6 to 7 Trends to Watch in Religion and Society in 2026
For 10 years, CRCC has looked at annual trends together as a group. When we started in 2016, we wrongly thought Trump’s violent and fearful rhetoric would not win favor. We also pointed to how spirituality is embedded in social justice movements, changing aesthetics and cultural attitudes, and innovations in communal life. Much has changed in 10 years — but we also see consistencies.
As we also look toward CRCC’s 30th year, our annual trends speak to who we are: committed to empirical truth (and willing to admit when we are off), hopeful for a more equitable and just society, and also a bit cynical and snarky (RIP Nick Street, who would joke about putting on a tin foil hat at least once during our trends meetings).
Fittingly, our trends this year look at the contradictions in our observations today and over the last decade.
- Decline vs. Revival
- Vibes vs. Political Power
- Institutional vs. Algorithmic Authority
- Take a Stand vs. Stand Back
- Tech Boom vs. Bust
- Hard Health Data vs. Social Media Healing
- Hope vs. Fear
Contributors
Christopher Baker, Ken Chitwood, Brad Christerson, Maureen K. Day, Bruce Phillips, Kimiko Yamada. CRCC team: Soraya Ahyaudin, Richard Flory, Napah Phyakul Quach, Najuma Smith, Megan Sweas
Decline vs. Revival
For a decade or more, the enduring narrative of religion in America has been the “rise of the nones.” In 2025, a new narrative emerged claiming a “religious revival.”
Among our group, responses to this trend ranged from predicting a slight uptick in religious affiliation to describing it as rearranging chairs on the Titanic of organized religion. Over the years, we have pointed to distrust of institutions and the lack of impact of religion on people’s lives — as well as the appeal of the supernatural and strong leaders in times of uncertainty. There may be both pockets of growth and decline. The desire for an overarching narrative about religious affiliation, moreover, can obscure more subtle shifts.
One trend we are following: the steadiness of “other” religions (as surveys call them). This category is up 1 percent in the last five years and more than three-quarters of people raised Hindu, Muslim or Jewish remain in their childhood faith, far higher than those raised Christian.
We also are curious about the impact of immigration on American religion. Usha and J.D. Vance’s Hindu-Catholic marriage points to questions about how children in interfaith families relate to their parents’ faiths, especially in the face of violence and hate speech directed at immigrants and religious and racial minorities. We wonder, for instance, if antisemitism will strengthen the Jewish identity of youth in interfaith families, or make it a liability. Similar questions could be asked for others adjacent to the dominant, white Christian culture. (Watch for a series of posts from CRCC affiliate Bruce Phillips on trends in the Jewish population in 2026.)
Vibes vs. Political Power
Wrapped up in the narrative of revival is an increase in the intense entanglement of politics and religion. A religious effervescence is driving and co-mingling with a political effervescence across both the far right and far left while strongly present in all points between.
Religion has cultural capital right now. “God is SO Back,” according to Glamour. We have tracked the rise in an inclusive spiritual perspective in social justice movements since 2016 (read this too), now reaching a peak with Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral victory in NYC. On the other side, Charlie Kirk’s memorial represented a cultural-political peak moment for conservative Christianity. In the UK, you’ll find parallels in Zarah Sultana and Tommy Robinson.
Again, dominant narratives about these trends matter. In today’s vibe economy, where feelings and viral momentum often outweigh facts or policy, these movements can spread even faster, driven by mood, identity and shared emotional intensity as much as by, or sometimes despite, the ideas themselves.
Institutional vs. Algorithmic Authority
Despite years of decline, Christianity continues to assert its power, thanks in large part to its institutions (see “A Leaner, and Arguably Meaner, Evangelical Church”). A new force, however, is challenging institutional power: social media. Influencers increasingly have the power to push institutions in their own direction. Within evangelicalism, we’re talking not only about figures on Kirk’s level, but also about a number of self-proclaimed public theologians with no institutional ties. They have been successfully influencing policy decisions at places like Biola University by arguing on social media that those institutions are not “Christian” (read MAGA) enough. Even within the Catholic Church, the pope can take a diocese away from Bishop Joseph Strickland, but the Internet allows him to maintain algorithmic authority, giving him a “digital diocese” that would not have been possible a generation ago.
It’s important to remember that both platforms and producers profit from stirring up controversy, and therefore the algorithm elevates such content. Further, influence campaigns (such as the outcry over Cracker Barrel’s new logo) may start in real sentiment, but AI-driven bots exaggerate how widespread those sentiments are. If it is a challenge for marketers, it is also a challenge for our wider culture. Infighting over authority in evangelical and conservative religious worlds spills over into our politics. There are direct parallels between the “boundary maintenance” within Christianity and Trump controlling what it means to be “American.”
