The Real Truth About America: Church Attendance, Evangelism, and Giving Are All Down. Greed, Fraud, and Lying Are All Up

COMMENTARY

By David W. Virtue, DD

VirtueOnline.org

March 31, 2026

The headline demands explanation.

For years — even decades — Americans were told theirs was a God-fearing nation, made up of mostly Christian men and women who loved their neighbors. Entrepreneurs and capitalists were successful but not greedy, ready to share their wealth so that all could participate in the American Dream. We dreamed big, cared big, and gave big.

We went to war to save democracy and proclaim freedom to those in captivity. This was the image the world saw — and, for the most part, loved and respected. People came to these shores seeking opportunity and a new life. Many still do.

But the truth runs much deeper, and new technologies — with artificial intelligence at the forefront — are telling a very different story.

CHURCH ATTENDANCE

The University of Chicago recently examined millions of cell phone records on Sunday mornings and discovered that real church attendance bears no resemblance to the self-reported figure of 20 percent. People lied. The actual number, researchers found, is only 5 percent — roughly 18 million people out of a nation of 340 million, according to demographer Ryan Burge.

EVANGELISM

Only 1 percent of churches actively engage in evangelistic outreach. Recent studies indicate that 99 percent of pastors believe their congregations are ineffective at reaching the unchurched — a staggering admission that reveals a critical failure in the Church's core mission. Notably, these are not theologically liberal congregations where the Great Commission has been quietly shelved, but evangelical churches where it is presumed to be central.

Multiple surveys — most famously Barna's 2018 study — found that only about 51 percent of churchgoing Christians had even heard the term "Great Commission," and only 17 percent could correctly identify it when shown several Bible passages side by side. That means half of practicing Christians do not recognize the central marching orders Jesus gave the Church.

If one further subtracts the millions of nominal Catholics and Protestants — the "pray, pay, and obey" crowd — what remains may be no more than two million truly born-again believers. The late Anglican theologian J. I. Packer described American Christianity as "3,000 miles wide and half an inch deep." That description has only grown more apt.

Consider, too, the prosperity preachers and megachurch pastors driven by money and power. Fraud and greed lie at the heart of what has become, in some quarters, an industry. At least fifteen prominent pastors have been found guilty of financial or sexual abuse and have either gone to prison or been publicly disgraced.

GIVING

Research confirms what many suspect: while Americans claim to believe in generosity, charitable giving is declining. Studies show that nearly half of all Americans give nothing to charity — not one dollar.

Yet religion remains the single largest charitable category in the United States. In 2024, 23 percent of all charitable dollars went to religious organizations — roughly $136 billion. Divided across the U.S. population of 349 million, that works out to approximately $390 per person. Since only about half of Americans give anything at all, the average giver contributes closer to $777 per year. Generous by some measures; a modest tithe by others.

DRUGS AND ALCOHOL

As the country drifts deeper into secularism and self-absorption, America has become, in significant measure, a nation of addicts — to drugs, alcohol, and, increasingly, to death by one's own hand.

Drug addiction remains a severe public health crisis. Approximately 25 percent of Americans — around 70 million people this past year — report using illicit drugs. Nearly half of all Americans aged 12 and older have used an illicit substance at least once in their lives.

The cost of alcohol misuse in the United States runs approximately $249 billion annually. Around 178,000 Americans die each year from excessive alcohol use — a 29 percent increase from 2016–2017, when the figure stood at roughly 138,000. These deaths have shortened lives by an average of 24 years, resulting in approximately 4 million years of potential life lost.

A personal note: a driver impaired by drugs and alcohol recently crashed onto our property, striking a tree before losing consciousness near our lake. Police and EMTs found him atop our septic system. His dog was uninjured. One hopes justice was served.

EUTHANASIA

Medical Aid in Dying claimed nearly 13,000 American lives last year, though reporting practices vary considerably by state. This is a growing trend with no signs of slowing.

TRUMP, GREED AND LIES

No president in American history has profited more personally from the office than Donald J. Trump. Estimated business revenue to the Trump Organization while he was in office (first term): roughly $1.6–1.7 billion. Documented political and campaign spending at Trump properties: at least tens of millions of dollars (around $40 million in OpenSecrets’ broader tally). Documented taxpayer and foreign-government spending: millions of dollars, with watchdogs stressing that available figures are floor estimates, not ceilings. So while no single precise “profit” number exists, the evidence shows that Trump and his family derived very large, ongoing financial benefits—well over a billion dollars in business revenue plus substantial political, taxpayer, and foreign-government spending—directly linked to his time in the White House.

Meanwhile, his self-styled evangelical base keeps him in power while ordinary Americans struggle with rising costs of living, food, gas, heating, and housing.

The Washington Post’s fact-checking database recorded 30,573 false or misleading claims from Donald Trump between January 20, 2017 and January 20, 2021—about 21 per day on average.

CONCLUSION

This is the uncomfortable truth about America today. Much of the mainstream media will not report it, because doing so would undermine a prevailing narrative that blames systems rather than individuals. Victimhood, oppression, and grievance have become the dominant cultural language. "It is not your fault" is the punchline of countless television programs.

Preachers cry out for revival, but few demonstrate any willingness to change. A deep and terrifying spiritual darkness is settling over this nation. Some blame the culture wars; others point to economic stagnation. But whatever the cause, unless there is a dramatic, broad-based moral and spiritual turnaround, America is on a trajectory from which it may not recover.

It took Rome centuries to fall. America is now celebrating its 250th anniversary — and, by many measures, following a familiar path.

END