Right after Easter, the most sacred Christian holiday, it seems odd and silly it must be said that Christ is integral to Christianity, but there are millions of self-professed Christians with only cursory knowledge of Jesus Christ. These folks are basic believers, but sadly too many do not fully understand the magnanimous magnificence of the Gospel. Yet, they are still saved. The growing tragedy is a spreading secular society that acknowledges Christianity and sometimes embraces its intrinsic goodness but denies Christ. They are not saved; they will suffer.

Christianity without Christ is hollow and fosters chaos in the same way the absence of light plunges us into darkness. Europe has been speeding into secularism like it’s some kind of virtue for over half a century and it has spawned steady societal decay. That cultural rot seemed tolerable to preserve their ostensible enlightenment and selfish indulgences (read preferred sins) as long as it was just slack Christians misbehaving, but they didn’t expect Islam with all its barbaric brutality to conquer their culture and supplant their society.

After WWII, Europe enjoyed over a half a century of relative peace and attained widespread prosperity. Despite having their security established and guaranteed by the United States, Europeans giddily and regularly admonished Americans for being too prudish, too religious, too serious, and just obsessed with working. They would scold us that “Europeans work to live, but Americans live to work.”

The European pontificating sounded harmless and they seemed to have a better quality of life with socialist universal healthcare and 6 weeks of paid vacation; and they claimed to be happier because they weren’t burdened by American social mores and by European standards our Puritan morality. Well, European government coffers are nearly empty, socialist benefits are increasingly limited, and their economies are moribund.

European economic stagnation is palpable, but their cultural collapse is catastrophic. Basking under the American security umbrella, Europeans discarded their traditional values for hedonism and worse abandoned their faith for permissive secularism.

What could go wrong? They lived in bucolic settings amid plenty, and the United States kept them safe. They deluded themselves that they were self-sufficient and morally superior, so they didn’t need to be bothered with restrictive or oppressive church teachings. It seemed the party could not end, so Europeans left their churches empty for generations. Despite centuries of Christian heritage, most Europeans do not think they need God much less even know Jesus Christ.

Well, a funny thing happened on the way to utopia. Europeans found parenthood bothersome and reproduction cratered, so they needed to import workers from the third world, particularly North Africa and the Middle East. The new immigrants were largely Muslim, and globalists realized they were diluting the Christian culture, which was the singular obstacle to imposing secular globalism, so they flung open the borders to flood Europe with non-Christians.

The globalist plan is succeeding in Europe. Average Europeans have largely forsaken Christianity, but their millions of migrants are devout Muslims. They dislike Christianity too, but they also abhor secularism. So now globalists have imported a new obstacle to secularism – radical Islam.

Surprise! The European party is over. Beyond their economic woes, Europe is rapidly losing their culture, and their society is sick and unable to resist the rise of Islam. Once supremely safe, Europe is no longer safe! Crime is skyrocketing and Europeans lack the gumption to even protect their women and children. Young girls can’t go to public pools without being groped and Britain won’t even prosecute the rampant “grooming gangs” raping their women and girls.

Conservative movements across Europe are trying to fight back, but the European elite and pop culture are still not ready to admit their failure. Finally impossible to ignore, some of the elite are starting to back track. Actor and Comedian John Cleese has spent his career castigating the church and mocking Christianity. An avowed atheist for decades, Cleese recently lamented that “the United Kingdom is based at the deepest level on Christian values, but if that is replaced by Islamic values, it will not be Britain.”

In 2024, lifelong atheist Richard Dawkins finally admitted “England is a culturally Christian country” and that he is even a “cultural Christian.” He went on to say that “if he had to choose between Christianity and Islam, he would choose Christianity every time.”

Praise God that some Europeans are finally recognizing the danger of the darkness and admitting they prefer the light, but they are still not quite accepting the light. They want some light but still wish to retain their shadows. They want the benefits of the light, but not the responsibilities of following the light and accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Europe achieved cultural and political world domination because they were the champions of Christendom and sought to spread the light of Christ wherever they went. The official title of the King of England includes “Defender of the Faith!” But they no longer take that duty seriously.

Europe is being rapidly eroded by radical Islam because Muslims are dedicated to their faith and Europeans are at best “cultural Christians” which is woefully inadequate to resist the darkness. Cultural Christians only acknowledge Christianity is good, but they don’t fully accept Jesus Christ. Yet only Christ Jesus can overcome the darkness.

Jesus can turn the tide in Europe, but until Europeans turn back to God and revival sweeps the continent, they will inevitably succumb not to secularism but Islam. It may be too late for a wayward Europe, but America must learn from their fatal mistakes. The United States is a nation of Christians that must defend the Faith and keep Jesus Christ as Lord. God save Europe and continue to bless the United States.

“I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Revelation 3:15-16

Pete Riehm is a Navy Veteran, conservative activist, and columnist in south Alabama. Email him at peteriehm@bellsouth.net or read all his columns at http://www.renewamerica.com/.