Take a Stand vs. Stand Back
The above trends put pressure on faith leaders to take a stand on the issues of the day. We expect “compelling preaching” in pulpits and the public square to address immigration, cutbacks to our social safety net as well as foreign aid, LGBTQ+ rights, and more — from both sides of the political divide. Those advocating for Christian supremacy have received a lot of press in recent years, but other voices have begun to gain traction, from Bishop Mariann Budde’s plea to Trump for mercy to faith-led actions to support immigrants. Leaders taking a stand will contribute to the political sorting of their followers. If we are to see “revival” (or pockets of growth), might the latter narratives help liberal-leaning folks find spiritual homes?
Also watch for who is NOT taking a stand. Plenty of (mostly white) faith leaders are trying to maintain a delicate balance in polarized communities and may avoid politics in an attempt to survive the 2026 midterm elections with their communities intact. Thanks to an IRS rule change, however, faith leaders no longer have an excuse to avoid pressure from politically active parishioners to endorse candidates. Whether they can keep their communities intact may depend on the algorithmic authority of vocal members on either side of the divide.
Tech Boom vs. Bust
A survey by Exponential shows church leaders embracing Artificial Intelligence. Companies have sprouted up promising to make it easier to “do church” with the help of AI. Yet, those companies’ booths were largely ignored at the November 2025 Exponential conference. As Josh Johnson says, AI “is a tool not a replacement.” In both comedy and religion, it has limits and biases (not to mention environmental costs).
Meanwhile, our physical and social lives continue to shrink to the size of a phone. As we predicted two years ago, friendship has been commodified — unexpectedly through AI companions. People can pay for guidance from an AI Deepak Chopra. Our online environment has allowed religious figures to build significant followings (from congregational leaders like Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, Rev. Jamal Byrant and Dr. Omar Suleiman, to the podcasters on Girls Gone Bible). Some worshippers now attend multiple congregations and people consume religious content across a variety of media.
For your average congregation, maintaining hybrid communities remains a challenge, often with a declining return on investment as fewer people tune in online. As we wrote in 2024, congregations have an opportunity to offer something worth showing up for IRL (in real life).
But those who resist the digitalization of our lives are in the minority. Technology — AI, live-streaming, social media — is not going away. At our workshop on social media last year, Rev. Terry Brooks explained that in a world dominated by Amazon, people church shop online before showing up. If congregations abandon their online efforts, they may lose out on new members to congregations with a strong online presence.
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Hard Health Data vs. Social Media Healing
Over the years, we’ve tracked themes of healing and wellness emerging in activist circles — and being commercialized and co-opted by the powers that be. Now, “Make America Healthy Again” is the movement that guides our national health policies. There’s a long history of religious zeal in those seeking eternal youth and fighting the powers of big-pharma. The movement includes Christians, along with people of all faiths and none. Science is being called into question. The lack of funding for research and public health will create gaps in actionable information, whether on contagious diseases, youth risk behavior, health disparities and environmental health impacts.
Many communities have good reason to be skeptical of the medical field (grounded in exploitation rather than in conspiracy theories). Cuts to funding damage efforts to bridge faith communities and medical and public health experts. Faith leaders often want to help their members with not only their spiritual health, but also their physical and mental health. Funding cuts and unsubstantiated MAHA theories make this task increasingly confusing. Ultimately, leaders, health care professionals and patients (i.e., all of us) are left with less data and more social media trends — or responses from Dr. ChatGPT.
Hope vs. Fear
We conclude by looking back on the first trend we put out in 2016: We thought Pope Francis’ message of hope and love would win out over Trump’s violent rhetoric. Within the Church, we may have been right: The Catholic Church selected an American pope, Leo XIV, who will further Pope Francis’ vision. After all, Christian scriptures repeatedly remind us to “fear not” and respond to difficulties with hope. That message can be found across the Abrahamic faiths and beyond.
That said, we missed Trump’s appeal in 2016. One group’s hope might be another group’s fear. Those buoyed by the Trump administration’s exclusionary policies and rhetoric have had hope that those policies will improve their lives, even if at others’ expense. The chaos of the first year of his second term has only intensified in the few short weeks of 2026.
Nonetheless, we continue to find hope in solidarity. In the wake of natural disasters, immigration raids, re-militarization, and economic uncertainty, we see mutual aid and organizing focused on creating just and equitable communities. Moreover, these efforts are engaging new people and institutions, helping those who have been fearful of the future find hope again.
At the risk of looking too deeply at a silly trend, the beauty of 6-7 going viral in classrooms around the country last fall was the way it allowed people to feel like they are on the same wavelength as others. Moments of connection can be fleeting, but it reminds us of what we have in common.
Review 10 years of CRCC trends