning. Let them stir a new urgency in your work.
The soul of America remains in jeopardy. But the church, if it awakens, can still be a voice of truth, a vessel of hope and a force for renewal. These essays are my contribution to that awakening.
Lewis Brogdon serves as executive director of the Institute for Black Church Studies at BSK Theological Seminary.